The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate

"Thanks for that, Mr. Gardner."

Sophia's voice was warm and gentle as she expressed her gratitude.

As her soft voice hit Brandon's ears, his thumb paused on the phone screen mid-scroll through his emails, then he casually

continued as if nothing had happened.

Sophia didn't notice him. She followed Zachary into the house, handing over the health supplements she was carrying.

"Here, | brought snourishing goodies for you and Mrs. Gardner."

"You showing up is plenty, why bother bringing gifts? Seriously."

Zachary playfully chastised her as he took the supplements from Sophia and ushered her inside. It was only when Sophia stepped

into the living room that she noticed Brandon sitting on the couch, causing her to hesitate for a moment.

Thinking she was surprised to see a stranger in the house, Zachary explained with a smile, "We've got a guest today. | was just

about to introduce you."

Zachary moved to stand between Brandon and Sophia.

"This here is the current CEO of the Starlight Group, Mr. Brandon Crawley." He said, gesturing towards Brandon before turning to

introduce Sophia, "And this is Sophia Yearwood, one of my former students, fresh out of Apex Engineering University."

Brandon glanced at Sophia, his lips moving slightly, "Hello."

Sophia, a bit hesitant, returned the greeting, "Hi."

"No need for formalities between you youngsters." Zachary chuckled, "You guys chat for a bit; I'll go see if Jolin is done in the

kitchen."

He turned to leave, and Sophia instinctively followed, "Maybe | can help out?"

Zachary stopped her, "You're a guest; no such thing to help out. Just sit tight and keep our guest company for a bit."

Zachary glanced at Brandon with a smile, "Have a chat, will ya?"

With that, he disappeared into the kitchen, leaving the two young people alone in the living room.

Other than Zachary's little granddaughter rocking by herself on the other side, the spacious living room only contained Sophia and

Brandon.

Brandon had settled back into the couch, casually flipping through a newspaper from the rack next to him, calm and focused, not

looking at Sophia.

Sophia also sat down on the other end of the couch, her gaze falling on the little girl playing by herself.

On the long couch, the two sat at opposite ends, without any conversation.

The little one, puzzled, glanced over at the two adults, and then, seeing Sophia looking quietly at her, grew curious. Her rocking

horse cto a halt, and she slid off and ran towards Sophia, stopping just short, shyly looking up at her.

Sophia smiled and opened her arms, "Chere for a hug, Serena."

The little girl tentatively inched closer and slowly nestled into Sophia's arms. Sophia lifted her onto her lap and picked up a picture

book from nearby, flipping through it with her.

After a brief moment of shyness, the little girl warmed up and began eagerly discussing the stories on the pages with Sophia,

occasionally glancing up with hopeful little eyes.

Sophia gently stroked her hair and listened patiently, offering praise that made the little girl even more excited.

Brandon glanced over at them, his expression momentarily perplexed.

As if feeling Brandon's gaze, Sophia turned her head in confusion, their eyes unexpectedly meeting, and she saw the surprise on

his face. Her smile stiffened slightly, and her embrace around the little girl unconsciously loosened.

Brandon snapped out of it, his attention shifting back to the newspaper in his hands.

Zachary, coming out with dishes, cast baffled glances at those two; his brows unwittingly furrowed, not able to understand the

strange atmosphere between them.

He couldn't help but nudge his wife, Jolin, who was holding sdishes also, “Why are they not chatting?”

Jolin took a glimpse at the two in the living room, “Maybe there are not many topics to talk about.”

“They are like the sage; there's supposed to be easy to bring up any topic,” Zachary frowned the entire time.

Jolin didn’t reckon it was a bit deal, “It'll be better once they get more in touch.” Then she called for those two from the dining

area, “Come, the dinner’s ready.”

With that, she continued with fetching the dishes from the kitchen.

Brandon put down the newspaper, stood up and went there to help. The little girl Sophia held before had already left her and ran

toward the table. Sophia, too, walked in the kitchen.

Almost at the stime, these two held the dishes and placed them on the table. They didn’t deliberately distanced themselves

from each other.

When the dishes were put down, Sophia's fingers touched the back of Brandon’s hand by accident, which made her flinch away as

if she got burnt by fire.

“Sorry,” Sophia apologized gently. Without any reply, Brandon lowered his eyes, his feelings unfathomable.

Zachary observed the weird vibe between the two and, mistaking it for Sophia's shyness around the opposite sex, encouraged

everyone to take their seats with a laugh.

The two were seated next to each other. During dinner, Zachary chatted about Sophia's student days and gradually steered the

conversation towards personal matters.

"Sophia, got yourself a boyfriend yet?" He asked out of the blue.

Sophia, a tad embarrassed, shook her head with a smile, "No."

"What about someone you fancy?" He continued.

Brandon, in the midst of eating, paused and turned to look at Sophia. Sophia's embarrassment grew as she shook her head at

Zachary, "No one."

"Perfect timing then!" Zachary beamed, "Both of you are single, no crushes, and around the sage. Why not give it a shot and

get to know each other?"

"No need."

"No need."

Their rejections cout in unison, clear and simultaneous.

Zachary was taken aback, not expecting a synchronized denial and looked at them quizzically. Neither of them looked at the other,

remaining calm in their own space.

Seeing Zachary glance her way, Sophia gave an awkward chuckle, "I'm not in the market for a boyfriend right now."

Zachary shot Brandon a questioning look; the latter coolly met his gaze, "Ms. Yearwood and |, we're not a good match."

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