"Are you done with the food?" Jessica popped her head into the kitchen. It was Christmas eve and they had decided to invite their family and friends over for dinner, at Taeyeon's house. 

"Almost done," Taeyeon smiled just as the door bell rang. "They must be here." 

"I'll go get the door." Jessica disappeared in a second and the sound of the door unlocking was followed by loud voices. 

"Your Tiffany has a great voice eh?" Taeyeon nudged her sister who was arranging the plates. "How do you deal with that voice?" 

Yuri sighed in agreement. "I have no idea. It must be love." She took the plates out to the dining table, leaving Taeyeon laughing in the kitchen as she finished off her final dish. It was the first Christmas she actually looked forward to; she was thankful in the past because of Yuri but now with more people around her, she felt the kind of happiness that she had not felt for a long time - the happiness that made you feel warm even on the coldest night. A pair of arms slid around her waist as she was about to bring out the dish. 

"Can we eat now?" 

"We have to wait for everyone. Was that Tiffany and Sooyoung?" 

"Mm, they made a grand entrance." 

"Yeah, they did, I could even hear the background music playing." 

Jessica pushed Taeyeon away lightly and hit her arm. "Don't be mean."

"I'm not!" Taeyeon protested, rubbing her arm, though she could not really feel the impact. "I really like them. Really." 

"You better, because there's nothing you can do about them, they're staying with me forever." Jessica walked out of the kitchen. Taeyeon smiled and walked out too. Suddenly, Jessica appeared in front of her. "You too." 

Taeyeon froze and blinked a few times, not understanding the situation. "Me too... What?" Then she remembered what Jessica was saying and grinned foolishly. 

"Wow, Taeyeon, you cooked all these?" Sooyoung looked hungrily at the feast. "You're a keeper, man." 

"Choi Sooyoung!" Jessica locked her arm around Sooyoung's neck. "Get yourself a partner." 

"Ah, she's here!" Sooyoung slid to the door. Everyone else in the room looked curiously towards the door. They only invited their close friends and family to the dinner, so who could it be? Taeyeon quickly struck off names after names and a name was left behind. "Sunny?" 

"Tae!" Sunny walked into the room and gave Taeyeon a hug. The latter looked at Sunny and then over to Sooyoung who was standing behind her friend. She widened her eyes and Sunny understood it as, "Since when?" She laughed and whispered, "A few weeks ago." 

"Choi Sooyoung! Since when?" Tiffany dragged her friend towards the dining table.

"Uhm," Sooyoung blushed and rubbed the back of her neck. "At our exhibition. She came to our exhibition with Taeyeon and uh, I just happened to see her standing in front of my artwork and then she commented, "You call a few blotches of paint art? I can do that too!" and of course I went up to her. I told her I need to educate her on art and then... I don't know what happened. That happened." 

"Well, she seems like a good fit for you. Keep you in check." 

"Sometimes I really don't understand why you're still my friend." Sooyoung pinched Tiffany's arm. 

"Since everyone is here, let's eat!" Taeyeon said and directed Jessica's parents who were in the living room to the dining table. Then Jessica patted Taeyeon's arm and said softly, "There's still one more person." 

Taeyeon tilted her head to her right slightly. She looked at the dining table, indeed, there was one empty seat and she looked at Jessica. "But everyone is here?" 

"No, you silly," Jessica poked Taeyeon's forehead. "She should be here by now though." 

Taeyeon followed Jessica to the door. "Who is it? Is there a family member of yours that I don't know of? Wait, him? Did you invite him over!"

"Taeyeon, that's stupid. Of course not. It's your family." 

"But I didn't..." Taeyeon trailed off and she realised what Jessica meant. "My mom?" 

"How nice of you to not invite her," Jessica scolded. 

"But she said she will be leaving before Christmas." 

Jessica shook her head. "And you're just going to let her do that?" 

"It's not like I won't be seeing her again..." Taeyeon muttered. 

"Taeyeon, it's Christmas, of course you should be celebrating it with your loved ones." Jessica held Taeyeon's hand and smiled. Taeyeon returned the smile and the back of Jessica's hand with her thumb. "Be nice to her." 

"I will." 

A distant sound from the lift sounded and out came Taeyeon's mother. 

"Aunt Sarah!" Jessica greeted and Taeyeon shifted to stand behind Jessica, letting her mother into the house. 

"Mom," Taeyeon greeted with a small smile. Her mother looked at her with a gentle smile. "Come in, it's cold outside." 

Her mother walked into the house and looked around. All this while she had been wondering how her daughters were doing but after seeing them at the cafe, she knew she did not have to worry. The house was neat and warm, but it did not make her feel any better. It was still guilty for leaving them and she thanked God for looking after them. 

"Now that everyone is here, let's eat!" Jessica clapped her hands together eagerly as she sat down at the table. 

Throughout the dinner, Taeyeon did not speak much. She looked at everyone at the table and listened to their conversations. Just a few months ago, she only had Yuri and Sunny. Then, she would not have thought that she would have so many people to call her friends and family. Meeting Jessica was the greatest gift, she thought, she was glad that she did not give up. In a lifetime, you could only possible have just one love of your life. She was not a romantic but she believed that Jessica would be the person for her. She would not let her go, even if she decided to leave one day. This Christmas was truly a day to be remembered even after a long time. The first Christmas in such a long time where she really felt the true meaning of love and happiness. To gain something, one always had a price to pay. If finding true love means having to go through all the betrayal and making mistakes, then she was glad she had been through all those. If finding happiness means having to live a few years of your life lost and miserable, she was glad she had done that, because after being through so much, she could finally understand the two things that had been a mystery to her. At that moment, she was blissful and she would not want to exchange that for any other moments in life. 

"I want to make a toast," Taeyeon suddenly stood up and said while everyone at the table directed their gaze to her. She smiled and raised her glass. "This year has been a very happening year for me but I'm glad. I'm glad to have everyone here with me now. Even though it's just a simple dinner, I really appreciate it, more than any other things in my life. I'm not very good with my words, but I'm sure you'll know what I'm really trying to say because love comes from the heart, not from mere words alone." 

Jessica put her arms around Taeyeon's waist. She looked up and smiled, her eyes a beautiful glisten. 

"To family, friends, love and most importantly, happiness." She emptied her glass in a second and everyone else at the table echoed and did the same. Taeyeon sat down and looked at everyone. "Let's continue eating." 

The table resumed with its random chatters and Taeyeon once again, fell back into silence. Jessica leaned in to her, placing a hand on her thigh and whispered, "That was beautiful." 

Taeyeon smiled. After being with Jessica, she found herself to smile more often. It came naturally to her and she did not have to force it. "You came to mind." 

"Stop being so cheesy," Jessica slapped Taeyeon's knee and pointed to her plate. "Eat." 

Taeyeon nodded. She really hoped the day would not have to end but the thought that the subsequent days, weeks, months and years would be so much better made her, for once, excited about seeing the sun rise again. 

-

A/N: I was writing the chapter just now but I forgot to 'hide' the chapter, I'm so sorry! Here's the full chapter, I hope you enjoy it :) The next chapter will be the epilogue and I'll finally conclude this story. It has been a fun experience writing my first story, thanks to everyone!