Chapter 2


    Brandon bee-lined home.


    It was his first time ducking out of work to head back


    His pad, spick and span, no longer had any traces of Sophia, except for that divorce agreement on the


    coffee table, all mussed up by the breeze.


    Brandon reached for it


    The agreement was straightforward. Sophia didn’t want a thing. What was hers before the marriage


    stayed hers after


    Her signature was already on the dotted line


    Her handwriting was gorgeous, all flowy and elegant.


    Brandon zoned out staring at the signature on the divorce papers.


    No clue how much time had passed when the rustling sound of the door opening snapped him back to


    reality


    Brandon whipped his head toward the entrance.


    Patricia had just stepped in, and his sudden nce startled her big time


    “What’s up?” she asked, puzzled, clearly noticing the flicker of hope on Brandon’s face slowly fade into


    dead calm.


    “Nothing much, he replied coolly. “What brings you here?”


    “I was worried Sophia might be bored stiff at home alone, just dropped by to keep herpany,


    Patricia said with a smile, moving towards him, “What’s with the sudden home run today? Something


    up with Sophia?”


    As she spoke, her brows furrowed with concern, her head turning towards the room.


    Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.


    “She’s fine, Brandon said, looking at her, “Do you drop by often?”


    “Not really, just now and then.”


    Patricia’s face was painted with awkward embarrassment, and upon finishing her sentence, she saw


    Brandon’s brow furrow


    She quickly changed the subject to the papers in Brandon’s hand “What’s that?”


    Reaching to grab them, but before her fingertips could touch the documents, Brandon pressed them


    down first.


    “It’s nothing. Brandon said, looking at Patricia, “No need for you toe over if there’s no issue.


    Sophia’s got her work. cut out for her. We’lle visit you when we get the chance.”


    “She, Patricia began, almost blurting out “What work could she possibly have?” but quickly bit her


    tongue, “Alright then.


    She couldn’t help but remind Brandon, Sophia’s been recuperating for over a year and still no baby


    bump. I hope she hasn’t got some lingering issues. Have her get checked at the hospital when she


    can. I wouldn’t want troubles with having kidster.


    Brandon said. “It’s the kid I didn’t want.”


    Patricia looked at him, baffled


    Brandon issued the boot. “You better head back, and don’te around unless it’s necessary.”


    Patricia’s mouth hung open, wanting to protest, but ultimately, she shut it under Brandon’s icy stare,


    and turned to leave.


    Brandon watched the door close, nced around the house now devoid of Suphia’s presence, heaved


    a long sigh, picked up his phone, and dialed his assistant Kent. “Kent, set up a meeting with thewyer,


    gotta sort out this divorce


    Huh? Kent was taken aback. Wasn’t it just yesterday he’d sent Sophia over? They didn’t seem to be at


    odds.


    Brandon hall aiready hung up, tossing the divorce papers on the coffee table and stepping out the door


    Sophia moved back to her smell suburban house.


    She’d bought it before getting hitched, just the right size for her solo living.


    But it was in this tiny ce where she and Brandon had their one-night stand, which led to the


    pregnancy that bound them together unwillingly.


    That night, she couldn’t resist her buddy Susan Cooper’s begging and tagged along to the high school


    reunion.


    Who would’ve thought Brandon, the guy who never showed up to these things, would be there too?


    After high school, she and Brandon lost all contact, didn’t join the ss group chats or reunions. They


    were like ships passing in the night, briefly crossing paths before vanishing into their own worlds.


    But Brandon had vanished even morepletely.


    No one knew where he’d gone or what he’d done. Whenever Sophia casually prodded her high school


    friends, there wasn’t a peep about Brandon.


    So, bumping into Brandon after all these years, Sophia was a mix of thrilled and nervous. The crush


    she never dared to voice was swirling in her chest, but she never found the courage to spill it, even


    talking to him was stiff and formal, especially with him sitting right next to her their proximity made her


    even stiff and reserved.


    Nervous and afraid it’d show, she hid behind eating and drinking, unwittingly getting tipsy


    Brandon, perhaps out of neighborly duty, volunteered to take her home after the party.


    Sophia lived alone, and although she was a bit drunk, she wasn’t out cold. Still, the alcohol did a


    number on her bnce. In her tiny one-room house, she tripped over shoes left by the door as soon as


    she entered. Brandon, quick on the uptake, caught her and in the inertia of the moment, she ended up


    in his arms. The lights were off, Brandon had had a few himself, and whether it was the booze or the


    night’s spell, when their gazes met, the chemistry was undeniable. Alone, tipsy, and with the man she’d


    pined over for years, their locked eyes became impossible to break away from, and as their breaths


    drew closer


    Sophia wasnt one for casual hook-ups. She’d never even had a boyfriend, but that night, she got lost in


    Brandon’s deep. soft, yet intense eyes


    It was the gaze and the man she’d fantasized about countless times.


