Page 18 2025 Home For The Holidays Lincoln Daily News “You don’t need to do that,” he said, “just go inside.” Claire looked at him with some skepticism. “I’d open the door, but my hands are a little full.” Claire grabbed the door handle and pushed the door open. A gust of warm air burst from the doorway, warming Claire’s face from exposure to the bitter air outside. “David!” she heard yelled from within. A short, brown-haired girl came running forth. Claire instantly recognized her as David’s cousin Natalie. David had to quickly set down the stack of gifts he was carrying before she enveloped David in a bear hug. She turned toward Claire. “And Claire!” she screeched, giving her an equally enthusiastic hug. For someone so small, she had the strength of someone twice her size. “It’s so good to see you! Oh my gosh! Claire, you look beautiful!” she said, with only a small hint of a slur to her words. “We are so excited to see you! Come on, I am going to introduce you to the family.” She grabbed Claire’s hand and whisked her further into the house. “Wait,” Claire said, “I have to put this down,” holding the meat and cheese tray. “Oh, I’ll take care of that for you,” Natalie replied, taking the tray and walking off. “Quick,” Claire heard a voice from behind her say, “while she’s distracted.” Claire turned around to see Sarah, who also grabbed her by the hand and dragged her away. “Natalie can be a lot. Sorry about that. Anyway, it’s so good to see you!” she said, giving Claire a welcoming hug. Claire returned the hug. “It’s great to see you too.” Sarah looked at Claire with a puzzled expression. “What’s wrong?” In all the confusion, Claire realized that she had let her mask slip. “If David said something that upset you, I swear I’ll kick his-” “No!” Claire quickly exclaimed, reaching out and putting her hands on Sarah’s shoulders. “David has been great.” She paused again. Those darn pauses. “I just… I’ve never been to a family party before. I’m afraid I’ll make a bad impression.” “Bad impression?” Sarah exclaimed. “You’re great. Everyone loves you. Look, I will take you around and introduce you to everyone. Let’s say hi to Mom and Dad first. You already know them.” Claire followed Sarah over to her in-laws. “Claire!” Mom said excitedly, getting up from the couch and walking over, followed closely behind by Dad. She hugged her in-laws, feeling better that there were some friendly faces who she already had a good rapport with. “How are you, dear? How was the drive?” Mom asked. “It was good. Not too long considering the weather the last few days,” Claire responded. “Did you get a lot of snow up by you?” Dad asked. “A good amount, but David has been keeping things shoveled.” “I’m taking Claire to meet the rest of the family,” Sarah said.
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