He's not chauvin--okay. He kind of is. Sometimes but he means it in the best way possible. He steps forward just behind Topher, not quite an arm's length but not close enough to make Topher really uncomfortable.

When the vines start working on him, Victor's eyes go wide and a little panicked. He looks to Topher and tries not to flail his hands like an over excited teenage girl.

"Topher...Topher!"

He's not panicking because it hurts or because it's harming him. Really the vines kind of tickle but they're so foreign and unfamiliar, he can't help it. Especially when paired with everything else that's happening that he doesn't understand.