#daddy tae

Dear Santa,

Thank you for visiting our home! We are super excited to have you! Me and my brother, Kim Hyunwoo, have been good this year. We eat all of our vegetables and do all of our homework. I hope you have lots of presents for us! I really want a unicorn pony for Christmas this year. Hyunwoo wants a remote control race car. Please enjoy the cookies me and Hyunwoo and Mommy made for you! We worked really hard on them. Have a Merry Christmas, Santa!

Love,

Kim Hyeri

Taehyung sets the letter back on the table and grabs one of the Christmas tree cookies. It’s caked in green and yellow frosting with a mountain of rainbow sprinkles on top of it. Taking a large bite, he nods in approval at how surprisingly soft the cookie is. Shoving the rest of the cookie into his mouth, he walks back to the refrigerator, grabbing the jug of milk and pours himself a tall glass. Bringing the cup of milk back to the plate of cookies, he takes a reindeer shaped cookie and dunks its head right into the milk. He hums in delight as he chews down a few more cookies, chasing each bite with a gulp of cold milk.

“Daddy?” Taehyung freezes at the tiny voice. “What are you doing?”

He slowly turns around, a reindeer cookie hanging from his lips, and awkwardly smiles at his two kids. “Would you like a cookie? I won’t tell Mommy,” he bribes them.

“Daddy, how could you? Those cookies are for Santa!” Hyeri begins to shout.

“Yeah! Santa Cookies!” Hyunwoo chimes in, mirroring his big sister’s scowl.

“I’m sorry... Daddy was hungry,” he pouts, rubbing his tummy for emphasis.

Hyeri crosses her arms across her chest and huffs a frustrated breath, clear disappointment painting her chubby features.

“Okay, okay. Daddy will fix this...” Taehyung looks at the almost empty plate of cookies in front of him. “Look, there are still five cookies left!” Hyeri just stands there glaring at her father. Now panicking, Taehyung runs to the pantry to look for more cookies. He scans the snack shelves from top to bottom before his brown eyes land on some factory made chocolate chip cookies. “I found more cookies!” Taehyung sings as he rips open the package, taking out a whole row of cookies and strategically placing them among the rest of the cookies on festive holiday dish. “There. That should be plenty!” He glances at his kids, proud of his quick problem solving skills.

Hyeri comes up to inspect the cookie plate. She stands on the tips of her toes, nose barely higher than the counter top, while her amber eyes count the quantity of treats piled onto of the decorative porcelain plate. Taehyung nervously stands by, waiting for his daughter’s approval. She turns to face her father, face unreadable.

“We need to frost them,” She concludes.

“But they already have chocolate chips in them, Honey. Frosting will make the cookie too sweet. You don’t want to give Santa Claus cavities do you?” Taehyung tries to reason.

“No...” Both kids respond.

“Alright, now that we got Santa more cookies, how about we all go to bed before Santa gets here. If he catches us awake, he won’t leave any presents,” Taehyung says.

“Okay!” He follows as his kids scurry back to their bedrooms. He tucks Hyunwoo into bed, hands him his stuffed tiger, and leaves a couple of kisses on his chubby cheeks. He then checks in on Hyeri, tucking her into bed as well.

“Do you think Santa will be okay with those chocolate chip cookies?” She asks.

“I think he will be happy either way, because it’s the thought and effort that matters the most,” Taehyung tells her. He leans over and plants a gentle kiss on her forehead. “Now get some sleep. He’ll know if you’re awake when he gets here,” he warns.

“Okay, Daddy.”

Taehyung makes his way out of Hyeri’s room, and as he pulls her bedroom door closed, Hyeri calls out, “Dad?”

“Yes?”

“Merry Christmas.”