The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate

Chapter 24

Sophia’s band twitched as she switched shoes, but she quickly composed herself Slipping into her slippers, she looked up at him and explained. “Got a hands on class today, heading to the construction site Walking in heels would be a nightmare, so I swapped them for flats

Brandon’s gaze landed on the trench coat she was wearing “A trench coat to a construction site?”

“Well Sophia’s voice hitched. “We change into our uniforms at school before heading to the site. We gotta dress the part, you know

Brandon gave her a skeptical look but didn’t press further

Sophia squashed the nervous flutter and dawdled over her shoes, hanging up her bag filled with medicine and medical reports at the entryway. As she withdrew her hand, she couldn’t help but second quess herself and cast an anxious

glance at Brandon

Brandon’s attention had already shifted to the room

Sophia’s place was a simple studio apartment The kitchen and bathroom were side by side at the entrance. Beyond that was a makeshift living area with a small sofa and coffee table, and further in was a bed and a closed-off balcony. The interior was clean and bright decorated in a refreshing Nordic style with a hint of countryside charm. Sophia’s living habits, much like when she was married, were laid back and casual. Her room was tidy but dotted with carelessly placed trinkets For instance, the coffee table was spotless, yet the white tabletop was home to a bamboo basket crammed haphazardly with knick knacks Among the clutter Brandon spotted a piece of paper that looked like a medical report his brows furrowing slightly as he walked towards the coffee table

Sophia’s gaze involuntarily followed Brandon’s, landing on the medical report carelessly placed in the basket. Her heart skipped a beat, and instinctively she reached out and tugged at the hem of Brandon’s clothes

Brandon turned to look at her, his piercing black eyes filled with questions

Sophia forced a calm smile “By the way, you haven’t eaten yet, right?”

Her hand stealthily pushed the bag, with the buzzing phone inside, back into place, unaware of the device’s persistent

glow

Susan stared at her phone as it repeatedly reminded her, “The number you have dialed is currently unavailable, and she felt a wave of panic. She didn’t know how Sophia was doing

Earlier, after witnessing Sophia throw up twice and hurriedly hang up the call, Susan had been on edge, worried something might have happened to her friend.

But at the time, she was entertaining a client and couldn’t break away to call Sophia. Later, seizing a moment to duck into the restroom, she managed a quick call to Sophia, who was on her way to the hospital. Susan could hear the unease in Sophia’s voice, clearly flustered, even though Sophia reassured her that it was just a stomachache and she wanted to get it checked out. When the test results came back clear, Sophia immediately sent them to Susan to ease her mind. But Susan was swamped and didn’t have time to respond. Now that she finally had a moment, Susan realized that Sophia had only mentioned the clear test results, not the baby’s condition or her own. Frantically worried, Susan texted Sophia for an update but got no response

Phone calls also went unanswered, and Susan’s mind was racing with all sorts of scary possibilities, fearing something had happened to Sophia. After another failed attempt to reach her, Susan decided to

call Ivan instead.

Ivan picked up after a few rings.

“Hello?

Susan’s voice was edged with panic as she spoke to the clear male voice on the other end, “Ivan, are you home? Could you check on Sophia for me?”

Ivan was in the middle of a meal, but his voice turned grave, “What’s wrong?”

dont know for sure. Sophia’s been throwing up since noon, and she mentioned spotting so she went to the hospital t couldn’t talk to her properly because I was busy, and now i don’t know how she’s doing. I sent her a WhatsApp

message, but she didn’t reply. She’s also not answering her video calls or phone.” Susan was on the verge of tears. “I’m worried something’s happened to her. Can you please check on her at her place?”

“Okay,” Ivan said, putting down his utensils and standing up “Don’t worry. I’ll go take a look and call you later.”

With that, Ivan hung up, grabbed his jacket and keys from the coat rack, and left.

Back at Sophia’s, Brandon caught a glimpse of the light from her bag and nodded towards it. “Phone.”

Sophia glanced back at the small bag, which wasn’t big enough to hold much.

She had stuffed her phone inside when heading to the hospital and hadn’t taken it out since. The medical reports and medication were also crammed on top inside the bag Sophia didn’t dare to open it.

She wasn’t ready to tell Brandon about her pregnancy, and she wasn’t sure if there was a need to, as today’s encounter was unexpected

Seeing the hesitation on her face, Brandon’s gaze shifted back to her bag. He glanced at it, then back at her face. “You hiding something from me?”

Sophia instinctively shook her head, “Nope. Just some realtor calling. No biggie whether I answer or not.”

To convince him, she turned and reached into her bag, fumbling for her phone

Brandon watched her careful movements, then asked, “Is there something in your bag I shouldn’t see?”

Sophia quickly shook her head again, “Nothing like that.”

Her hand found the phone but felt the medicine and papers on top. She tried to slide the phone out without moving anything else, but Brandon stepped forward, reaching out to open her bag himself, startling Sophia into pressing down

on his hand.

The cool, delicate touch of skin met skin, and Brandon looked at her, “Why are your hands so cold?”

“It’s been getting colder lately, Sophia’s voice faltered, and her hand hesitantly retreated

Brandon didn’t insist on opening the bag. He just looked at her and noted, “I thought you got over that a couple of years ago?

“Maybe I just can’t cut it here,” Sophia said, her hand clutching the phone in her bag tensed up slightly, hesitating whether to just whip it out. Her heart fluttered with indecision, seemingly at sixes and sevens.

Brandon frowned slightly, looking at her, “You’ve also lost a fair bit of weight, I remember you used to be pretty good at rolling with the punches in new places.”

Sophia glanced at him hesitantly. As long as Brandon was willing, she had nowhere to hide in front of him.