Niles sighed. This Thanksgiving was already a disaster, and he hadn't even finished preparing the turkey. He should've known that flying 3,000 miles to spend the holiday with his ex-sister-in-law in Boston was a bad idea. If he hadn't been looking forward to seeing his nephew, he probably wouldn't have even made the trip. But even that hadn't gone as planned. Frederick had spent almost the entire day locked in his room, studying.
For some reason, he'd even agreed to stay at Lilith's house, rather than finding a hotel room. But at least he had a moment's privacy here in the guest room. He hadn't had a chance to check his messages since the plane landed. When he turned his cellphone on, a small icon appeared on the screen, letting him know he had a voicemail. He pressed a button to retrieve it. The moment he heard her voice, he let out a sigh. "Dr. Crane? It's me, Daphne. I was just calling to say I hope you and your brother have a wonderful time in Boston. Give Frederick a hug for me! Oh, and by the way, me plans with me Uncle Jackie fell through, so I'm staying at your brother's. At least Roz won't have to house-sit. It seems like everyone else has plans for this holiday except for me." Her sigh was audible over the phone. "Well, um, just give me a call when you get a chance. Bye!"
The sound of Daphne's voice made Niles even more homesick than ever. No one should be alone on Thanksgiving. His heart ached at the thought that the woman he loved was so far away, all by herself. Suddenly Niles realized that he really didn't want to be here in Boston anyway. His own nephew had his nose buried in a book, not even wanting to go out and throw baseballs in the yard with his grandfather. Niles just couldn't understand why his father wouldn't give up on the idea of one of the Cranes playing center field for the Seahawks.
Lilith certainly didn't want Niles here, either. They'd never gotten along, not even while she was married to Frasier. And poor Daphne was obviously lonely, even if she hadn't said so on the phone. Without giving it a second thought, Niles called the airline. He had to get back to Seattle as quickly as possible.
When he'd finished changing his plane ticket, he went back downstairs, carrying his still-packed bags. Frasier, Lilith, and Martin were busy preparing side dishes for dinner. Niles looked straight at his brother, figuring it was best to be direct. "I need you to drive me to the airport."
"What?!" Frasier replied in shock. "You just got here! If one of your patients is having a crisis, why can't you just refer them to someone else? Niles, I swear -"
"It's Daphne," Niles said, interrupting his brother's lecture.
"Daphne? What about her? She's in San Francisco with her uncle."
Niles shook his head. "No, she's not. She left a message on my phone. Her plans fell through, so she's at your place right now, all alone. On Thanksgiving."
Martin scoffed. "Daph will be fine. She's probably glad to have some peace and quiet for once. It's Thanksgiving, Niles. You should be with your family."
"But what about Daphne's family?" Niles asked. "She's thousands of miles from home, all alone on a national holiday. She's lonely."
"Did she say she was lonely?" Frasier asked skeptically.
"Well, no, but I could tell," Niles answered. "Look, this table will probably be crowded as it is. I'm sure Lilith doesn't mind one less place setting."
Frasier's ex-wife shrugged. "Makes no difference to me. I'm only hosting this Thanksgiving dinner so that Frasier and Martin can spend some time with Frederick."
Niles pictured his nephew, probably working on some impossible school project up in his room. It wasn't exactly quality family time, but Niles bit his tongue. "Look, Frasier, I just think it'll be a lot easier on everybody if I just go. Please?"
Frasier looked at his little brother. His expression showed that there was no changing his mind. Niles would get himself to Logan Airport one way or another. "All right."
