Project You

Chapter 50

Seeing my mother happy was something I yearned for ever since I was young. I would do so much to make her happy.

I would take pieces of me out and pass it on to her, hoping she would be happy with it, hoping that it would compensate for what she lacked. At the time, I had no idea I was chipping away at myself by taking parts of me to hand over to her, like I was building her up by breaking parts of me.

It was bittersweet seeing her happy now as she stands next to my father, talking to someone I don't know, never seen, probably never heard of. Its probably a friend made sometime in the past three months.

Seeing my mother smile and my father interlock their arms and her light laugh and crease besides her eyes makes me feel... something, but I'm not sure what, maybe it doesn't even have a name.

This time, no part of me was taken away to make her happy, I didn't have to put my happiness on the line for her to have this moment.

This was all hers.

Suddenly fingers are on my chin, turning my head to the side and I blink at the sight of Karsen's curious gaze, "You sure you're okay?" He asks me, ever so supportive and I nod, he returns the gesture before he stops. "Promise you'll tell me if you're not okay."

My lips twitch up. "Worried about me Krist?" I tease, leaning closer so our faces are closer, "Little." He says before closing the distance, kissing my lips softly, sweetly, the kiss makes me feel weightless and loved even if it's such a soft peck.

Its funny that something so simple like that can you make you feel so much better. Just a kiss. A simple touch of the lips.

I hear a cough, very fake and very interruptive cough and I pull back, looking over towards where the sound had come from to see my nonna smile at us, wiggling her brows too suggestively for a lady of her age.

"How are you lovebirds?"

"Molto stanco, forse dovremmo andarcene?"

"No." My nona deadpans, and I smirk. I feel a pinch and look to Karsen, "English please."

Oh yes my purely American boyfriend. "I said we should leave."

"Oh." He says before he adds, "No."

"We established that ragazzo." My nonna says, shaking her head and I smile a little.

I like that her and Karsen were comfortable enough to speak freely with one another, not stopped by some weird vibe since she was my nonna and he was my boyfriend, they spoke like how my nonna and I spoke which was of course, entertaining.

"Im not Italian."

"Unfortunately." Nonna and I say at the same time and he rolls his eyes but he knows it's merely a joke.

"Mammina." I hear my mother call for her mother who stands up, smoothing out her dress as she walks, the sound of her bangles audible as she leaves.

"Do you not like that i'm not Italian?" Or maybe he doesn't know.

I snort, looking away from my mother not far but not close, but in direct eyesight from where I was. I look to Karsen, "Onestamente non me ne potrebbe fregare di meno piccola." I say with a smirk and his eyes roam my face for a minute before he leans closer to my face.