Chapter 47


    “Ever seen that bracelet?” Brandon asked.


    Sophia snapped back to reality shaking her head in confusion, “Nope


    But Brandon’s eyes were still glued on her, “Your peepers are telling me a different story though, you


    know it.”


    Sophia still looked like she was at sea, just as clueless.


    Brandon had never seen such a spaced-out look on her face before.


    Instinctively, he grabbed her arm, “Sophia?


    The pain snapped her back to the moment, and she looked at Brandon, whose handsome face was


    etched with


    concem and a barely noticeable anxiety, a burning need to uncover the truth.


    Seeing no one was paying her any mind. Marian, who was in the middle of a hissy fit, got even more


    ticked off and moved closer to the pair, “What’s the deal with you two? Were you even watching where


    you were going? What if you had bumped into someone?


    Sophia’s attention was pulled back, and she quickly apologized to Marian, “Sorry about that, it was our


    bad. You’re not hurt, are you?


    It was only then that Marian got a good look at Sophia, recognizing her as the girl from the exhibition


    whom she’d almost knocked over the day before, and said, surprised, “Oh? It’s you?!”


    With a flick of her wrist, she brushed it off, No sweat, I’m not hurt. Just make sure to watch the road


    next time, don’t go.


    running into people again.”


    It wasn’t until after she finished speaking that she realized the guy staring at her was the same one


    who had grabbed her wrist at the hotel entrance that day. Especially when Brandon’s gazended on


    the bracelet on her wrist, she quickly covered it with her other hand and took a small step back


    “What do you want now?” she asked nervously. “I’ve told you it’s mine. It’s been with me as long as I


    can remember, so don’t even think about getting your hands on it.


    Sophia couldn’t help but nce at the protected bracelet, still looking like she was lost in the fog, but


    her gaze involuntarily drifted back to Brandon.


    She saw a slight frown form on Brandon’s forehead, a thoughtful look as he nced at Marian


    “You’ve had it since you can remember?” he asked.


    “Of course, Marian replied without hesitation, protectively hiding her wrist by her side and sizing up


    Brandon with a mix of curiosity and assessment, “Who are you, anyway? Why are you so interested in


    this bracelet?”


    Sophia didn’t know why, but she didn’t like the way Marian looked at Brandon or the way Brandon


    looked at Marian. She wondered if it was residual feelings for Brandon that caused this sort of jealousy,


    like seeing a rival in love, or if it was simply because Marian could be Ynda, the girl who might


    be the apple of Brandon’s eye.


    She didn’t like this feeling and knew she had no right to fuss over it


    Checking her watch, she then said to Brandon, “How about you two chat? I’ve got ss soon, so I’ll


    head in first.”


    Brandon shifted his attention to her, “I’!! walk you there.”


    “No need, Sophia declined, “it’s just a stone’s throw away, I can make it on my own.”


    She turned to leave, but Brandon tugged at her hand, “I’ll walk you.”


    Marian nced at the two, a bit puzzled, and kept mum as she bent down to pick up her work badge


    that had fallen to the ground during themotion.


    Brandon’s eyes also swept over the work badge on the ground, pausing when he saw the name, phone


    number, and major listed on it.


    Sophia noticed his pause.


    Logically, she knew there was nothing wrong with it. Brandon was looking for Ynda, and it was


    natural for him to pay attention to someone who might be her. Besides, she and Brandon were


    divorced, free agents, and even if he got together with Marian, it wouldn’t be a problem.


    Emotionally, though, she still felt twinge of discontent seeing Brandon take an interest in the girl who’d


    been in his heart for over a decade.


    She kept her feelings off her face.


    Brandon’s gaze was only fleeting.


    He walked her to the building.


    “I’lle pick you up after ss, he said softly, just like always.


    Sophia nodded as usual, but her thoughts during ss were affected by the incident, often drifting


    away, especially when she realized she shared a ssroom with Marian.


    Sophia only noticed Marian was in the same ss halfway through.


    Today’s ss was arge lecture, several ssesbined.


    She usually sat at the front and didn’t bother to see who was behind her. It wasn’t until Marian raised


    her hand to answer a question that Sophia took notice.


    The feeling of coincidence was subtle.


    A stand-in meeting the real deal, with fate seemingly getting more tangled.


    Ivan, sitting next to her, could clearly sense her distraction and absence, not even noticing when the


    teacher called her


    name


    Ivan’s pen tapped discreetly on the desk.


    Sophia looked at him, confused.


    “The teacher asked you a question, Ivan whispered, covering his mouth with his hand to tip her off.


    Only then did Sophia realize that all eyes were on her.


    Luckily, she was quick on the uptake and had a solid foundation, so after a quick nce at the big


    screen, she got the gist of the teacher’s question and managed to answer smoothly.


    After ss, Ivan unusually didn’t rush out but looked towards Sophia, who was still packing up.


    “Something wrong?” he asked, “You seemed off today.”


    “Probably just didn’t sleep wellst night, Sophia admitted a bit sheepishly, grateful, “Thanks for the


    heads-up earlier.”


    Ivan’s lips twitched, “No worries.”


    ConTEent bel0ngs to N?v(e)lD/rama(.)Org .


    But he didn’t leave, waiting for her to finish packing.


    As the other students left in twos and threes, the ssroom emptied out.


    Sophia was used to leavingte, usually taking her sweet time, but with Ivan waiting, she didn’t want to


    dawdle too long. and quickly gathered up her notes and books, ready to leave with him.


    Marian, who had been dilly-dallying with her stuff, took the opportunity to approach Sophia and strike


    up a


    conversation.


    “Fancy running into you here. We are the same major, huh?”


    She had noticed Sophia when she was called upon to answer a question and, after two interactions,


    had a good impression of her, so she couldn’t resist stepping forward to introduce herself.


    Sophia was a bit taken aback by her forwardness but managed a polite smile in return, “Yeah, what a


    coincidence


    But Marian was clearly the go-getter type, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons as she reached out to


    Sophie with an easygoing vibe. “Hey there, I’m Marian Nice to meet you”


    Sophia couldn’t help but shake her hand, “Hi, I’m Sophia.”


    Right off the bat, Marian gave her props, “That’s a lovely name, suits you to a T.”


    Sophia shot back a smile, “Thanks. Your name’s pretty sweet, too.”


    “My name? Nah, it’s so uncool, Marian made a face, then her curiosity piqued, she asked, “By the way,


    where are you from? Your ent kind of rings a bell. Maybe we’re from the same hood.”


    Sophia shared, “i grew up in the West district.”


    Marian’s jaw dropped in a happy surprise, “No kidding? Small world! I used to hang around the West


    district when I was a kid, then my family moved to the next-door Zion City.”


    “Small world, indeed, Sophia smiled.


    “I know, right?” Marian looked a tad wistful. “I heard I was originally from the West district too. If I hadn’t


    gotten separated from my folks when I was little, I wouldn’t have ended up moving to Zion City with my


    now parents.”


    Then she perked up again, “But hey, my parents and brother now, they’re awesome to me. No regrets,


    really.”


    Sophia’s mindtched onto the part about getting lost, hesitatingly she looked at her, “You got


    separated from your family when you were young?”