Manuel had invited Evelyn over for Christmas dinner. And to her surprise, she had found herself in the midst of three new faces.

She wore a long strapless gown and let her hair hang loose freely, then even her makeup had been extravagant.

She never expected to see other faces around. Manuel introduced them all to her.

There was a man quite older than Manuel, and Manuel had introduced him to be his mentor. Then a woman, much less younger than Manuel and probably younger than her herself , had been introduced to be the mentor's wife.

Then the last person had been introduced as their son. He looked about the same age as Doris. Perfect! Evelyn would make Manuel speak to those people and ask for their hand in marriage. Literally.

Doris would be married into that family and everything would be settled!

They had all gathered around on the dining table, and placed before their eyes were various meals and snacks and desserts. There were also many wines and drinks.

"You are such a lovely young