The way the shirt lays over his $40,000 suit is not ideal. It doesn't really fit over all the layers he's wearing even though it is all boxy. And he's not going to button it up because he is going to wear this for approximately ten minutes and then stuff it into the trash.

He is losing years off his lifespan for every moment he wears this.

At least the eruption of sound from Skulduggery unfreezes Max from his stupor. He's basically blue screened and needs to be rebooted. But the sound that Skulduggery makes, which sounds like giggles but might also be sobs, actually causes him to look up.

"Oh fine. Go ahead then." said tersely as he expect Skulduggery is going to burst into hysterical laughter while pointing directly at Max.

He just sits there. Waiting. Trying to tell himself he's been through so much worse than that. Having his memory wiped? That's worse. Being interrogated by Reaper? Worse than this.

But that also had been out of his control. This was him losing. Which feels like it's also his fault.

So he's having trouble setting it aside and concentrating on the many other terrible things that have happened to him. It would be so much nicer to focus on the time he almost had a hole blasted in his chest by Null Sector. Ah, happier times than right now.