“Likewise, man!” Oliver says, shaking his hand.
“Hey, do you want to come meet more of the kids?” Ashlynn asks. “And I think the rest of the guys are in the living room, too.”
Oliver turns to me, and I nod. “Sure!”
We follow Austin and Ashlynn into the living room, where the lighting is far less harsh than in the kitchen. Seated on the floor, watching TV, are my oldest niece, Madison, who is holding three-year-old Cooper in her lap, Liam, Mason, and Mason’s older sister, Emma. Dad is dozing in his recliner, and Uncle David is scrolling on his phone in Mom’s recliner. The other three men are mid-conversation as we approach—Brian andCody on the couch and Danny on a padded folding chair—but they look up as the four of us enter the room.
“Mama!” Mason cries in delight, breaking free from Liam’s hold and running towards Ashlynn.
“Hey, little man,” Ashlynn grunts as she bends down to pick Mason up.
“DEADNAME and her date are here,” Austin announces, which stirs Dad awake and draws Uncle David’s attention.
“Happy Thanksgiving,” I say, forcing a smile. “This is my boyfriend, Oliver.”
Oliver waves. “Happy Thanksgiving!”
Uncle David approaches first, matching Oliver’s height and friendly demeanor. “Happy Thanksgiving, DEADNAME,” he says, pulling me into a hug, then shaking Oliver’s hand. “Oliver, nice to meet ya. I’m David.”
“Hey, sweet girl,” Dad says, embracing me and kissing the top of my head. As he lets go, he turns to Oliver, forced to look up at him. “Welcome, Oliver. I’m Bill Cohen.”
“Nice to meet you, sir,” Oliver says, extending his hand to my Dad, who gives it a firm shake. “Thank you for having me.”
Brian and Cody don’t bother to get up or introduce themselves, so I gesture toward them. “That’s my brother Brian, and that’s my brother-in-law, Cody. And Danny, of course, whom we already met.”
Danny gives us another friendly wave. Brian offers a single, manly nod as a greeting. Cody doesn’t even try to be subtle as he assesses Oliver with his arms crossed.
“Gentlemen,” Oliver says, nodding at Brian and Cody.
I notice Madison ogling Oliver from the floor, and I have to suppress my smirk. “Last but not least, the kids on the floor you haven’t met yet are Madison, who is holding Cooper, and Emma.”
At the sound of her name, Emma peels her eyes from the TV for the first time since we’ve walked in the room. She gives Oliver and me a once-over, scrambles to her feet, and makes her way over to us. “Hi.”
“Hi, Emma,” I greet her. “Do you remember me?”
“I think so,” Emma replies. “You played hide-and-seek with me last time.”
I smile widely. “I did! You were much better at it than me.”
She nods. “Yeah, but it’s not your fault. I’m smaller, so I fit in more hiding spots.” She looks up at Oliver. “I don’t remember you.”
“This is Oliver,” I say, squeezing Oliver’s hand.
“Hey, Emma,” Oliver says, crouching down to his knees to match her height. “Do you still play hide-and-seek?”
Emma scrunches her nose. “You’re too big to play hide-and-seek.”
Oliver chuckles. “Yeah, maybe. Do you want to try to play something else?”
Emma considers it, then looks at me. “Hey, have you ever made a blanket fort?”
That piques my interest. “I used to when I was your age, but I haven’t in a long time. That sounds fun!”
Emma’s face lights up. “We should build a giant pillow fort that takes up the whole room.”
Aiden appears beside her. “I want to help. I’m really good at building stuff.”
“Can I help, too?” Oliver asks.