    That night, they indulged to the fullest, both inexperienced but incredibly passionate.


    She hadn’t expected Brandon to be as green as her in love and other matters.


    With his family background and looks, it was impossible he couldn’t have had a girlfriend.


    But over those two years, Sophia understood why Brandon had been single a man wholly devoted to


    his work didn’t have the spare effort or time for romance


    His strict upbringing also made him a stickler for clean living.


    That night was probably the only slip-up in his life.


    And for Sophia, too.


    She had her life all mapped out.


    She majored in architectural design in college and had a decent amount of talent and skills. She was


    looking to get some advanced training and was already getting her ducks in a row to apply to the


    School of Architecture of Apex Engineering University. But one unexpected night threw a wrench into


    all her ns.


    She never saw iting. She was pregnant.


    They hadn’t yed it safe that night, and because they let loose a little too much, they both overslept


    the next day. With


    view to rush to, she didn’t have time to swing by the pharmacy for the morning-after pill. She was also


    kind of ng her fingers, hoping that she was in the clear since it was supposedly her safe period. But as


    fate would have it. she was caught off guard.


    Wine Sophis found out she was pregnant, she was at sixes and sevens


    But Brandon was talking marriage, having the kid and all that jazz.


    It had only been a fortnight since that night, and they hadn’t been in touch since. Sophia hadn’t nned


    on telling Brandon in the first ce, but as luck would have it, she bumped into him at the hospital


    where he was visiting his grandpa.


    She was a bit red-faced and wanted to keep the test results under wraps, but it was toote.


    Brandon caught a glimpse of the HCG report she was hiding behind her back, and reached out for it.


    “Let me see


    Just a simple, calm sentence, but it wasced with an aura that brooked no argument.


    Hesitantly, Sophia handed over the results.


    After staring at the report for a bit, Brandon asked her, “What’s your game n?”


    Sophia shook her head, clueless. She hadn’t anticipated this baby, and its arrival had totally scrambled


    her life ns.


    “I’m leaning towards us getting married and having the baby, Brandon said. “But the ball’s in your court.


    If you’re not up for it, I won’t push


    “Getting married?”


    Sophia was gobsmacked. She thought Brandon was pulling her leg, but then she saw him nod


    earnestly, “I’m serious.”


    He gave her a couple of days to mull it over.


    Sophia had been sweet on Brandon for years, but she never imagined that one day he’d pop the


    question.


    Torn between confusion and longing, she took two days to think it over and then told Brandon, “So, let’s


    tie the knot.” Just like during a divorce, he simply nodded in agreement, “Okay.”


    On the third day, they picked up their marriage certificate.


    It seemed absurd, yet somehow it all fell into ce


    But Sophia never imagined that she and the kid weren’t meant to be.


    Nor did she expect her marriage to Brandon to fizzle out before their third anniversary.


    It was a whirlwind start and a whirlwind finish.


    The past two years felt like a dream.


    Surrounded by familiar things in her house, Sophia felt an aching emptiness inside.


    She reyed the night she almost tripped over a shoe and he caught her, the intense look in his eyes


    haunting her.


    She could still remember the focus and the emotional turmoil in his eyes, and even now, her heart


    skipped a beat at the thought.


    She had thought that was love.


    That he, like her, had harbored feelings for many years, which led to that night’s passion.


    Turned out, it wasn’t the case. He was just a bit too tipsy, that’s all.


    Her heart ached with this realization.


    Sophia remembered overhearing a tiff between Brandon and his father in the study a few days ago


    when she was visiting his ce.


    “Your grandpa was gravely ill back then. He was fond of you and wanted to see you married before he


    passed. You didn’t want him to leave with regrets, so you rushed things with Sophia. It just so


    happened that she was pregnant with. your child, so I didn’t say much. It gave your grandpa peace, but


    it’s been two years, and that child wasn’t meant to be with you guys You’re not nning to drag this out


    for a lifetime, are you?”


    Tve got my reasons. Mind your own business.


    “How can i not? They say liquor leads to trouble, and look at you. Because of Ynda Frost, you


    wouldn’t date anyone, and then you go to some damn reunion, and next thing you know, that woman


    sneaks into your life.”


