Layland turned his head enough to watch Cian out of the corner of his eyes, interested in this man who was so much like a puzzle. "No, the feelings aren't real." He paused then, focusing on something else Cian said. This person actually didn't know who he was. Layland was surprised and a little miffed at that. Even the people he'd never met recognized his name here, but not this person. Suddenly, he was a little bit more inspired to figure out just who Cian was. "My name is Layland. Layland Richards. My father is...nevermind. That's not important," he said, shaking his head.

"She's..." He turned his gaze back to the tree and watched as sunlight filtered down to dance along the concrete path. "Yes, she's very important. A painter. She captured my heart the first time I saw her," he managed to say. A smile softened his features for a few seconds as he pictured her dark curls and bright lipsticked lips as they parted for a laugh. He turned to look fully at Cian. "I am sorry you got caught up in this." Something very close to real apology colored his voice which is much more than most people would get. Advances in science were not made by playing nice and saying 'sorrys', but this had started with a matter of the heart and that was something different altogether.