The Returning Ex

Sophia stared intently at the family of three, all the while being reminded of the fact that she used to want a life like the one they led. Unfortunately, nobody was there to fend for her in the past, nor did she have someone whom she wanted to fend for. The child chuckled, while the mother followed suit. Despite his stoic expression, the father’s eyes were gleaming with joy.

Sophia quickly averted her gaze, but as soon as she did, a man standing not too far away from her came into view. The scene reminded her of back when she wanted to scale the walls, only to see him watching her while standing under a tree.

Dylan approached her upon noticing that Sophia had seen him. “Why are you here alone?”

Sophia examined him before saying, “I could ask the same of you.”

Dylan sat down beside her before saying, “My dad’s birthday is coming soon, so I came to buy him a present.”

His reply startled her, which made her stammer, “Your dad—Hold on, you mean, Uncle Owen will be celebrating his birthday?”

A chuckle escaped Dylan. “Yeah, did John not tell you? His birthday is one week away, so the household might be hosting a celebration.”

to cover for herself. “I was so focused on working toward opening my own shop, so I might’ve missed out on it when he told me.” She recalled that Owen never celebrated his birthday throughout the time she spent living with the Constances, so

Dylan grunted in response. “Now that I’ve told you about it,

celebrated their elders’ birthdays together with the entire household during a banquet, as they weren’t on the best terms with each other, so if they happened to decide to not speak to each other

toward Sophia while asking, “Can you provide some

was startled by his sudden request. What kind of suggestion does he want from me? Does it

as she assumed that whatever a country girl like her picked out wouldn’t suit Owen’s taste anyway, but Dylan seemed to think it was a great idea. Thus, he stood while saying, “Come on, let’s take a look inside since you’re alone anyway.” Without giving her a chance

“Where I come from, we need only bring a few kilograms of pork to the birthday boy or girl’s house, so who the heck knows what you would want?” However,

to choose despite having made a round in the section,

looked toward her as he

shrug before telling him the truth as she perceived, as she liked nothing in the gifts section. While casting a glance at Dylan, she said, “I suppose Uncle Owen isn’t in need

to hold some truth. A family like his wasn’t lacking anything in the material sense, as they would buy anything that

a laughter seemingly out of the blue. “You’re slightly younger than John, so I think your parents would be delighted if you brought with you a girlfriend.” She went on to laugh at her own