Niles smiled as he hung up the phone. "Well, everything's all set for a rustic Thanksgiving at my cabin in the mountains. I can hardly wait."
A strange feeling made Daphne's heart flip in her chest and then it sank with disappointment. However, she managed to feign a smile. "Well, I hope you all have a lovely time."
"We certainly will!" Niles exclaimed, clearly not reading into her emotions. But why should he? It wasn't he who was psychic. However, at that moment, she wished that he was. It would save her the trouble of doing what she had to do as quickly as possible, to hopefully avoid further disappointment.
"It will be a wonderful time!" He continued. The words left his mouth a bit too enthusiastically and therefore made what Daphne had been trying to avoid that much harder.
"I'm sure it will be." She said quietly. "And it's silly, but I'm a bit jealous."
His eyebrows rose. Of course they did. He was completely clueless about the situation and with good reason. She, in turn, wished there was no situation at all.
"Why should you be jealous?" Niles asked. "You'll be there with us. After all you are…."
"Family." Frasier finished.
Tears filled Daphne's eyes at the Crane brothers' words. It was the first time they'd ever referred to her in such a manner. And leave it to Niles to be nervous about saying so. He was such a sweet man. Her head lowered so that the Crane men wouldn't see her crying.
"I'm afraid I won't be."
"What?" came the shocked, almost simultaneous response from Martin, Niles and Frasier.
She lifted her head and her tear-filled eyes met their gazes, focused mainly on Niles. "I'm afraid I won't be." She repeated, trying to steady her voice.
Poor Niles looked as though he might faint. "B-but you heard Frasier, Daphne!" he said, his voice strangely frantic. "You're family! You have to be there!"
She tried unsuccessfully to blink back the tears, but they spilled onto her cheeks and she reached for his hand. It was so soft and warm, just like his personality. "Thank you Dr. Crane. I appreciate the offer. I-I know how much you want me to come. A-and I want to, but…"
"But what?"
"Me Uncle Jackie invited me to spend Thanksgiving with him in San Francisco. He asked me months ago and I said yes. But at the time I never-."
"Daphne, it's fine." Frasier said, trying to sound reassuring. "We understand. We'll miss you of course, but your own family comes first. Isn't that right, Niles?"
Niles sighed. "Yes."
The word was so soft that Daphne had to lean closer to hear him. He was clearly upset by this news. Could it be that he really and truly would miss her? Or was it only in her imagination? Her heart wanted it so much to be the former, but she knew from experience not to get her hopes up.
"Of course. Your family is important." Niles said. He looked so sad that Daphne thought he might cry. And that just made more tears escape. Her hand went to his shoulder and her heart went out to him. "Don't be sad. It's only for a few days. And besides, I'm not going far. I'll only be two states away in California. We'll still be in the same time zone!"
"She has a point, Niles." Martin reasoned, never taking his eyes off of his paper.
Niles nodded again, breaking her heart even further. "I know, but…"
"But what?"
"Well, I know this may sound crazy, Daphne, but it will be lonely up there at the cabin without you."
The elder Crane men exchanged shocked glances at his boldness, for Niles had never said such a thing before, but Daphne was beyond touched. And that glimmer of hope began to grow.
Without hesitation, she went to hug her friend, inhaling the clean crisp scent that carried him. "That's so sweet of you, Dr. Crane. And I promise I'll be here for Christmas. I won't be in San Francisco long. I'll be back before you know it!"
He nodded yet again, but this time she saw the beginning of a smile and she began to relax if only a bit. "You're absolutely right, Daphne. And I'm looking forward to it of course, but-."
His silence made her move closer to him, and her concern began to increase. Perhaps he was upset about more than just the fact that she wouldn't be there to celebrate Thanksgiving at his cabin. It did seem a bit odd that he'd be so distressed. It wasn't as though she'd never gone with them. It had become a tradition of sorts. They'd had a wonderful time last year-and the year before that.
"What is it?" She asked. If someone didn't tell her what was going on, she knew she would break. But it was clear that Niles was not going to be that person. However, no one said a word. Now she was getting irritated.
"Will someone please tell me-."
"This is Niles' first Thanksgiving without Maris." Frasier said.
The room was so quiet that even the sound of Eddie's panting seemed deafening.
She swallowed hard, suddenly unable to look at either Crane brother. "Oh… I see."
And never in her life had she felt so terrible. Frasier's explanation shed light on so many things. No wonder Niles was so upset about her not coming. She wished, oh how she wished, that she'd never agreed to see her Uncle Jackie. But there was nothing she could do about it now.
"It'll be fine." Martin said nonchalantly as though everything was completely fine.
But it most certainly wasn't fine. It wasn't fine at all.
"Dad-."
"What, Fras? We'll have a nice Thanksgiving as a family, even if Daphne can't join us."
She moved toward Niles, who was sitting on the sofa with his eyes to the floor and gently put her hand on his shoulder. "I wish I could come with you." She said softly. "But I promised me Uncle Jackie-."
Niles eyes rose to meet hers. "I know, Daphne… but-."
She ignored the tears that fell onto her cheeks and sat down beside him. Her arms went around him and she leaned her head against his shoulder. It didn't take a psychic vision to know what he was thinking.
"I know, Dr. Crane. And I'll miss you too… very much."