[Sighs... he doesn't understand his crazy father that well, how is he supposed to know? He didn't even know he'd done that until just now!]

To put you at ease? [That's a gay answer he tries to say lightly in case it's too much. Not that the next one is any better-] To get my attention and cause me to go to him, perhaps... We've never seen eye-to-eye, so I couldn't possibly know what he was truly thinking.