I've been through a lot worse than a needle to the ear.

[Still, he sets the needle down for the time being. Mostly because Junpei's being a downer.]

Had them for most of my life. Then one day I wake up in a strange place and find that, somehow, they're gone and my ears look they've been without anything in them for months.

I'd ask how something like that happens, but at this point? It's the least of my concerns.