[ Normally he'd join into this chit-chat, but tonight he just grows antsy. He shifts, glancing around now and then at the rest of the room, wondering irrationally if he should go and talk to someone else. But he has someone right here, and someone who's just gotten him a drink, at that -- he stays. Not happily, but he stays.

He musters up a smile at the question, and the mask makes it just as friendly as any other. ]

Well, that's a risk that every man takes, when he writes his number on a stranger's hand. I can hardly blame you. As for me, I've been... [ The pause here is just embarrassing. He's been the opposite of fine, but lying about it has never been difficult before. ] Fine. [ The smile grows. ] Just as everyone else around here has.