Gabriel watched Sylvia, her joy as infectious as a child's, but a pang of tenderness touched his heart. He gripped her hand tighter, his voice soft, "Let's go have our New Year's Eve dinner."
"I wonder how our ravioli turned out?" Sylvia skipped a bit, her voice filled with excitement and anticipation.
"Anyway, let's not pick on each other's cooking!"
Sylvia squinted her eyes, smiling.
In the dining room, Mr. Justin had already brought out the ravioli.
The ravioli that Estelle and her group had made were all shapes and sizes, and when served, just looking at them made everyone want to laugh.
But, as Gabriel said, no one should criticize, and since everyone had a hand in making them, even if they looked a bit funny, they were sure to taste delicious.
Besides the ravioli, Mr. Justin had prepared ten other dishes, symbolizing perfection and unity.
Everyone gathered around Old Mr. Jarvis, sitting down together for the New Year's Eve dinner.
Estelle invited Old Wade to join, but he insisted on standing, saying it was tradition to care for Old Mr. Jarvis first before excusing himself.
Outside, fireworks lit up the sky, and lanterns adorned the windows, casting a warm glow that matched the fiery red of the blooming red plums, creating a festive atmosphere.
It was the first time the family had been this complete, and Old Mr. Jarvis's smile never faded.
Seeing Gabriel pouring wine for Old Mr. Jarvis, Sylvia grabbed her own glass, smiling, "Pour me one too, I'll join Old Mr. Jarvis for a drink."
Gabriel looked at her, pouring half a glass.
She raised her glass to Old Mr. Jarvis, "Thank you for spending the New Year with us, giving me the feeling of family. Cheers!"
"We're all family here, no need for formalities!" Old Mr. Jarvis, all smiles, lifted his glass, "Let's all have a drink, except for Estelle. Those who can, take a sip!"
Estelle joined in with juice, while Jonathan opted for red wine.
Distracting everyone, Gabriel firmly pushed down Sylvia's glass and picked up a flattened ravioli, "This has to be yours, eat up!"
Sylvia protested, "Can't you let me save face in front of Grandpa?"
Old Mr. Jarvis laughed heartily, "We're all family here, no one's judging. Let me guess which one Estelle made?"
He picked up a ravioli with a torn edge, "This has to be it!"
Estelle protested, "Why does a tear mean it's mine?"
Mr. Carnes joked, "You're too strong for ravioli dough!"
Everyone burst into laughter.
Jonathan placed a ravioli on Estelle's plate, "This one's mine, give it a try!"

Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Find me in your labyrinth (Stella and Jonathan)
May we have updates please. Thank you....
Why can't m Xavier just admit that he loves Norah...
Why can't m Xavier just admit that he loves Norah...
Norah took Estelle to tutor her brother. Both of them are around the same age. So why is Janice and Xavier father feel that there's an age gap for Norah and Xavier. L I know they will be together....
Norah isn't a girl, but a twenty -five year old beautiful woman that loves Xavier Fleming/Gonzalez/Hanson....
Update 3103 hasn't been received and it hold pertinent information. Please fix it for us. Thank you....
This is great! I love the updates....
Now Xavier needs to call in the reinforcement, Gabriel and Jonathan to settle this. Thank you for the updates....
May we please have updates. Thank you...
Xavier will always protect Norah he must admit this to himself and Norah. I believe after they return from this , he'll need to approach Norah 's parents and he'll get support from Jonathan and Ella....