Chapter 355

Sophia snapped out of her thoughts and shook her head lightly. "It's nothing."

She stood up and walked toward the bathroom.

Vivian eyed her retreating figure suspiciously, her gaze landing on the phone left on the coffee table. A mischievous glint flashed in her eyes as she snatched it up and deftly entered the passcode.

The search history was filled with keywords like "Ethan Roscente's wedding" and "Isabella Valentine's wedding dress."

Vivian's heart clenched.

News of the Ethan-Isabella union had been everywhere these past two days, impossible to avoid even if one tried. But Sophia deliberately searching for it went beyond casual interest.

She hadn't cared about this wedding before. Why the sudden change?

The bathroom door clicked open. Sophia emerged to find Vivian staring blankly at the phone in her hands.

"What are you looking at?" She reached out to pinch her friend's shoulder.

Vivian turned the screen toward her. "You've been distracted these past few days. Is it because you can't let Ethan go?"

Sophia's lashes fluttered. She leaned back against the couch, the chandelier above making her eyes sting.

"It's not that I can't let go," she murmured, her voice feather-light. "It's that I finally did, and now he's stirring things up again."

Vivian immediately sprang up. "What do you mean?"

"Promise me you won't overreact."

After extracting the promise, Sophia briefly recounted that night's events.

True to form, Vivian exploded. She jumped onto the couch, shouting, "That's bullshit! That bastard just wants to have his cake and eat it too! If he really wanted to fix things, why wait until now? Only when the whole city's talking does he suddenly play the devoted lover?"

Sophia tugged her back down. "I didn't believe him."

"But you didn't completely disbelieve him either," Vivian countered. "Otherwise, why would you secretly search for all this?"

A bitter smile touched Sophia's lips. "Am I pathetic?"

"It's called being human," Vivian said, unusually serious. "If emotions could be turned on and off, the world wouldn't be full of heartbroken fools."

She suddenly lowered her voice. "But this time, I advise you not to get your hopes up. Calling off the wedding now would be a slap in the face to both the Roscente and Valentine families. Ethan doesn't have the guts for that."

"I know," Sophia said, watching the darkening sky outside. "I just want to see how this ends."

That ending came sooner than expected.

To celebrate becoming a full-time employee, she invited Margaret and a few colleagues to dinner. Afterward, someone suggested going to a bar, and the group happily agreed.

Strangely, after Ethan publicly acknowledged her identity at the university, the expected gossip never materialized. Even Frederick, who loved spreading rumors, avoided mentioning her.

This eerie silence felt like an invisible hand was at work.

Sophia traced her fingers over her phone. That name in her contacts remained un-dialed.