Unable to hide behind the menu, Bruce picked up the nearly wrapped silverware and began playing idly with the binding that kept it together. He looked down at it as she spoke, listening to her words.
Making himself look up at her, Bruce smiled and nodded, "I wanted to help you. You're a good person who deserves a shot at a normal life, just like the rest of us." He set the roll of utensils down, figuring that social etiquette banned people from toying idly with napkins instead of talking.
"I'm glad that we met, and that you and I are friends. We would have stayed friends regardless of the tabs or not. Or, at least I'd like to hope so." He could be very disagreeable when the situation came that the other part of him was let loose. But he hadn't had that happen in a good while and things seemed calm enough that he doubted he would outbreak again any time soon.
"So how have you been?" He hadn't heard from her lately, hadn't seen her around. Of course that was a lot to do with him being a hermit and tied up with work in the lab, he could have called or texted, even visited more often if he wanted to. But he was curious just the same.