The Indifferent Ex-Husband: Heartstrings in the Mall of Fate novel Chapter 650

"You know the password," Brandon stated, not as a question, but as a matter of fact.

"I... I don't know."

Sophia felt a wave of panic, like she was trespassing into Brandon's private world.

She had no clue what the password was; it seemed like she was just fiddling with the lock out of instinct, not expecting the safe to actually swing open.

She didn't even know what the safe contained.

"Sorry about that," she mumbled an awkward apology, "I didn't mean to."

Brandon gave her a reassuring smile. "No need to apologize, this stuff is yours anyway."

"..." Sophia hesitated, glancing at the unlocked safe. She thought only people rolling in dough like him needed a safe.

Taking a peek inside, there wasn't much—some bank cards, IDs, a few certificates, and just a small jewelry box that looked like it could belong to a girl. No sign of Brandon's stuff.

"Do we... keep our stuff separate?" Sophia's voice trailed off, as she couldn't help voicing her confusion. She'd thought that in a marriage, there wouldn't be a 'yours and mine' or such clear boundaries.

Brandon caught the gist of her question, a bit surprised she'd noticed this first.

True, their stuff was kept separate, each having their own space, no interference.

It wasn't intentional, just never really crossed their minds before.

Back when they first got hitched, it was a spur-of-the-moment decision.

He bumped into her at the hospital, stumbled upon her pregnancy test results, and she was all at sea. He wanted to tie the knot, but never forced her hand.

She asked for a couple of days to think it over, and he agreed.

Those two days of waiting were pure agony for him.

Luckily, she came back with the answer he'd been dying to hear—she said yes to marriage.

She was the one who called him to meet, and over dinner she told him she agreed to the marriage.

Brandon still remembers holding his breath waiting for her answer.

He'd played out scenarios in his head, ways to convince her if she said no. Thankfully, her first words were "I agree to marry you," no strings attached.

His mind was so focused on the fact that she agreed, he overlooked everything else.

He was so worried she'd back out, he just coolly nodded and said, "Great, let's get the paperwork done after we eat."

She just looked at him, surprised, then gently nodded back, "Okay."

After the meal, he took her to the registry office, got the marriage certificate, and then they went back to her place. She packed up her stuff, and that night they moved into their marital home.

It was like they were ticking off a contract—quick and efficient.

Her luggage was simple, just one suitcase.

Maybe because they skipped the gradual dating and getting-to-know-each-other phase, their lightning-fast marriage had this weird dynamic of being both close and distant.

He was always cool and detached, never really tried to close the gap between them.

After she tried to bridge the distance and couldn't, she gradually gave up.

He didn't notice that their boundaries were different from other couples, nor did he pay it much mind. He was so wrapped up in work that he got used to this hands-off arrangement.

Until she suddenly brought up divorce.

After the split, that sense of boundary was even more pronounced due to the divorce papers.

Even living together again, she didn't want to get too entangled, and he didn't dare to push too hard. So, they continued this hands-off approach from their marriage.

Now, facing Sophia's puzzled look, a thousand explanations flashed through Brandon's mind, but he chose to simply nod and be honest, "Yeah."

But Sophia didn't press further, just murmured an "Oh," her attention drifting to the jewelry box in the safe. She hesitated, wanting to open it but feeling wary.

Facing these items that were supposedly hers, without any memory of them, gave her a sense of guilt, like she was snooping through someone else's private stuff.

Brandon saw her hesitation.

He put Theresa down, picked up the jewelry box, and opened it in front of her.

Sophia's gaze fell on the white jade necklace inside and she froze.

Brandon watched her face closely, noting every change in her expression.

But Sophia just stared at the necklace, her face a blank slate, as if lost in some distant memory.

Brandon took the necklace and, holding each end, gently put it around her neck.