I’d decided to ignore my boxes and go visit my sister instead. Even though Yo had offered to help, I wasn’t about to go banging on his door, demanding he fulfill his promise. I barely knew the guy. I certainly didn’t want him to feel obligated to me.

As I drove into the ‘burbs, I thought about my new neighbor. If I was honest with myself, he hadn’t left my mind since he went back to his place last night. I still hadn’t quite decided if he was a total asshole or just a fun, nice guy, though I was leaning toward the latter. I didn’t meet too many of that type these days and I didn’t know how to handle my reaction to him.

Plus, he flipped my switch in a big way. From the mess of curly hair on his head, to his deep brown eyes and the heavy brow above them, to his smile that cut me right off at the knees...he would be exactly my type, if I had one. If he wasn’t my neighbor, I’d be asking him back to my place so I could lick every inch of his long body.

But he was my neighbor. And casual sex with someone I had to see every day wasn’t a great idea. I’d done it before and things hadn’t ended well.

Stepping into my sister’s sunny, open foyer, I called out, “Hello! Aunt Riss is here!”

One screaming, pudgy toddler came running at me, followed by her slightly less pudgy, giggling five-year-old brother. Trailing behind was the too-cool-for-school eight-year-old.

I picked up Vivi while Hudson hugged my leg. Holding my arm out, I said, “Come here, Delilah. You’re not too old to hug your aunt, are you?”

With her loose curls and reluctant smile, my oldest niece reminded me of myself. She wrapped her arms around my waist and buried her face in my stomach.

“Why’d you have to move?” she mumbled.

I squeezed her tight and felt myself get a little choked up. I’d always been a long-distance aunt, but since I moved in with my sister’s family, we’d all become really close. I finally saw why Helena was so gaga over these creatures.

“I’m not very far, baby. I know it’s not the same, but once I get my stuff unpacked, you can come spend the night with me, okay?”

“Me too!” yelled Hudson.

Delilah sniffed. “I’m not going if he’s going.”

I snorted. “Maybe we can do separate sleepover nights. How does that sound?”

“You trying to steal my kids?” asked my brother-in-law, John.

I held all of them closer. “They’re mine now, muhahahahaha!”

“Good, then you can change Vivi’s shitty diaper,” he said.

I looked at my little cherub-faced niece in my arms. “You wouldn’t do that, would you? That’s yucky.”

She laughed maniacally and then yanked my hair. Oh yes, I’d forgotten for a second that she was Helena’s daughter. This one would be a handful.

“I’m giving this one back,” I said.

John scooped her out of my arms and she immediately batted his glasses off his face.

“Vivi’s cray cray,” Hudson whispered.

Delilah scoffed. “‘Cray cray’ is over, Hud. No one says that anymore.”

His little lip poked out. “They say it in kindergarten.”

Delilah rolled her eyes. “That’s because kindergarteners are babies.”

“Don’t be cray cray, D. I say ‘cray cray’ all the time,” I said.

Hudson high-fived me, then ran off to do something boy related. Probably throw rocks or set something on fire. That’s what boys did, right?

“Where’s Mom?” I asked my niece.

“She’s in her writing dungeon,” she said.

I stifled a gasp and a laugh. My sister called her office her writing dungeon because she was literally writing about people in dungeons doing unseemly things to each other. Of course, my niece had no idea, she just thought it was what the room was called.

“Let’s not bother her, then. She’ll come out after she’s slayed Voldemort, or whatever she writes about.”

Delilah cackled. “Aunt Riss, Mom doesn’t write Harry Potter!”

I held her to my side as we went into the living room. “Oh, sorry. I’m so cray, I thought your mom was J.K. Rowling.”

She pulled me down so that my ear was next to her mouth. “Aunt Riss, ‘cray’ is even worse than ‘cray cray’. Don’t do it.”

I covered my mouth. “I shall never say it again!”

I hung out with John and the kids for a while before Helena joined us. These five people were some of the best I knew and I wondered if one day I’d have something like this. Not exactly like this, of course, because as much as I loved them, three kids was past my limit. It wouldn’t be terrible to have one, maybe two, if I had a partner like John who’d change diapers when I was working, and watch Netflix with no pants after the kids went to bed.

But that was putting the cart well before the horse. Hell, the horse hadn’t even been born yet. I wasn’t looking for a husband or partner. I didn’t even want a boyfriend. Dating sounded exhausting on top of my schoolwork. If only I could magically fall into a relationship with a fellow who was good in bed and wasn’t possessive of my time and attention. Hey, it was the season of miracles, so why not?

Once we lit the Hanukkah candles, I gave each of the kids a little present. They already had everything they needed and then some, but it was impossible not to buy them more.

