Soft Spot → Sylus

Heart To Heart

You jolt awake, the silence greeting you from your slumber. You come face to face with Theia, who is as still as ever. Apart of you would've panicked, have the memories from yesterday didn't play through your mind as a reminder. With a heavy sigh, you lean in to kiss Theia's forehead. "Hey, are you hungry?" you gently press your index finger against the corners of her lips to no response. "I guess not."

As you're turning around, you notice a thick navy blanket covering you and Theia. It wasn't there before, Sylus must have draped it over you. Speaking of, you hear no sound or whatsoever to show evidence of another living being in the room. Extending your arm out to grab your phone off the coffee table, you check the time; 7.41 PM. Checking your notifications, you look for a message your husband could have sent.

Sylus

I'm going out with Luke and Kieran. Mephisto's resting in the bedroom, call him if there's anything urgent.

I'll be home before 9.

Sitting upright, you stretch your arms out, listening to the satisfying crunch of your joints. Slowly, you stand up, stuffing the phone inside of your pocket. You fix the blanket on Theia's body, securing the edge of the sofa with some small pillows from underneath the coffee table so that Theia wouldn't topple over ― or, you wished she would, so maybe then she'll react to the impact of her fall, but that's just cruel.

Making your way through the short hallway left of the living room, you stop by around the kitchen area. You're starting to miss the chef; the burly man was already in his late 40s and yet he's as lively and cheerful as ever, treating you as a daughter he's long been separated from. Luke had told you earlier today that the staff are recovering well, especially the chef, whom suffer the worse injuries. Neither Sylus nor the twins told you about where they're currently staying. The only thing they told you is that they're staying separately.

Opening the fridge, you peer inside; the top shelf has two separate basketful of fruits, one with bananas and avocados, the other dragonfruits and apples, the second shelf has three food containers, each filled with tofu, marinated fish and maitake mushrooms respectively, and the lowest compartment is full of condiments and spices. You ponder for a moment, thinking if you should cook dinner or not, considering Sylus is away.

Then, Caleb crosses your thoughts.

You're not sure if he's dead, unconscious, or barely alive, but if he is alive, he's been through hell with how Sylus would have tortured him. Apart of you feels bad for him ― he is your brother after all. But, you reminded yourself of everything he did and begin to doubt the thought. Would it be humane to leave him starved? Why should you care?

Grabbing a banana, you left the fridge's door open as you peel the banana's skin and take a bite. While munching away, you start having an internal debate with your own thoughts. In the end, you grab another banana and two containers filled with tofu and marinated fish. Setting them aside on the kitchen counter, you take a few condiments before closing the fridge's door. You decide to cook a simple miso soup and fry some fish for Caleb.

With much haste, you glide across the kitchen. Putting the pot on the stove, you turn on the heat, poured a small amount of cooking oil and sauté some miso paste. Adding some broth into the pot, you multitasked by chopping some tofu into cubes then add it to the pot before stirring. While waiting for the soup to simmer, you take a frying pan that's hooked on the wall, putting it on the stove. Pouring a generous amount of oil, you grab the container of fish, carefully putting two cuts of the filleted fish on the pan. It sizzles, the aromatic smell floating around the kitchen.

Within 20 minutes, the soup has simmered and the fish are fried to a golden brown color. With a satisfied huff, you begin to plate the meal for two. Grabbing two wooden trays, two medium sized bowls for the miso soup, and a flat, rectangular wooden plate for the fish, you cut the banana in half and finished plating. Smiling, you grab one of the wooden tray and head over to the basement, leaving your tray of food for later.