after about a four-hour flight, jonah and luna arrive in minneapolis-saint paul international airport. while en route to stillwater, luna looks out of the uber window into the distance.
jonah: what's on your mind?
luna: nothing much. just hoping your family will like me.
jonah: they won't.
jonah pauses and for a brief second, panic spreads across luna's face. he laughs.
jonah: they're going to love you. i'm so sure of it.
as much as i do, jonah thinks in his head. he grabs her hand reassuringly and luna goes back to looking out the window. soon enough, the bustling metropolis transitioned to a more quiet, suburban town. snow blanketed most of the ground and the trees.
jonah: we're here!
luna takes a deep breath and steps out of the car. after unloading her luggage, she sees two faces and a dog peeking through the window. the door opens and the dog makes a beeline for the two of them.
jonah: sawyer!
a rambunctious labrador jumps up to him, tail wagging so quickly it looked like a blur. soon after, he sees luna and begins sniffing curiously. this only lasted two seconds and he soon jumped to greet luna too. luna kneels down to scratch behind his ears and sawyer responds with licks.
svea: aww he likes you!
jonah's sisters, esther and svea, appear soon after and attack jonah simultaneously with tight bear hugs.
jonah: i missed you guys so much!
esther: not as much as we did! oh, mom and dad feel terrible for not being able to be home on time, but they'll be home later. we got the rooms ready for the two of you.
jonah: it's so great to be home. oh, and I'd like you guys to meet luna, my—
svea: GIRLFRIEND. it's so nice to finally meet you!
svea hugs luna just as tight and lets go to stand next to jonah. they start messing around in the snow when esther comes up to luna.
esther: we've heard so much about you. great things, we're really happy you're here. Pause. i've always wanted a big sister!
luna smiles widely. and suddenly, all the apprehension she had before coming here disappeared. this already felt like a second home.
luna: well, you have one in me. i'm so excited to be here and to get to know all of you!
esther and luna finally embrace, until they are hit with snowballs.
luna: you guys did *not* just do that!
jonah prepares another snowball in his hand.
jonah: oh, but we did.
he high fives svea and the two laugh. esther and luna look at each other knowingly. it isn't long before luna pelts jonah with a snowball. right in the face.
jonah: that's quite the aim you've got there.
luna: eh, i might've dabbled in softball for a year back in high school.
jonah: and i'm just learning of this now... why?
luna prepares another snowball in her hand with a smirk on her face.
luna: didn't think it was important!
before she could throw, she is hit on the shoulder with another ball. this meant war.
luna: okay, bring it on!
an all out snowball fight ensues, and luna can't remember the last time she had laughed this hard. this was going to be a trip to remember; she was sure of it.
⤛◈⤜
A/N: just a short little blurb to start the minnesota chapters off! also, I'd like to make an exciting announcement!
I'm writing a short Jonah Christmas story! it's called The Next Fourteen Hours!
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this has been in my unpublished drafts FOREVER, even before I started writing hello, goodbye! i'm so excited to bring this story to life with a Christmas twist. the story in its ENTIRETY will be released on Christmas Eve! the author's note has been published now and you can read more about it there.
as always, thank you all for reading! see you in the next chapter!
