The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 550

Brandon tried clicking on the draft box, but the page was dead as a doornail. Clearly, only Sophia's linked phone had the magic touch to get in and edit stuff.

Brandon had no choice but to back off, staring at the phone screen as messages like "Brandon, let's make up," "Brandon, I'm sorry," and "Brandon, happy birthday" kept popping up and disappearing, without him making a move.

He could almost picture Sophia, phone in hand, hemming and hawing over her words, her hesitations flickering on the screen with every typed and deleted character.

Maybe she didn't know what to say, or maybe she did, but felt that given the odd vibe between them, those words just didn't sit right.

The unique boundaries they had, unlike other couples, made her weigh every word she said to him.

They were close enough to already own a kid together, but there was this distance, a closeness that was intimate yet strangely aloof.

Although she didn’t stay close to people, she wasn't the type to be cold or distant with others. Whether with Susan, Cindy, or even Don and Kent, she managed to keep up normal social ties. But around him, she was all politeness and restraint, probably because he never gave her that signal that she was different from everyone else.

She grew up in a chilly home without a shred of warmth, and no doubt, as a kid, she must've been desperate for that parental love. She might've tiptoed around, trying to please everyone in the family, but to no avail. As people like Laura and Aaron, her gesture would only meet with more scolding or worse from. Over time, she stopped showing her longing for love.

Her feelings for him were the same. Deep down, there was still that little Sophy, craving love but too scared to reach out.

She loved him, but he never made a move towards her, never told her he felt the same, so she never dared to close the gap.

Her "Brandon, let's make up" must've taken a ton of mental prep before she worked up the courage to write it, only to delete it for fear of seeming off. She switched to a softer "Brandon, I'm sorry," and finally settled for the harmless "happy birthday."

He could guess what she was apologizing for, probably feeling guilty about ignoring his peace offerings and her stubbornness about leaving him, thinking she hurt him, so that was why she wanted to apologize.

Even though she was the one who got hurt the most in their marriage, she was always the one saying sorry.

"I'm sorry."

Watching the words "Brandon, I'm sorry" slowly emerge on the screen like a typewriter, Brandon whispered an apology as if Sophia was on the other end of the phone, chatting with him.

When the screen switched to "Brandon, happy birthday," he couldn't help but crack a smile. It was as if Sophia was standing right there, gazing at him with her usually calm, gentle eyes, and saying in her soft voice, "Brandon, happy birthday."

He hummed in response, his voice choked up and barely audible, but his lips still curled upwards.

The smile deepened when he saw "Brandon, let's make up."

"Okay." He said softly, as if not to spook the Sophia on the other end of the line, "Will you come back, please?"

But there was no response. Just the cursor moving to the next sentence, "Brandon, I'm sorry."

Brandon's lips were still curled in a slight smile, his eyes wet and indulgent, as if Sophia was right in front of him and this "I'm sorry" was just her playing hard to get.