Eloise's nose-wrinkling was met with a smile more genuine than he'd ever given so closely following the thought of his late wife. It was just cute. It usually took a long time to raise his spirits after something like what had just happened, but Eloise just had one of those smiles that was hard not to reciprocate.
He was surprised to feel her tug the earbud from his ear, but he turned his head slightly to make it easier for her.
Yet again, Eloise's smile in the face of his dark past showed him exactly how different she was than anyone else. Even Leah, when faced with the slightest glimpse of emotion from him had fled like the rooftop they'd been standing on had been on fire. But not Eloise. She hadn't run and she hadn't made him feel guilty.
She did, however, react.
He watched her go from tapping the pencil on the page and then draw a smiling face, and his own smile grew. When the question mark followed, he tilted his head in intrigue, slightly amused by the whole thing.
He slid his own pencil from the charcoal, a deep sky blue that was more used than the others; his favorite color in the box without blending. He sketched a smile of his own on the opposite side of the page; the mouth was curved slightly less than one of the standard happy faces, but it was happy. Peaceful. Like hers.
When she giggled, he responded in kind with a soft chuckle of his own, turning to cast her a gentle glance. "Before I say anything, realize that I mean this in the best way possible, but… you're not like most other people, are you, Eloise?"