A man in a brown jacket stands and waits by the arrivals gate of Manchester Airport's Terminal 1. He shifts about on his feet, his eyes fixed on the doors, waiting. People pass through. He waits.
Then, in a moment, everything changes. A young girl, exhausted from travel, comes bursting through the gate, and he comes to life.
His eyes light up, and fill with tears, as she leaps into a hug that seems to last forever. They eventually pull apart, both wiping away tears - but his hand stays firmly on her shoulder. It's Christmas - and they're together again.
Dad James and daughter Alara, 10, are among the hundreds of loved ones reuniting at the arrivals gates of Manchester Airport this Christmas. The pair have been separated between Merseyside and Turkey, where Alara lives with her mum, all year. Now they have eight precious days together, and James says they'll be doing whatever Alara wants.
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"She made it home for Christmas," he says tearfully. "We weren't sure she would. We're so excited."
Just like the opening scene in the film Love Actually, there are scores of families, friends, and couples reuniting for the holiday season. And while for many, an airport is simply somewhere to pass through, for Sally and husband Richard, the travel hub hold a rather more special meaning.
"My husband proposed to me in an airport," Sally says, as she waits for Richard and daughter Georgia-Rose to fly in from North Carolina. "Our best memories are at the airport. We hate to see people go, but they are always going to come back.
"To us, they are happy gates!"
Also used to airport reunions is Lizl, from South Africa, and her children Emily, 7, and Aidan, 5. The family have lived in Leeds for seven years now, but are regulars at Manchester Airport where they greet Lizl's mother, and the children's grandmother, who lives in Pretoria.
As Emily and Aidan excitedly run around the arrivals hall, Lizl tells of how they plan a 'quiet' Christmas with her husband. "It will be just the five of us," she says. "It will be nice."
Hidden behind a stack of suitcases, a woman in a blue coat appears beyond the sliding doors - and the children don't need telling twice. They rush to see their grandma, and for a minute, she is barely visible beyond the children hanging onto her. They have a long drive back to Leeds, but it doesn't matter. They're together.
Parents and children of all ages are brought back together through these doors. Mum Justine is waiting with her sons James and William for her 23-year-old daughter Elouisa, who lives in Tennessee. Elouisa will spend two weeks in Chester with her family - and James is particularly excited.
"I haven't seen her for a year," he says. "I'm glad she's back for Christmas."
For some, the reunions have been a long time coming. Mahum is waiting anxiously at the gate for her brother, with her husband and four children. She hasn't seen him for ten years - and he has never met his nieces and nephews.
"I am so excited," she says, watching her twin girls run around clutching bunches of flowers. "He is my younger brother, and he has never seen my children."
For this family, it's more than just a Christmas reunion. Mahum's brother is coming to live in the UK, and their long years of separation will finally be over. It's almost like a Christmas miracle.
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