Reed took the phone from her, and Suzie instantly struck a dramatic pose, one hand on her waist, the other pointing toward the Eiffel Tower like she was some famous model.
"…What? Are you going to take all the photos here on the road?"
Reed grumbled, causing Suzie to pout in turn.
"Just take the photo!"
With a sigh, Reed clicked the photo. Suzie ran back, snatched the phone, and squealed happily.
"It's perfect!"
"This girl is truly hopeless."
Sophia shook her head to which Suzie puffed her cheeks out.
"Mom! At least don't nag me here in Paris for the time we are going to stay!"
Sighing again, Sophia looked towards Reed and asked softly.
"Do you want a picture too?"
Reed froze, he didn't answer immediately. In his past life, he had never taken pictures because there was no point, no will and no peace take one.
At that time the world had already died and photos... They were just painful reminders of things you could never return to.
But now…
Reed glanced at the Eiffel Tower again.
The sky was blue, the flowing wind was gently caressing his face, Suzie was laughing and Sophia was smiling. At this point of time, the world was still very much alive.
Reed nodded.
"…Sure, why not."
Suzie gasped dramatically.
"Dear Reed, please pout your for the next photo~."
"Don't tease him."
Sophia chuckled while Reed... He just rolled his eyes. Suzie grabbed his shoulders and pushed him into position as she stretched his lips upward with her fingers.
"Stand there! Smile! As for pose... Umm... Like this... Stand like this. Yup!!"
Reed's face twitched.
"Suzie."
"What?"
"Tease me again, and I'll sell you to the French."
Suzie instantly stepped back, offended by his comment and insistance on sell her off.
"You're always threatening to sell me!"
Sophia raised her phone and smiled.
"Alright. One… two… three."
*Click*
The photo was taken, Reed didn't smile widely, but his expression wasn't cold either. A small smile adorned his face, giving hints of the thoughts he was having right now.
Sophia stared at the photo for a second, then nodded in satisfaction.
"This is good."
Suzie leaned over and looked at it too, she blinked a few times, looking back at Reed and then the photo and then Reed yet again
...
"…You actually look quite handsome."
Reed raised an eyebrow.
"Actually?"
Suzie coughed awkwardly, her cheeks burning and turning red like a tomato.
"I mean… you always look handsome, obviously."
Reed smirked faintly, while Sophia shook her head, amused. Suzie, on the other hand, to distract them from her embarrassment, suddenly pointed toward a nearby street.
"Food! Delicious street food! I wanna eat some good french food! Hehe~."
Reed glanced over, there were vendors selling crepes and pastries. Suzie's eyes sparkled like a predator who had found prey. She ran ahead as Sophia called out from behind.
"Suzie! Be careful, don't run!"
Suzie shouted back without turning.
"I'm not running!"
Sophia rubbed her forehead.
"Sometimes I wonder how much of a fool she can be."
They spent the afternoon wandering through Paris because Suzie dragged their foot everywhere.
From the Louvre, to the Seine River, then the Arc de Triomphe. Fashion boutiques that Reed couldn't understand but the two women were very very interested in.
Every time Suzie saw something shiny, she stopped like a magnet had pulled her, Sophia walked behind her calmly, but Reed could tell she was enjoying it too, even if she pretended not to.
At one point, Sophia sat on a bench near the river, resting her feet. Suzie... was busy buying macarons. Reed sat beside Sophia, his gaze fixed on the water.
For a while, neither spoke, just the wind was blowing away their hair and the sunlight dancing on their head and the surface of the river as it slowly faded away.
Sophia's voice broke the silence.
"Reed, you seem… different."
Reed turned only to find her looking straight at him, gently.
Reed's forehead furrowed slightly.
"Different?"
Sophia nodded.
"Yes. How do I say this, you feel more… steady... More calm... but also more tired... not at all like your cheeky self before. I know the trauma did its part to you. But... your change is just... too bizarre."
Reed didn't respond.
Sophia's fingers tightened slightly around her handbag as another hand of hers gently grasped his, squeezing it softly.
"You've been carrying something alone, haven't you? You can count on me, always."
Reed's heart skip a beat at that, but his face remained calm. Sophia, getting no response, continued, her tone soft.
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. But… I hope you know you're not alone."
Reed stared at her. For a moment, he almost wanted to tell her everything. How the apocalypse could in a while, how the zombies could tear people apart, how the defeated becoming one of them.
How hunger, cold, heat, stress, loneliness can make humans the most dangerous, the most inhuman being possible.
But Reed swallowed the words down, he couldn't, not yet. So Reed only smiled faintly.
"I'm fine."
Sophia looked unconvinced, but she didn't press further. Instead, she placed her hand on his shoulder gently.
"Whatever it is… I trust you."
Reed's eyes softened.
"…Thank you."
At that moment, Suzie returned with a bag of pastries.
"Hey! Why are you two sitting like an old married couple?"
Sophia instantly glared.
"Suzie!!"
Dumbfounded by her own reply, she laughed awkwardly.
"Haha, i-its a j-joke, a joke... sorry~."
Reed sighed as he took a pastry from her bag.
"Your brain is truly beyond saving."
Suzie gasped.
"Hey! That's mine!"
Reed bit into it calmly.
"It's now a shared resource."
Suzie pouted.
"You thief!"
...
Night.
They stayed in a luxurious hotel near the city center.
Suzie immediately jumped onto the bed, rolling around like she had never seen a mattress before.
"This is so soft! Mom! Reed! Look!"
Sophia sat on the couch, removing her shoes.
"Don't jump too much, you'll fall. And Reed has gone to his own room."