Chapter 89 - Confessions And Restraint

Chapter 89: Chapter 89 - Confessions And Restraint

"Something you need to say...?"

"Mmhm." Vincent took a steadying breath, ready to say the three words he had been carrying for years. "Deina, I love–"

"BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH BLAH!"

"... Huh?" His brain short-circuited.

Before he could even finish his sentence, Deina squinted her eyes shut, slammed her hands over her ears, and screamed at the top of her lungs at him again.

"I CAN’T HEAR YOU! BLAH BLAH BLAH!"

Without giving him a moment to process what was happening, she spun around, kicked off her heels, and sprinted down the hallway of her pavilion home.

Vincent just stood frozen on the porch for about five solid seconds, with nothing but shock written on his face.

’Is she... is she two years old or something?! What the hell was that!?’

"Deina! Wait!" He snapped out of his trance and ran after her.

What followed next was a chaotic game of cat and mouse.

While chasing her, Deina darted around, knocking over furniture, decorations, and sliding under maneuvering into tight spaces to juke him while continuing to make loud, obnoxious sounds to drown out his voice.

"Stop running and just listen to me for one second!"

"I’M NOT LISTENING! LA LA LA LA!"

Every time Vincent managed to close the distance, Deina would channel her divine power into wind to slam the doors she runs through right in his face.

BANG!

"Ow! Dammit, Dee!"

Realising that the interior of her home wasn’t going to give her enough room to outrun him, Deina dashed toward her upper floor, slammed open the balcony doors, and launched herself into the night sky.

"Really?! You’ve got to be shitting me!"

His divine aura flared in a violent burst of blue-and-gold, propelling him into the sky like a rocket as he gave pursuit across the open expanse of her floating island.

"Stop chasing me, Vinny!" Deina yelled over her shoulder.

"Not until you stop acting like a freaking toddler and let me speak!"

But Deina wasn’t just any opponent in the air – she was his primary instructor in divine power manipulation. Her flight technique and enhancing abilities was flawless. Despite that however, Vincent was catching up.

Worried that he might catch her soon, Deina spun around mid-flight, gliding backward through the air with ease, and raised both hands to conjure divine power.

"I told you, I’m not hearing it!"

She then fired a rapid-fire barrage of golden blasts right in his path.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

"Are you trying to kill me?!"

"No!"

He veered sharply to the left, diving and twisting through the sky as explosions detonated around him, lighting up the darkness. He swung his arms to deploy a hasty barrier to block a shockwave and gritted his teeth while giving chase.

’I can’t get to her at this rate! Fine! No holding back!’

crack—BOOM!

A shockwave of compressed energy exploded behind Vincent. He lost all control of his wings as the sudden momentum catapulted him forward faster than he’s ever gone.

Deina’s eyes widened in panic as he breached her barrage in a split second. "Wait– Vinny, no–!"

THUD!

Vincent collided hard into her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and sent them both tumbling down from the sky.

They spun and rotated through the air before crashing together into the luminescent grass of a quiet, sloping hill at the far edge of an inhibited island. They rolled across the glowing flora before coming to a sudden halt.

Vincent quickly straddled her waist and pinning her wrists firmly to the ground on either side of her head.

"Got... *huff* y-you..."

"No... let me go...!" Deina thrashed beneath him to try and escape, but it was useless. His hold on her was too strong.

Seeing that she was cornered with nowhere left to run, her resistance evaporated.

Her hands went limp in his grip, and her eyes began to fill with tears. The confident, teasing, "older sister goddess" mask she had constantly worn for as long as he knew her shattered into unrecoverable pieces.

"W-Why... Why won’t you just leave it alone?" Deina’s voice broke as she sobbed. "Why do you have to be so stubborn?! It’s not cute at all!"

"Because I’m tired of watching you run away! What are you so afraid of?! Why are you acting like this?! I’ve never seen you act this way!"

"BECAUSE I’M SELFISH! I’m selfish, Vincent! I’m needy and I’m jealous! You look at me like I’m some mature goddess, but I’m NOT!"