Vivi threw the book I gave her across the room in disgust, then proceeded to attempt to eat the wrapping paper. She wailed when it was taken away until John picked her up and spun her in shockingly fast circles. She clapped with delight and demanded more, more!

“I told you not to have a third!” I laughed at my wild niece.

“Her genes clearly come from your side of the family,” John panted.

Helena and I looked at each other and nodded. “Yep.”

Hudson immediately ripped open his Imaginext set and started playing, making up a story with the little characters as he went. Delilah was in awe of the tinted lip balm and hand mirror I gave her.

No Hanukkah would be complete without a dance party, so the six of us boogied to some T-Swift until the kids were falling down on the floor in tired lumps. I put Delilah and Hudson to bed while John and Helena tag-teamed Vivi. She wasn’t going to be easy to raise, but I had no doubt she’d kick life’s ass in the long run.

When it was quiet, and all the little people were asleep, the three of us sat around the fire pit out back, bundled up with blankets and coats. The night was crisp and clear and the smell and heat of the burning fire had me sinking down in my seat, completely relaxed. John and Helena needed a little extra help with relaxation, passing a joint back and forth.

“You sure you don’t want some?” Helena offered.

I waved her off. “No, I’m good. I’ll head home soon. I know you guys are ready to shed your pants.”

She grinned. “Hey, you didn’t tell me what you did last night. Did you find your menorah?”

“It was kind of crazy actually. I searched everywhere and I couldn’t find it, so I asked my neighbor if I could borrow his—”

Helena looked at John and said, “Her neighbor’s hot as shit and his name is Yo.”

John looked puzzled. “Yo? Like the greeting?”

I shook my head, smiling. “Oh, John. You’re such a dad. Never change.”

“I hadn’t intended to.”

Helena squeezed her husband’s face and planted a loud kiss on his lips. “Love you.”

“Love you too, babe.”

I mean, honestly, have you ever? My sister and her husband were the cutest. No wonder she kept having his babies. And no wonder she wanted no-pants time with him every night.

“Back to me! Yo had a menorah but no candles, so I invited him over.”

Helena nodded approvingly. “Mitzvah!”

“I’m not sure if it was my good deed or his, because we were both in need. But anyway, we lit the candles together and made latkes. He’s...fun.”

She blew out a ring of smoke and watched it as it slowly dissipated. “That’s, like, high fucking praise coming from you.”

“He told me I was serious.”

John laughed. “You are.”

“Not always!”

“No, not always,” Helena agreed. “But there’s nothing wrong with being serious as long as you’re enjoying your life, ya know? Not everyone has to be a goddamn comedian.”

“Anyway, then he offered to help me unpack. I think he still feels terrible that I fell over his bike.”

“Did he help?” John asked.

I chewed my lip for a beat. “I didn’t give him the chance. I’ve been here all day.”

“Well, damn, baby. Don’t thumb your nose at offers of help, ever! I’m sure as shit not coming back to unpack for you,” my sister said.

“I know. I’ll hang around tomorrow and see if he comes over. But guys, I didn’t tell you the terrible part about him. It might be a deal-breaker.”

They both looked at me expectantly. “He eats applesauce on his latkes,” I whispered, almost gagging at the thought.

John and Helena cried “No!” in unison.

“Yes! And I had to watch him eat my beautiful latkes that way last night!”

“Was it my recipe?” John had a look of pained horror all over his face.

I nodded and he slumped over in his chair, too disgusted to go on. We were a sour cream family, through and through. I wasn’t sure Helena would have married John if he liked applesauce on his latkes. This great debate in the Jewish community had ended many, many relationships over the years—or so I assumed. It would be hard to get past.

“Well, you’re clearly not well-matched for each other. So end this before anyone gets hurt,” said Helena.

“I wasn’t planning on marrying him, darling sister!”

She kicked me from under our shared blanket. “Hey, I didn’t plan on marrying John when I fucked him in that alley, but look at us now.”

I laughed so hard I could barely breathe. My sister never stopped shocking me with her insane imagination. She and John had known each other since they were toddlers, and there had been no alley-fucking as far as I knew.

Helena and John joined in on the laughter and I realized I must have gotten a contact high, because nothing had ever been so funny in my life.

“Oh my God, you guys! You got me high!” I had tears running down my cheeks and snot bubbling at my nose.

Helena rolled her eyes. “Only you would get high from not smoking!”

John was chuckling quietly next to his wife, his shoulders moving up and down as he tried to breathe between bouts of laughter.

It was decided sometime later that I’d spend the night there, and I didn’t argue. This was another Hanukkah night that would go down in the history books as one of the best.