Chapter 88


    Brandon knew Sophia hadn’t actually dropped out of school.


    A few days after he returned to his home country, Sophia had Susan ry a simple “thank you” to him.


    Threatening to quit school was just her way of pushing him into a corner, risking her own future.


    She was willing to bet on it, but Brandon wasn’t about to roll the dice with her.


    Although he was peeved that Sophia had applied to college behind his back, excluding him from her


    future ns, Brandon was well aware of her brilliance and knew that further education was her dream.


    She had already given up an opportunity once for their child, and this time, Brandon couldn’t gamble


    with her future.


    He didn’t want to be the executioner of her lifelong regrets.


    Sophia’s decisiveness and efficiency in handling things were leagues beyond his own.


    Her future was her rock, her anchor that she clung to for security, and yet, to force him to back off, she


    chose to let it all go without a second thought.


    The ease with which she had once given up on her child and her future was a testament to how


    resolute she was in letting go of their marriage.


    Brandon’s eyes grew colder as he stared at the calendar


    For the past two years, he hadn’t pried into her life. Work had consumed himpletely. He thought


    that leaving each other alone was the ultimate form of respect.


    His hand flipped the calendar face down on the desk as he shifted his gaze to theputer screen, his


    mind fixated on the date circled in bold red ink, “June 30th, just two days away


    Graduation meant the final curtain call on the ties between him and Sophia.


    At least before her graduation, he knew where she was, and she couldn’t just disappear.


    But graduation meant that the moment she stepped out of the school gates, she would vanish into the


    sea of faces, perhaps never to cross paths with him again.


    For the rest of his life.


    Brandon’s fingers paused over the keyboard, then lifted to look out at the dusky sky, where lights were


    slowlying alive.


    The night was aglow with thousands of lights, dazzling yet


    cold.


    He hadn’t returned to the home he shared with Sophia in those two years. The house wasn’t sold but


    stood empty


    He had moved to another apartment near hispany.


    That apartment hadn’t seen a soul in two years. Brandon hadn’t even bothered to have someone clean


    and maintain it regrly. What state was it in now?


    As he pulled his gaze away from the distant lights, he shut down theputer, stood up, grabbed his


    sult Jacket from the coat rack, and headed out.


    still busy at hisputer, spotted Brandon leaving and promptly stood up with a sharp eye. “Mr.


    Crawley, are you heading out?


    No need clock out early Brandon said, walking past his desk


    Mood there stunned watching Brandon’s retreating figure. A Brandon not working overtime was ar


    Brandon drove to his old marital home.


    Throughout the drive, his expression was nk, unsure why he was going back, what the point was.


    That apartment was just like his marriage with Sophia, sealed by the dust of time.


    Standing in front of the door, Brandon didn’t immediately unlock it. Instead, he stood there, head


    slightly tilted back, gazing at the closed copper door, hesitating.


    The elevator door behind him opened, and ady in this neighbourhood emerged, spotting Brandon.


    Tentatively, she called out, “Mr. Crawley?”


    When he nced back, confirming it was him, she struck up a conversation, surprised. “Is that really


    you? Haven’t seen you or your wife in ages. Thought you might have sold the ce.”


    With only two apartments per floor, encounters between neighbors were rare. But thedy, having lived


    in a close–knitmunity in a small town in her younger days, was used to the warm neighborliness.


    She used to greet them warmly, even if their interactions were brief. Now, she continued as if it was just


    the same.


    Responding to her warmth, Brandon offered a polite smile as a greeting.


    This is the property of N?-velDrama.Org.


    But thedy was a chatterbox and didn’t mind his coolness. As her nanny waited with a baby stroller,


    thedy holding a bag of baby essentials, she opened up the conversation. “nning to move back in?


    It’s been quiet. without you two here for the past couple of years. We didn’t interact much, but your wife


    was nice. She’d smile and say hello, lend a hand. It felt good to have neighbors to rely on. Then you


    left without a word, and it got so quiet.”


    She nced at Brandon and asked, “How’s your wife been? Haven’t seen her in a while, and I miss


    her.”


    Brandon nodded politely. “She’s doing well, thanks for asking.”


    As his gaze lifted to the baby girl in the nanny’s arms, his eyes paused.


    The little girl, no more than a few months old and not yet a year, looked adorable with her big round


    eyes curiously fixed on Brandon, not the slightest bit shy, just full of wonder.


    Brandon couldn’t help but smile at her.


    Feeling his kindness, the little girl’s eyes crinkled with her own smile.


    There was a deeper smile in Brandon’s eyes, a hint of nostalgia and an indefinable regret.


    The neighborlydy noticed and exined, “She was just bornst year, only ten months old. She


    babbles all day, still doesn’t understand much.”


    Then she turned to Brandon and asked with a smile, “You must have kids by now, right? You’ve been


    married for quite a few years. It’s about time for a child. Don’t wait too long. It’s not good for your wife’s


    recovery if she gets pregnant toote.”


    Brandon gave a polite, nomittal smile, choosing not to answer directly.