"What are you talking about?!"

"I hate it! I hate that your life is split into three different pieces! I hate that you have a life on Earth with your family, a life in Pristina with that master you’re forever tied to, and a life here with us! I hate the idea of sharing your heart across three different lives! I hate knowing that if you leave for Earth, centuries will pass here while I wait for you like an idiot!

"I want you here. I want you only in this realm! I want to be needy, I want all of your time, and I want to hold onto you forever! But I can’t... because you have people relying on you everywhere you go!"

As Vincent stared down at her, his heart began aching.

Overwhelmed by the shame of laying her desires bare, Deina turned her head to the side and shook it.

"So don’t say it, Vinny... Don’t say those words to me... Don’t look at me like that... I can’t do it. I really, truly can’t do it..."

"... Deina, listen to me–"

"I said I can’t do it! I can’t handle being in a complex, multi-realm relationship! I can’t handle waiting for you! I can’t do this to Natasha, and I can’t do this to myself! I can’t, I can’t, I can’t!"

Vincent released her wrists.

Instead of pulling back, however, he cupped her wet cheeks in his hands, forcing her to face him.

As Deina continued to sob, repeating her chant of "I can’t do it", Vincent refused to let her retreat behind her wall and spoke directly over her cries.

"Be selfish."

*Sniff* "... What?"

"I said be selfish! Be needy! Be as demanding as you damn well want to be! I’m the same! I’m also selfish! I want YOU! All of you! I want the jealous parts, the needy parts – every piece of who you are!"

"I can’t..."

"And you don’t have to suffer through a split life! Why do you think I’m doing this lesser god a favor on Earth?! I could just go to Earth right now and ignore him. But no! I am going there specifically to fix the time dilation, so I NEVER have to make you or Nat wait on me! So one day on Earth is one day with you here! I am building a bridge between our worlds, Deina – I’m not walking away from you!"

He leaned down and rested his forehead against hers.

Deina’s chant of "I can’t do it..." grew weaker and weaker, breaking into shuddering whispers.

"I love you, Deina. I’ve loved you for a long time. And I am not letting you push me away."

She looked up into his eyes. Seeing the absolute sincerity, the unconditional acceptance, and the unwavering love shining back at her. It seemed as though her walls finally crumbled.

And yet...

Sorrow washed over her features.

"I... I still can’t, Vincent... I’m sorry."

Vincent felt as if a blade had been plunged straight into his heart. "What...? R-Really?"

She didn’t answer him back. She just laid there, looking away from him with a broken gaze.

Torn, confused, and deeply hurt, Vincent slowly lifted himself off her. He stood up with his hands trembling slightly at his sides as he looked down at her.

Deina sat up slowly, sniffling as she wiped her tear-streaked face with the back of her hand. She smoothed down her rumpled, grass-stained clothes and turned around, refusing to meet his eyes.

Vincent took a step toward her back. "I love you, Deina."

She closed her eyes tightly as fresh tears slipped past her lashes. "I love you too..."

"Then be with me. Let’s be together."

"I can’t..."

"I’m going to fix the time dilation!"

"It doesn’t matter..."

"I will always be there for you!"

"You can’t!"

"I WILL!"

That was the final straw.

Deina completely lost her composure. She spun around and looked at him with a tear-stained face flushed red in a mixture of sorrow, frustration, and rage.

"YOU CAN’T! YOU CAN’T PROMISE ME THAT WHEN YOU HAVE AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT LIFE TO LIVE, A FAMILY ON EARTH, AND–"

"Let’s make a baby."

...

Silence.

Deina’s rage-filled scream cut off, and her mouth remained frozen in a wide ’O’ shape. Her entire mind had just experienced a total system crash.

Then, a furious blush crept up her neck, painting her cheeks a fiery crimson. She clutched a hand over her chest and stumbled back a step. Finally, she let out a tiny squeak of a baffled whisper.

"W... What?"