For Everything I Am | KTH 18+ ✔

Chapter Fifteen

"Nonna!" Isabelle hops out of the car the moment I unfastened her seatbelt, rushing as quickly as her feet could carry her straight to my mother.

"Vita mia! Oh, how I've missed you!" She rejoices as Isabelle wraps her arms around her legs, "And my beautiful daughter, how are you?"

"I'm good, mom." I smile as I lean in to kiss both of her cheeks and reach up to hug my father who was never much for the emotions but was always happy to see us.

"Taehyung, you better come give me a hug!" My mother states with a frown that curls up to a smile the moment he wraps his arms around her tightly. I swear he's the son they never had.

My father and Taehyung immediately walk into the house and start discussing the most recent football game while my mother, Izzy, and I follow behind to head straight to the kitchen where my mother is finishing preparing dinner. The smells immediately take me back to my childhood as I peek into the oven to get a look at the yummy food baking away.

"Figlia mia! Stop opening that oven!" She scolds me with a bright smile, "I swear nothing has changed with you over the years."

"Is that such a bad thing?" I quirk my brow as I go to sit down at the table next to my daughter who's coloring away with some crayons and a new Christmas coloring book my parents had previously laid out for her, "Where's Aunt Gigi and my cousins?"

"Gianna is still at work but should be here soon. The boys are staying with their father tonight." She states as she walks over and hands me a glass of Sangiovese, "Tae, sweetie, would you like some wine, too?"

Strolling into the kitchen almost immediately, Taehyung nods his head as he walks up to stand next to me, "Yes, please. Thank you."

Smiling fondly at the both of us for a moment until turning around to go pour him a glass as well, my mother starts humming the Christmas carols playing on a small speaker on the counter. For a moment, it was almost like we never left. As if we never went off to college and moved to the city, minus the child next to me.

Taehyung grabbed one of the crayons and started coloring with Isabelle while my mother sat the glass of wine down in front of him. To her, Tae was just as much part of our family as I was. Pretty much adopted by my father from the moment he taught him how to play baseball in our backyard when he was nine as I was by his mother when she first taught me how to make Gimbap before we went on a school field trip together in elementary school. It was nice being accepted by both of our families the way we were.

Aunt Gigi walks through the front door squealing and running up to me to give me the biggest hug possible before absolutely attacking Isabelle's face with kisses. She looked like she hadn't aged a day past thirty and her brown hair was still as vibrant as ever as it shined under the dining room lights. I definitely can see why Taehyung used to have a crush on her.

I'll have to be sure to tease him about that at least once more before we leave.

"Aunt Gigi!" Tae exclaims as he sees her, offering her a tight hug. Looking at me from over her shoulder, I make dramatic kissy faces at them and he rolls his eyes at me before pulling away. That was just too easy to pass up.

"Handsome Taehyung, did you get taller?" Aunt Gigi questions looking him up and down as she holds his biceps, "And you've been lifting weights?"

"Geez Aunt Gigi, should we leave you two alone?" I joke as I walk over to help my mom prepare the salad.

"Oh stop it, Victoria James, you know I don't mean it that way." She scoffs before turning her attention back to Tae and whispering something to him that I couldn't make out as he bashfully smiles and nods his head in return.