The silence fell abruptly after that, lingering for quite some time - time in which that steak was quite possibly the most fascinating thing on this planet or any other, what with how picky he was being about cutting it; when he finally did speak again, his voice was quiet, and he kept his eyes focused low on the table as opposed to her face.

"It was a genuine question, Miss Altava, not anything intended as an accusation; I've had...problems, with knowing how to respond to difficult situations in the past - I've been told my responses are often inappropriate, and I honestly don't always realize. If it was possible that I had hurt you without realizing, then I wanted to know so I could rectify the situation. That's all."

And that was entirely, if technically, very true; the inappropriate responses were usually just...far more offensive than anything that may have happened here.