Not my deepest darkest secret, but my mom did pull apart my torn pants to flash an entire wedding party my underwear after I accidentally ripped my pants on a swing set (outdoor wedding). I was trying to quietly leave without drawing attention and she deliberately showed it off to like 50 people who all laughed.
So yeah, that one haunts me pretty regularly.
My head canon was always that the eye was just a spell or a possession ability he had while he was working to come back (which required the ring).