. . . , so is he, that he could do with Martin's company.

[shootingstar]

'Is the plan still to meet for lunch?' Martin says, glancing over at William in the passenger seat.
They're half an hour out of Swansea. They've listened to music, they've sung and they've laughed. They haven't talked about anything that matters.
'Yes, there's a pub not far from Mum's.'
'I'm going to duck out, if you dont mind.
'You? Give up the chance of food? What's going on?
'I'm going to meet Gloria.' He winces. 'She's scared.'
'Fair enough,' he replies, realising that now they are close, so is he, that he could do with Martin's company. but mostly, the thought of Gloria being scared to see him squeezes his heart.

(From A Terrible Kindness by Jo Browning Wroe, Part V, Aberfan, scene 62)

I have an issue with the underlined text. I don't have any vestige of a guess what that could mean. What does "so is he" refer to? I surmise it means William is scared as well and the clause "that he could do with Martin's company" is saying William would be very grateful for Martin's company too. I'd like to put it as "realising that . . . , he feels exactly the same and (feels) that he could do with Martin's company". The clause "realising that now they are close" could have a local meaning - they are close to a certain place.

 

[SoothingDave]

It's really hard to follow who is saying what here. This is poor writing.

They're on a train or something, it seems. They are close to their destination. I have no idea what Gloria might be scared of.

But this William seems to be realizing that, as the train gets close, that he, personally is also close. Which seems trite. "We're almost there, therefore I am also almost there."