The silence is a bit of a buffer as Prior thinks to feel a little bad for guilting Kyle out of his guilt. He's sure it won't last, and neither should it.

"Things probably weren't easier, you just didn't know any better," Prior points out. "Survival instincts and all." Even if his had parents that cared and were willing to share their own perspectives, odds were pretty good that through a combination of sheltering and underestimation, they left poor Kyle to fend for himself (emotionally, if not otherwise) more often than not. Certainly more than society says is right.

"You're right, though." He ashes his cigarette, turning this way and that to observe the length of the beach. "This isn't right."