"Is that sarcasm?" Nate asks, raising an eyebrow. He could assume that Sam is talking about Other Nate, the one that he apparently knows in the future. But Sam knows that Nate doesn't remember that, so it wouldn't make any sense to reference it like that. Nate came to Darrow after being in the desert because he got in a fight on a goddamn plane and fell out of the sky. If that's not a fight, he doesn't know what the hell counts anymore.

"My face seems to encourage people to hit it," he muses, only half-joking. He knows it's more likely his tendency to run his mouth than anything else, but he has gotten hit an awful lot in his life, and he doesn't think that can all be blamed on him. "This asshole turned up and he was being an asshole," Nate explains, repeating for emphasis. "Said a bunch of crap about me being a good for nothing lowcolour - whatever that means - and then told me get on my knees and lick his shoes. So I hit him."