The Sanford Legacy

And we're done for this update (which ended up longer than planned 😅) Isa is slowly going her way on her healing path, even if it's gonna take some time 🤍 As for Jasper... yeah... it's gonna take even more time ngl Next time? Spooky partyyy

Jasper feels weary and powerless in the face of all this. But Irene has no intention of letting him mope around like this any longer. He has managed to escape his problems by lying and hiding, but that ends today, and she intends to make sure of it.

She knows there's no point in going easy on him, and she yells, particularly disappointed, as his agent and friend, at the way he has “handled” the whole situation. Jasper tries to act like he doesn't care, but every word he hears sinks a little deeper into the reality he currently finds himself in.

She was expecting a lot, having seen all sorts of things with her clients. But seeing Jasp, presumably wearing the same tracksuit for several days and the smell of cigarette smoke that seems to be fusing with the living room, she is stunned, even more so when Simon laughs at the situation.

The words come out of Irene's mouth faster than she thinks them, and she regrets it when she sees Isa's face fall and her tears well up. She thought the break-up was a deliberate decision, but the situation seems 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙙 than that, so as she hugs Isa, Irene knows what she has to do.

But all this intoxicated thinking eventually reminds her that she cannot run away from all her problems at once. Which means Irene is now looking her up and down, scrutinising each new item in her wardrobe with a wary eye. Irene raises an eyebrow, realising that she has a big problem on her hands.

And it's a solution she chooses 𝙖 𝙡𝙤𝙩. She ends up writing again, differently, but she writes. But at the slightest doubt, at the slightest moment when she needs to think, she finds herself inhaling that smoke, as if it consumes her darkest thoughts and leaves only what she needs to move forward.

She doesn't know how she ended up here, but once she steps outside at dawn, she lights a cigarette, her thoughts suddenly overwhelming her. She finds herself hypprocrite, she judged Jasper for so long about his addiction, and now that she's alone and stressed, it's the solution she chooses too.

The evening was just what she needed. She let herself be carried away by the music, continued drinking and, above all, left all her worries outside the nightclub, enjoying a sincere moment with Octavia, feeling more free than ever before.

Needing a distraction and a serious break, Isa finally agrees to go out with Octavia. She takes charge and signals to the barman, ordering two shots. Isa hesitates, but eventually gets swept up in the atmosphere, the bass pounding throughout the room and the reassuring presence of her friend.

Daphne snaps, tired of the situation and hating that everyone accepts it without complaint. Isa is confused and stammers, trying to explain that their separation does not mean they will never speak to each other again. But Daph is too angry to listen, so Aria herself comes over to calm her down.

Back at 𝙝𝙤𝙢𝙚, his name appears on her phone and Isa sighs. She tries to stick to their agreement to only call each other in emergencies but Jasp finds it difficult not to call her just to hear her voice. But as she hangs up, she faces the hateful gaze of her eldest daughter, who heard everything.

And this thought keeps coming back to her, Jasper refusing to leave her thoughts, which end up going down a slippery slope. She can't just call him for what she's doing, that wouldn't be fair and pretty hypocritical, but as she indulges in her own desire, she can only think about him.

Spending time with her family in Strangerville, reassures Isa. It's something normal, familiar, 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩. Talking, sharing jokes, helping Simon with his problems. But her gaze can't help but drift to the empty chair at the end of the table, and her thoughts turn to the person who used to sit there.

Daphne huffs in frustration at seeing them gang up on her like this, but Simon is adamant. Defeated, Daph slumps to the floor, still refusing to accept the truth. But when Simon starts to bring up a subject that concerns only her, she snaps her head up, ready to make him shut up if she needs to.

After several months, Daph still cannot accept the situation. Pacing back and forth while Simon tells them about their father's actions, she ponders, ready to find a solution. But he interrupts her thoughts. Intervening would cause more problems than anything else, and Elli agrees distractedly.

Isa does her best to open up and openly express her feelings to her loved ones, but she suddenly takes a deep breath, feeling the full weight of events bearing down on her. Octavia strokes her shoulders, observing Isa's slumped posture, when she was so "cheerful" just moments ago.

She finally reconnects with her friends, whom she had neglected when she began to close herself off, and Octavia is delighted to spend time with her again, even if hearing the latest news about her friend's life makes her heart ache a little.

So the months go by, but Isa perseveres and attends her sessions. She focuses on herself, on who Isabelle Sanford Marsh is, not as a wife or a mother, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒐𝒏. It is not rare for the aftermath of a session to be difficult, but she does her best to do the things she enjoys again.

For the first time in a long while, talking about the situation feels right for Isa, feeling comfortable with this stranger who creates an atmosphere of trust almost immediately. Perhaps this session will ultimately be beneficial for her, so she finally begins to open up.

Sitting on the leather sofa, Isa finds it hard to believe that her mother has finally managed to convince her to book an appointment. It's not that she doesn't believe in therapy, but it will never work for her. That is, until she feels the tears welling up as soon as she starts talking.

Aria bites the inside of her lip, aware that keeping the situation with Emma to herself isn't right anymore, and that Isa deserves to know that her former best friend is no longer the person she once knew. She remains adamant that Isa and Jasper need time apart, as painful as it may be right now.

But if there is one person who will not give up on her, it is her mother. Aria approaches her gently, as if afraid of jolting her, but takes her in her arms, as if trying to protect her from the harshness of the situation she finds herself in.

The first few weeks after their separation were difficult for Isa, who was completely shaken up by the situation she never could have imagined finding herself in just a short time before. She had never imagined a life without him and felt like she suddenly had to relearn everything.

And we’re done with this update! I really wanted to look at the aftermath of Isa and Jasper’s break after a time jump through the eyes of their kids first 👀 But next time, we’ll be back with our girl, who has a lot to unpack 🩷