Silent Confessions

"Love doesn't ask for permission to bloom, even in the most barren soil."

(POV: Eva Helion)

The room was quiet. Too quiet.

I could hear the ticking of the clock and the muffled sounds of my steps on the carpet as I nervously darted around.

He'd be here any minute now.

My steps stopped in front of the mirror, my eyes looking up and down my figure, straightening the creases on my dress.

I was wearing a quite casual dress, he had asked me not to dress too extravagantly.

I paced around anxiously, my heart beating hard in my chest.

My was I so nervous? It was just a date.

No, it wasn't, Sukuna had told me about the plan, I had listened attentively, my mind racing.

I had agreed to it, I would in any case. But now, standing here just a few minutes before we initiated it, I couldn't help but doubt myself.

Is this the right thing to do?

Sukuna had taught me about the Soul, the power which had turned my entire world upside down.

It took me a week to learn its basics, and now, it was extremely difficult for me to look at people the same again.

I walked away from the mirror, going to the window and peeking out through the curtains.

I wrapped my arms around myself.

I always admired him for his strength, his intelligence, but this...it was different.

I believed in him, I did more than I believed in myself. But what if this plan was too far? What if something happened that we couldn't predict?

I took a deep breath, calming myself down.

Sukuna had told me everything, and it made sense. We were in this together, and I had to trust him.

I jumped, breathing in sharply as I heard the doorbell ring, my heart almost burst out of my chest.

As the sound echoed in the quiet house, a shiver went down my spine as I slowly walked to the door, my hand hovering over the handle.

I took a breath as I opened the door, his figure coming into my sight, illuminated by the sunlight.

His usual confident smile was replaced by a seriousness like never before. However, I could see an emptiness in my eyes.

"Ready?" He asked, his voice reassuring, yet there was a hint of uncertainty in it.

I nodded, my heart hammering inside my chest as I walked out into the open, with him beside me.

My hand held his, slightly trembling as we walked out towards his car.

However, a question lingered in my mind, something I couldn't ignore.

Are we doing the right thing?

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(POV: Ryomen Sukuna)

There only a small hum of the car's engine as I drove on the swirly mountain roads.

I glanced over at Eva. She was gazing straight towards the road, deep in thought.

Her fingers played with her dress as she sat in a tense posture., her breathing unnatural.

I put my hand over hers, feeling the slight tremble in them.

"Don't think of it too much," I said softly, a warm smile on my lips, trying to mask my own doubt.

She smiled back, but it didn't feel...genuine. "I can't help it," she said, her voice barely a whisper as her eyes fell.

I couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt looking at her face.

Despite all the chaos that would unfold, my mind couldn't help but think of her.

She had seen sides of me that no one has, something that I hide deeply from others.

Something was different today. As the weight of our following actions pressed on us, the car was filled with anxiety and tension.

I found myself thinking about our relationship in a different way. This was what it was like to care about someone, to feel their pain as if it were your own.

I sighed. Suddenly pushing the brakes as the car came to a stop.

Eva seemed to jump in her seat on the sudden stop, breaking out of her trance. "What happened?" She asked, slightly panicking.

I didn't respond, but silently walked out of the car, shutting the door behind me, gesturing for her to follow me.

Hesitating slightly, she came out from the other side, closing the door gently.

I walked to a bench kept on the edge of the road, allowing us to gaze upon the mountainside.

The hills were beautiful, adorned with beautiful wildflowers that seemed to be straight out of a painting.

The small streams running all around the hills were shining in a faint golden light, giving the impression of flowing nectar.

I sat down on the bench, tapping the space beside me.

She slightly smiled, happily complying and sitting right beside me.

Her posture relaxed slightly as she looked at the scenery. "It's beautiful," she said, her voice barely audible.

"It is," I said, but my eyes were fixed not on the scenery, but on her. I put my hand on hers, our fingers interlocking.

We sat for a few seconds, the peaceful silence broken only by the occasional rustling of the leaves as a cool breeze hit our faces.

"I was thinking," I said, my eyes closing. "About us."

Her head turned towards me, her eyes looking for mine. "What about us?"

I sighed, opening my eyes back up, looking right into hers. "You know, Eva, I've never been the one to care about what others think."

She nodded slightly, a slight smile forming on her face.

"This plan," I said, my voice low. "I'm scared what it might do to us...to them."

Her expression softened as she heard my words. I was talking about my parents, they would most definitely be affected quite a bit by this.

"Whatever happens..." she said, her voice soft as she leaned her head on my shoulder. "We'll face it together."

My grip on her hand tightened as I felt her breath on my skin.

Ours minds slowly became empty as we continued looking at the scenery.

