The Indifferent Ex-Husband Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate

Sophia looked up in surprise but before she could get a good look, her head was pressed back against Brandon's chest.

He didn't let her see his face; instead, he just held her tighter, tilting his head slightly down with his cheek against the top of her

head.

Sophia's hand, hanging by her side, hesitated before gently wrapping around him.

She didn't speak, nor did Brandon. His palm caressed her long hair as he leaned in and kissed her again.

That night, they both ended up crashing at the place.

The next day was the weekend, no rush for work, and Brandon was a bit emotional that night, which made him pretty ruthless in

the bedroom, throwing caution to the wind.

The consequence of such indulgence was that they both woke up later than Theresa the next morning.

Theresa only realized her parents weren't around when she woke up.

She vaguely remembered her mom mentioning she was going to pick up dad last night, and now that she couldn't see either of

them, she felt a bit uneasy and couldn't help but wake Grace, who was still sleeping beside her.

"Grace, where are my mom and dad?"

"Your parents are in the next-door studio," Grace soothed her, knowing that Sophia had messaged saying they'd stay there.

"But it's already so bright outside." Theresa looked at the sunlight spilling over the windowsill, still a bit anxious, "lI want to go find

my dad and mom."

Grace wasn't sure if Sophia and Brandon were up yet and coaxed her, "How about we call your mom and dad first?"

Theresa hesitantly nodded, "Okay."

Grace grabbed the phone from the bedside table and called Sophia. It took a while before the call was answered with a deep,

husky voice - not Sophia's.

"Daddy?" Theresa asked uncertainly.

"Yeah, it's me," Brandon's voice was clearer now, faintly accompanied by footsteps.

"Why are you up so early, Theresa?" Brandon asked, his deep voice husky yet gentle.

"I woke up." Said Theresa, still worried, "Daddy, where's mommy?"

"Mom's still sleeping," whispered Brandon, already treading lightly towards the living room.

Theresa looked puzzled, "Why didn’t you two cback to rest withthen?"

Brandon cleared his throat, "You fell asleep last night, and your mom and | didn't want to wake you, so we rested over in mom's

office.”

"Oh, so mom and dad were working together."

Theresa wasn't upset, but in her mind, an office was a place for work, and sometimes her mom couldn't chto sleep

because she was busy in the office. So, in her eyes, their being in mom's office meant they were busy working.

Brandon couldn't quite respond to that, so he gently changed the subject, "Have you had breakfast?"

"Not yet, | just woke up." Theresa said, already climbing out of bed, "Daddy, | want to cfind you two."

"Alright. Have Grace bring you over."

"Okay."

Theresa perked up, hung up the phone, and asked Grace to take her over.

Sophia's stuwas just across the way. As they opened the door, Brandon had already opened his door, waiting for her.

"Daddy," the little one sweetly called out and trotted over to Brandon.

Brandon squatted down to scoop her up and told Grace not to bother with breakfast before he carried Theresa back to the studio.

As soon as Theresa entered, she wriggled down to find her mom. But it wasn't exactly the right tto let Theresa into the room.

Brandon stopped her, "Mom was really tired last night and is still resting. Let's not disturb mom, okay?"

"Okay." Being sensible, she didn't insist on entering the room.

"Theresa, want to go grocery shopping withand make breakfast for mom?" Brandon asked in a gentle tone.

The idea of making breakfast for mom with dad sounded like a fun and tempting adventure, and Theresa eagerly nodded her head.

Brandon took her downstairs to the fresh market, bought sgroceries, and let her help with breakfast prep

As little as the kid was, she couldn’t offer much help, but since she loved taking part in the activity, Brandon didn’t stop her,

instead handing her a few vegetables to keep her busy.

By the tshe finished dealing with those veggies, Brandon had breakfast ready.

Theresa's contribution to the meal was just those few veggies, but she felt a real sense of accomplishment. After washing her

hands, she couldn't wait to run into the room to show off to her mom but was scooped up by Brandon again, still with the excuse of

not disturbing mom's sleep.

Theresa obediently gave up on going back into the room, understanding she might wake her mom.

Only after breakfast was ready did Brandon go to check if Sophia had woken up. Theresa, seeing Brandon open the door a crack,

tried to peek in, but was kept outside by Brandon.

"Wait here for a bit, Theresa. Letcheck if mom's awake, okay?"

Though she didn't get it, Theresa still nodded.

Brandon went inside. Sophia had just woken up and was startled to see Brandon approaching.

"You up?" Brandon asked, heading to the wardrobe.

Sophia nodded slightly, clutching the blanket as she sat up, looking around the bedroom, her freshly awakened mind still a bit

foggy.

Brandon handed her a nightgown from the wardrobe, "Get up and have sbreakfast. Theresa's waiting at the door."

Theresa, hearing their conversation, couldn't resist pushing the door open, poking her little head through, "Mommy?"

While calling out, she couldn't help but dash towards the bed, grabbing the blanket, ready to dive in.

Brandon, quick on his feet, scooped her up mid-air.

"Let's go dish up the food first, and wait for mommy to get ready, okay?"

"Okay."

Her cooperative response let both adults breathe a sigh of relief, mixed with a tinge of awkwardness.

By the tSophia finished getting ready and cout, Brandon and Theresa were already waiting for her at the dining table.

"Mommy, Daddy and | whipped up breakfast together."

Seeing Sophia push open the door and step out, Theresa couldn't help but fish for compliments.

Sophia flashed her a smile, "Really? Way to go, Theresa!"

Brandon's gaze had already shifted to Sophia, landing on her still somewhat weary face. He asked her softly, "You doing okay?"

Sophia knew he was referring to last night, and discussing it in front of the kiddo was kind of awkward.

She nodded a bit uncomfortably, "Yeah."

Then she took a seat at the breakfast table.

With Theresa, the little chatterbox around, the meal went by in a relaxed vibe. And just like that, thanks to Theresa's off-the-cuff

suggestion, they decided to take her to the children's amusement park after the meal.

This was the trio's first tgoing out together, and Theresa was over the moon.

They hit up the biggest children's amusement park in West district, dubbed the "mini Disneyland" of the area. It being the

weekend, the place was swarming with folks, mostly parents herding their young ones.

When they got to the park's entrance, Brandon peeled off to park the car while Sophia and Theresa hung back at the gate waiting

for him.

The entrance was already jam-packed with people.

Sophia and Brandon had splurged on VIP passes, so no need to sweat it out in the long lines.

As Sophia, clutching Theresa, made for the fast-track entrance, Theresa's clothes got snagged by a passing kid's hook-and-loop

fastener. Theresa let out a little "ouch!" Sophia whipped around instinctively, and so did the parent of the kid who had hooked

Theresa's clothes. Their eyes locked.

"Sophia?" The other person started, sounding unsure.

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