Re: Corner Couch: Jason/Banner
Jason nodded, appreciative. "Ghost social." Ever the skeptic, he glanced from left to right and saw no one else mingling near their chairs. There was no condemnation in it, lord knew he'd run from the small talk as soon as possible, but it was funny, and a little sad. "Come on, I don't believe you can't talk to people. You talked to me one time and got me to say shit nobody should say to a first-time acquaintance. You've got that therapist, spill-it vibe, but you can't talk to random strangers about their dresses or the food?"
He leaned back. "Look, I say it's a game. When I ended up with Bruce, I had to figure out a way to get through a conversation with an heiress, and I made up a bingo card in my head. Did I compliment her jewelry? Check. Did I say something nasty about somebody else at the party? Check. That's all you've got to do, is tell them what they want to hear. They're about as deep as this drink, all they want is somebody to keep them from the nothing in their own heads for a minute."
"Let's hope so," he said, taking another sip of the drink, shifting the ice and listening to it clink. "Cheers," he said, in response to the compliment, reaching over and tapping the base of his glass on Bruce's where it sat. "So people tell me." He cleaned up okay. He tended to do well at the occasional society event he was forced to attend mostly because of the chip on his shoulder, actually, and not the tux. Bored socialites liked something different, and somebody who seemed vaguely angry about the whole expensive affair was just perfect to piss off whoever they came with.
Jason quieted, though, when Bruce started talking about Betty in earnest. He almost never brought her up, and Jason knew practically nothing about her. "Sounds like the right girl for you," he said, then immediately doubled back, since the plan hadn't been to bum Bruce out about his ex. "I mean...you know." Good. Good save. He looked into his drink. "It's always a long night around here," he said. Now he was feeling weird about saying a stupid thing. Parties!