    “Dad” Brandon abruptly cut off his father Daniel Crawley, his tone icy. This is my fault, not Sophia’s


    “Alright, alright, I won’t talk about her. Every time shees up, you jump to her defense I’m just


    asking, what if Yndaes back? Don’t forget, you were engaged to her


    “She’s nevering back”


    Sophia could tell that Brandon’s voice faded a bit. It was one of the rare moments she could detect a


    different emotion in his usually calm demeanor. Clearly, this “Ynda girl held a special ce in his


    heart.


    This was the first time Sophia had heard the name Ynda, and she felt a bit dazed.


    She couldn’t quite pin down her feelings. It was just a sense of bewilderment but no aversion or


    resistance, even a slight curious affinity for the name


    She didn’t dig into who Ynda was. There was no need. Her issues with Brandon had nothing to do


    with anyone else.


    She was just conveniently there when he needed a marriage to appease his grandfather.


    Now that his grandpa was gone and the child that required his responsibility was also gone, there was


    no need for them to be tied down for life


    Sophia knew that unless she spoke up, Brandon would probably never bring up divorce. He’d continue


    to coexist with her, uneventfully passing the days


    But Sophia didn’t want to continue.


    This wasn’t the marriage she wanted.


    She wanted a husband who she loved and who loved her back, not necessarily loaded, but someone


    who was considerate, warm, someone who could turn mundane life into contentment, not a man who


    saw her as an obligation with someone else in his heart.


    So she brought up divorce, an idea that had been germinating for six months but had left her on the


    fence.


    And as she expected, Brandon let go without much fuss


    He probably breathed a sigh of relief, Sophia figured.


    The heaviness in her chest persisted as she pressed a hand to it, surveying the small space once


    brimming with her hopes. The difort intensified, but there was also a faint sense of relief, like she


    was finally cutting herself some ck.


    After a while, she picked up her phone and called the real estate agent who had helped her buy the


    house. “Hi, I’d like to sell my Sunset Vi property. Could you handle that for me?”


    The agent remembered Sophia-soft and pretty, young, with a sweet temperament-she had left a strong


    impression.


    “Of course, no problem at all, he replied cheerfully. “Are you nning on upgrading to a bigger ce?”


    “No, Sophia chuckled, deftly steering the conversation away. “Just take care of it for me, thanks.”


    Brandon’s assistant Kent stumbled upon the listing for Sophia’s house for sale two dayster. He’d


    been looking to move somewhere closer to work and was browsing properties online


    Sophia’s pad was just a stone’s throw from Brandon’s biz, popped right up when he snooped for digs


    nearby.


    He’d been roped into helping with the move when Brandon and Sophia tied the knot, and her ce was


    decked out all nice and tidy, so it stuck in his mind, spotted it in a heartbeat.


    He just froze on the spot, couldn’t help but sneak a peek at Brandon in the inner office.


    Brandon had him on deck to deal with the divorce mess, so he was clued in about the split between


    Brandon and Sophia


    In his book, Brandon and Sophia always seemed solid, not all lovey-dovey like some other newlyweds


    but far from Bitter halves with no beef that’d call for a divorce.


    He was baffled why they’d suddenly call it quits.


    Brandon had been anything but a picture of post-divorce gloom these past few days, aside from that


    out-of-the-blue dash out of the meeting room, he had been business as usual.


    If anything was off, it was that Brandon’s clocking more hours at the office, practically moved in, and he


    was cracking the whip harder on work.


    Everywhere he went. folks were walking on eggshells. The whole office was under a cloud of everyone


    for themselves. Kent figured the divorce had to be messing with Brandon somehow, maybe the two


    lovebirds were just going through a rough patch.


    He was on the fence about spilling the beans on Sophia’s house sale to Brandon; to him, selling the


    house was like she was making a break for it.


    You can patch things up while they’re still around, but once they’re gone, game over.


    He didn’t want to keep slugging it out in this gloomy vibe.


    So there he was, all twisted up and spacey.


    Until Brandon’s gaze suddenly broke away from hisputer andnded on him. “What’s up?”


    Kent almost jumped out of his skin. “N-nothing.”


    Brandon said, “Nothing? You’ve been eyeballing me for an age.”


    “I, uh Kent was in a pickle.


    Brandon said, “Spit it out.”


    Kent bit the bullet, swiveled his phone screen toward Brandon. “Looks like Sophia’s gonna sell the


    house. She might be on her way out.”


    He saw Brandon’s hand freeze on the mouse, thought for sure he’d have something to say, but


    Brandon just coolly shifted his gaze back to the screen.


    “And? The calm and chilly rejoinder.