The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate (Brandon and Sophia) novel Chapter 753

Brandon’s hopeful, careful gaze made Sophia’s heart ache with sadness and guilt.

She shook her head gently, her expression full of regret and apology.

“Does it… bother you that much?” she asked softly.

Brandon shook his head. “No, it doesn’t.”

“I just thought…” He had thought she’d remembered everything, and forgiven everything.

He gave a small, almost self-mocking smile, choosing not to finish the thought. Instead, he reached out and ruffled her hair with a gentle hand.

“As long as you’re okay, that’s all that matters,” he said, his voice warm.

He stood nearly a head taller than her, so when he reached out like this, his arm rested comfortably across her head—it was an oddly tender, almost protective gesture. Ever since he’d brought her back home, he seemed to enjoy this little habit of his, ruffling her hair whenever he could.

“Did you use to do this a lot?” she asked quietly.

Brandon shook his head. “No.”

That, too, was a regret of his.

Sophia smiled faintly.

“Brandon,” she said softly, “before the divorce, you didn’t really love me. Not like you do now, at least. Isn’t that right?”

Brandon wasn’t sure why she was bringing this up all of a sudden.

“I can’t really argue with you about that,” he replied just as quietly. “When it comes to love, the person on the receiving end is the only one who really knows how it feels. If you couldn’t feel it, then the problem was with me.”

“Do you regret the divorce?” Sophia asked.

Brandon nodded. “I regret it every single moment.”

“And you?” He looked at her.

“I think… I probably don’t regret it.” Sophia pressed her lips together, tilting her head up to look at him. She saw the way, as soon as she spoke, a flicker of resigned self-mockery passed through Brandon’s eyes.

She couldn’t help but squeeze his hand lightly.

“I’m not finished,” she said. “Last night, when I saw that letter, it hit me just how sad I was—realizing that was my life, my marriage. If we’d never gotten divorced, I think the next few decades would have been exactly like those two years—two polite strangers sharing a roof, never truly together. I’d spend my whole life longing for love I’d never get. It would’ve been so bleak, so empty, with not a trace of happiness. I’m glad I chose to leave when I did.”

Sophia looked at him. “At the time, I must have loved you a lot, didn’t I?”

Brandon pressed his lips together and nodded. “Yeah.”

“So when I decided to end things… it must’ve hurt a lot.”

Even now, as she spoke, her throat tightened unexpectedly. Even without her memories, the pain seemed to be carved into her bones.

Brandon was silent for a while, then nodded gently. “Yeah.”

“It was after the divorce that you realized you couldn’t live without me, wasn’t it?” Sophia’s voice was barely above a whisper.

Piecing together what she’d learned from that letter and his words, she was certain: it was her leaving that finally woke him up.

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