The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate

Sophia was at the airport waiting for her flight when she received the message.

Susan, Theresa, and Grace were hanging out with her.

She had wrapped up all her work with Ivan that morning, touched base with the clients around noon, and handed off the project to

Ivan. Only after making sure everything at work was squared away did she head out to the airport.

Susan and Grace brought Theresa along to the airport separately.

Since this was a spur-of-the-moment decision to go on a long trip, there wasn't enough tto plan a destination or pack properly,

so they just grabbed their IDs and sessentials and took off.

They bought their tickets at the airport, opting for the next available flight, destination unknown.

Thanks to the off-season and the fact that it was a weekday, they scored tickets with ease.

She didn't plan on vanishing without a word, but saying goodbye in advance wasn't an option either—she was worried about

complications.

She did draft emails to Don and Brandon to explain and apologize; she just set them to send later.

She'd clear the air with the work group chat in time.

Upon seeing Cindy's message, Sophia stared at her phone silently for a bit, then replied, [Don't sweat it, no worries.]

Her nonchalance was a huge relief for Cindy, who quickly messaged back, [Thanks, Director Yearwood.]

But still a bit anxious, Cindy asked, [Won't this affect you, though? | mean, Mr. Crawley seemed pretty upset about it.]

[It won't, don't stress,] Sophia texted back, [I'll handle it. Just focus on your work and don't mind the rest.]

[Thanks, Director Yearwood,] Cindy sent another grateful message, [By the way, where did you go? Are you coming back for lunch?

Mr. Crawley packed lunch for you—it's still on your desk, might be cold now. Shall | heat it up for you?]

She attached a photo of the unopened lunch box.

Sophia opened the photo. The lunch box was a big portion, carefully packed, sitting quietly on her desk.

Looking at the photo, Sophia spaced out for a moment, remembering how he had offered to have lunch with her that morning and

she had said, "Let's do dinner."

She had lied to him.

In fact, as soon as she told Don not to take a leave of absence, she was already organizing today's departure.

She knew Brandon had sensed something, but they just didn't call each other out on it.

Sophia didn't know what Brandon was feeling when he packed that lunch, probably believing that she wouldn't and couldn't leave

just yet.

Feeling a bit sad, Sophia rubbed her phone screen, not moving, her eyes turning slightly red.

There were a few missed calls from Brandon on her phone.

She hadn't answered them, didn't dare to.

She even planned to cancel the SIM card as soon as the plane landed.

Susan, sitting next to her and engrossed in her phone, glanced up and noticed Sophia's reddening eyes, asking with concern,

"What's up?"

Sophia shook her head, "It's nothing."

She turned her head slightly to hold back the tears and sent Cindy another message. [No need, thanks.]

Then she put away her phone and didn't look again.

Theresa sat in her lap, fiddling with a Rubik's cube, and sensing Sophia's mood swings, she looked up confused and asked,

"Mommy, what's wrong?"

Sophia managed a smile for her, "I'm fine."

Her gaze lifted to the boarding gate in the distance.

The boarding area was still quiet.

Although it was nearly boarding time, there was no announcement calling passengers to board yet.

Susan couldn't help but check her watch, "I hope the flight's not delayed."

Sophia shook her head, "I don't know."

She glanced around, "I'm going to the restroom."

Susan took Theresa in her arms, "Go ahead."

Theresa quickly slid off Susan's lap, "I want to go too."

Susan chuckled at her, "Didn't | just put a fresh diaper on you? Why do you need the restroom?"

"| want to go with Mommy," Theresa whispered, softly grabbing Sophia's hand.

"You little shadow." Susan teased her with a laugh.

Theresa blushed a bit but didn't let go of Sophia's hand.

Sophia looked at Susan, "It's fine, I'm just going to wash my hands, I'll help her wash hers too."

The restroom was crowded with people trying to use it before boarding their flight.

Sophia carefully washed Theresa's hands, who obediently let her, initially watching the water flow over her palms but then turning

to Sophia, noticing the redness at the corner of her eyes.

"Mommy, did you cry just now?" Theresa couldn't help asking Sophia with hesitation as she turned off the tap.

Sophia smiled at her and softly reassured her while stroking her hair, "No, sweetie. | just got something in my eye from the wind.

Don't worry."

Theresa was relieved and nodded earnestly, "Okay."

Then she snuggled into Sophia's arms, whispering softly, "Mommy, | love you so much."

Sophia felt a lump in her throat, almost tearing up, and hugged her a bit tighter, "I love you so much too."

Theresa turned a bit shy and burrowed deeper into Sophia's embrace.

After holding her for a while, Sophia set her down, tidied her clothes and hair, and then took her hand to head back.

Back in the waiting area, there wasn't much activity; everyone calmly sat waiting for the boarding call.

The boarding announcement hadn't sounded yet.

Sophia glanced at her watch; it was tto board, but there was no call yet—probably a delay, but no telling for how long.

She thought back to the apologetic text from Cindy and the several calls from Brandon, feeling a twinge of unease, and looked

towards the crowded waiting hall.

The hall was packed, the boarding staff hadn't arrived at the gate, and there were no signs of boarding starting anytsoon.

Sophia was fiddling with her phone, her fingertips brushing against the screen hesitantly. After a moment of indecision, she picked

it up and called Susan. "Hey Susan, how about we switch up our ride."

Her words trailed off abruptly as she spotted a tall figure approaching through the crowd, and she couldn't help but slow her pace

down.

Brandon had spotted her too, and his steps gradually cto a halt, his gaze shifting slowly from her face down to Theresa, whom

she was holding by the hand.

Theresa, oblivious to Brandon's presence, was craning her neck to look at a boutique they were passing by, its shelves stocked

with all sorts of pretty toys and gifts.

She was quite taken by the display and tugged at Sophia's hand, tilting her head up to say, "Mommy, can we go in and check it

out, please?"

Kent, who'd been trailing behind Brandon, cto an abrupt stop, his eyes widening in shock as he looked from Sophia to

Brandon.

Brandon's gaze had drifted back to Sophia's face, and he stood rooted to the spot, silent, his eyes fixed on her with an intensity

that made his Adam's apple bob violently with emotion.

Sophia turned her head slightly away, biting her lip hard, too scared to meet Brandon's eyes, her complexion ghostly pale.

Without waiting for Sophia's response, Theresa gave her hand another puzzled shake and called out again, "Mommy?"

Sophia managed to squeeze out a tight smile and gave a small nod, her throat constricted.

Thrilled by her mom's consent, Theresa happily dragged Sophia towards the store, excitedly pointing out, "Mommy, look, | wanna

see this one."

Brandon turned his head slightly away too.

The afternoon sun spilled through the large floor-to-ceiling windows, bright and dazzling.

Amidst the blinding light, Kent caught a glimpse of Brandon's throat working furiously and the hint of red rimming his eyes, a faint

shimmer of moisture almost visible.

But with the light glaring from behind, Kent couldn't see clearly.

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