"You just sound really rough, mate. Anything I can help with? And no, I don't speak Serbian..." His face splits into a sudden grin. "Could you teach me? Always good to have a couple of nice back-up cusses in mind."

It's a trick he learnt when dealing with jumpy patients. Distraction factor while raising self-esteem... kind of. He leans closer, trying to appear casual. Those same jumpy folk sometimes used to turn hysterical.