Sentence:  Times Square , when I ascended to it with my fellow subway travellers ( all dressed as if for a huge wedding in a family of which we were all distant members ) , was nearly impassable , the sidewalks swarming with celebrants , with bundled up sailors and soldiers already <WSD>hugging</WSD> their girls and their rationed bottles of whiskey . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  squeeze (someone) tightly in your arms, usually with fondness