[ Jax shrugged. He barely had to think about it. He went with the rationalisation he has given himself (despite all of his internal, and a little external, complaints about mingling). ] I like meeting new people, some times. [ As a football player it had been important for him to socialize. And as a could have been, an injured high school graduate who needed to work, those skills kind of fell to disuse as his classmates moved on with life and his family, his job had become his priority.

Yet in both scenarios, despite adapting to circumstances and environment, Jax considered himself fairly sociable. ] And I figured this was a good place and time to just that.

We've got some of that too. [ Jax stated after a thoughtful mod. Vasquez' words bringing to mind the number of times he'd ended up forming connections through a shared cause ... among other reasons. ] I've met some of the most important people in my life that way.

[ Jax snorted in good humor but he shot Vasquez a curious sideeye. ] I can handle myself, man. Eat how you want, I'm betting I've seen worse. But I hold the right to shove your hand out of the way if it reaches for something of mine. [ He grins to show he's joking. Mostly. After the crew and church events, Jax knew how to protect his plate along with whatever else he might want to the table. A dirty look could go a long way. ]