Right now, we had let go of all our worries, lost in each others' embrace.

I was not the confident Sukuna that everyone saw, nor was I the ruthless mastermind that I usually am.

Eva was not a survivor of the Helion family, the one that has to avenge her family at any cost.

We were both just ourselves, not what made us.

I looked at Eva, who was leaning her head on my shoulder with a smile on her face, her eyes closed as she relaxed fully.

I closed my eyes, a small smile tugged at the corner of my lips.

"We have spent too long here," I said, getting up slowly, patting her on the head.

She slowly got up, the smile not leaving her face. "Let's go," she said, following behind me.

As I look at her getting into the car, there was only a single thought in my mind.

I hope it always stays like this.

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We had reached a town, as it was quite a poor town, the people, especially children, basically swarmed around the luxury car, as if seeing something worth millions, which it was.

Anyhow, we told them that we were here just to explore and check out the poorer areas and people's lifestyles there.

The mayor of the town himself came to greet us and assigned a man as our guide.

The guide was quite respectful and easy to get along with.

He took us to all the important places in the town first. Thinking that this much sightseeing was enough, I asked him to take us to study the life of people.

He took us to an area which was better than slums, but still was too dirty for my liking.

.

Some children were playing some weird game with sticks in their hands.

The younger children were literally bathing in mud running around, trying to catch each other.

Almost all of the people here are incapable of using magic spells, knowing that people from the city had come, some children were extremely excited to see magic.

Eva was doing quite well with the children, honestly. They were having fun looking at her create ice out of thin air.

Her anxiety had not completely dissipated, as playing with these children was also a task that I had given her.

She tried her best to act happy, a smile, which looked quite genuine, considering that it was acting, was on her face.

I was just staying in the background, looking at everything, apathetically, until a group of children ran and latched onto me.

"Do you have cool magic too?" One of them asked, looking up to me.

The only thought I had at that time was, 'Disgusting'.

The dirt and grime on their faces and clothes made me recoil internally. Hiding my disdain, I forced a smile and knelt down to their level.

"I have much cooler magic than her, but you know, we'll save the best for the last."

Boom, perfect acting.

The children had both disappointed and eager expressions, as they begged me to show them right now.

In response, I just gazed towards the clouds, ignoring them.

They eventually left me alone, and I went to our guide and talked a bit, asking him to show me around the whole place.

We left Eva alone, it's not like she's in any danger anyway.

If some guy tries to jump on her, she'll just castrate him, that's what I told her to do, at least.

"Just cut off his balls," I had said, and she had nodded without hesitation.

The guide seemed a little uncomfortable with that revelation, but he just continued with his job.

We walked around for about an hour, I observed every single person there until we were back to Eva, who was now sitting on a bench, with the kids occasionally glancing at her.

Seeing us, she walked up to me and asked, "Anyone?"

"Nope," I answered, slight disappointment in my voice. "You?"

She shook her head. I noticed her looking a little nervous, so I just patted her head, something I learned to do with Elara.

"How do you feel?" I asked, genuinely concerned.

She smiled a little as I pat her head, but she still looked tired, her face slightly dark and eyes drooping.

She understood what I was referring to and sighed, "A little overwhelmed."

"Well it is your first time in public seeing souls," I answered, my voice getting softer.

I took my hand off her head. "You go, and when you reach, call me," I said, my voice growing darker.

She looked at me for a second, hesitating, before nodding and walking to the car, driving away.

"She had an emergency with her family..." I said, but I realized my 'mistake'. "Yeah...with her family, and had to go."

The guide nodded, seemingly understanding. "No problem sir, would you like to rest a little?" The guide asked politely.

"Sure," I said as he led me to a restaurant, I silently followed him, waiting for Eva's call.

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About 5 minutes later, while we both were resting, sitting on a table in a little restaurant, Eva's call came.

[I have reached the place you marked]

"Alright, I'll start then," I responded, my eyes glowing with a malicious light.

My heartbeat raced as I thought of the plan. I went to the place where Eva was playing with the children again.

"Alright kids, you wanted to see my magic, right?" I said loudly, clapping my hands.

At that, the children rushed to me.

"Now, now, stand a little back, give me space alright," I said, hiding my disdain again, and trying to get PERSONAL SPACE.

They obeyed and stood in anticipation.

"Okay, I'll do this magic only if you do it with me, so repeat after what I say, fine?" I asked a little loudly.

They all nodded excitedly, as if getting ice cream.

"Alright, on the count of three, repeat after me"

. . .

"1"

. . .

"2"

. . .

"3"

. . .

"Domain Expansion: Malevolent Kitc–Shrine"