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"Welcome, welcome!" the short woman beams at us, her grin lighting up her dark round eyes. Her glossy black hair swoops over her forehead and stops just below her ears, and with her welcoming nature, it's clear to see that she is indeed the mother of Taehyung.
"Eomma, let me take those for you," Eonjin rushes to her mother's side to alleviate her of the groceries, carrying them away to the kitchen. In the meantime, my mother and I greet her with bows, but she is quick to stop us with a frantic wave of her hand.
"No need for all that, come here!" she hugs us both simultaneously, and I laugh out in surprise, exchanging a look with Taehyung, who sports his classic toothy grin as he witnesses the scene before him with Yeontan lounging contently in his arms.
"You are part of this family now, okay? We will take care of you for as long as you need, maybe even forever!" she laughs, finally releasing us from her surprisingly strong grip.
"Oh, you are too kind, really, but we will not stay for long," my mother promises, bowing deeply, but Taehyung's mother shakes her head.
"Don't you worry about anything, my dear. We are very happy to help, especially since Taehyung told me you are from Daegu too!"
My mother's eyes widen as she looks between me and her. "Aria never told me that you're from Daegu!"
"I forgot to," I admit sheepishly, glancing briefly at Taehyung, who has just set Yeontan down to roam free around our ankles.
"Whereabouts in Daegu? Maybe our families know each other!" his mother presses further, not noticing my mother's shift in mood. My mother does not exactly have the best relationship with her family back in Korea, especially after going against their wishes for her future. However, we discover that our families have live on opposite ends of the town, and that while we are more known for owning small businesses, their family were more involved in the countryside with farming.
"Ah, well, I'll have to call my father and see if he knows anyone from your side," Taehyung's mother, or Eonjae, as she insists on being called, says. "So when did you come to Australia?"
"Just before Aria was born," my mother launches into her life story as she sips the tea that Eonjae forced Eonjin to prepare for them. Taehyung and his sister drag me away from the ahjumma tea party to show me around the house, leaving Yeontan with them. I glance back at the fluffy cutie longingly, wishing I could take him with me on the house tour, but the Kim siblings were too excited to notice.
"That's the kitchen, that's the laundry which leads to the backyard, there's the bathroom which also has the toilet, and this..." Eonjin halts before a closed door, through which I can hear the faint sounds of shooting and swearing. "This is the boys' lair."
"It's not a lair," Taehyung counters. "It's a cave."
"Yeah, because that's where they hibernate and never come out," Eonjin explains to me. "We have to slide meals under the door so that they don't starve."
