With a grunt of effort, Nina pulled the steaming casserole out of the small oven and placed it on the stove. She removed her oven mitts and stuffed them haphazardly in the drawer before turning back to the cookbook on the counter. Reading the final instructions, the twenty-four year old woman scooped up the book and moved to put it back in the cupboard. With a sigh, she looked around to make sure everything was cleaned up before moving to sit on the couch. She plopped down on the burgundy cushion and stared up at the ceiling.

It was December 24th, Christmas Eve, and she was alone. Refusing to break tradition, she made a half recipe of the casserole that her Gran used to make before she passed, even if Nina was the only one there to eat it.

Nina Martin lived a lonely life in her small flat in England; her Gran had died a few months before and her parents had been gone since she was five. She hardly spoke to any of her high school friends anymore, especially after her falling out with Fabian. Either way, she was always busy with work- being a historian proved to be a lot of work, especially with the book she was writing. She told herself that she didn't have time for a social life anyway, even if she knew in the back of her mind that it was a flat out lie.

Sibuna, Nina's little brown tabby cat, hopped up on to the couch, landing gracefully on her owner's belly. Nina reached down and scratched the kitten behind its right ear.

"I don't need anyone, right Sibuna?" She murmured in a tone of voice people often used to talk to small animals. "I've got you, precious kitty." The cat peered at her with its bright green eyes, tilting her head and mewing. Nina groaned softly before removing the cat from her stomach and placing it on the couch. "Don't you judge me!" She called to the animal. Her stomach rumbled, so she headed back into the kitchen to see if her casserole had cooled any. She touched the side of the pan but retracted her arm quickly, yelping in pain. Frustratedly, she shook her hand vigorously in an attempt to cool it off before walking across the kitchen.

"Merry effing Christmas." She muttered to herself as she ran her hand under cold water. She stood in front of the sink for a few moments, allowing the cool water to cascade over her finger. Not long ago, Nina had planned on making her first Christmas by herself the best Christmas ever, but by the time it reached Christmas Eve, she felt too depressed to really deal with the joyous holiday. She went through the motions of picking out a small tree, decorating the flat, and baking some Christmas goodies, but it was all for naught.

"What's the point of Christmas?" She asked herself, removing her hand from the sink and drying it off. Tears started welling in her eyes as she grabbed a glass and some eggnog from the fridge. "What's the point, when you're all alone with nobody to love you?"

The young woman poured some of her holiday drink into the glass and, after a moment of hesitation, dumped a large amount of rum into it as well. She trudged back to the couch and sat down, taking a big swig of her drink. Picking up the remote, she turned on the telly and flicked through channels. All that was playing were Christmas shows, so Nina settled for the animated Grinch cartoon that she used to watch as a child.

The movie was not even ten minutes in when Nina finished her drink and moved to get another one- this time completely bypassing the eggnog.

"You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch!" She cried out, throwing back her second drink before even making it back to the couch. Mid stride, she turned back to get a third drink but was interrupted by a knock at the door. With a loud sigh, she plunked her glass down on the counter sharply and stumbled to the door.

"Hello?" She asked tiredly, swinging open the door. She had enough alcohol in her system to make her incredibly tipsy, but not quite drunk.

"Nina?" A familiar voice questioned in concern, ringing through the quiet apartment. "Are you drunk?"

"I'm not- I'm just a little... Never mind." She defended halfheartedly, looking at the man in her doorway. "Why are you here Fabian?"

On the other side of the door bundled up in a winter jacket and red scarf stood Fabian Rutter, the man who had meant so much to Nina before their argument a few months earlier. Just two months before Nina's Gran died, Fabian had called Nina out on being too involved in herself and not committing enough to their relationship. Too distraught about her Gran's decreasing wellness and stressed about her job, Nina ignored Fabian and continued on as she had been until he had finally had enough and called the relationship off. As a result, Nina stopped talking to Fabian and all of her other friends in order to worry and grieve in quiet. She was never one to share her problems with others which, looking back, was always a problem with her relationship with Fabian. But now, for some unexplainable reason, he was standing outside her flat wearing an expression of concern and longing. Not that Nina noticed of course- she had a bit too much alcohol in her system for that.

"I-" he started but faltered quickly, living up to his high school nickname of 'Stutter Rutter'. Nina groaned dramatically before swinging out of the way and motioning for the brunette man to enter. Fabian walked over the threshold just in time to catch Nina as she swung herself with too much force to balance herself in her alcohol induced state. "Maybe you should sit down." He offered, leading her to the couch. He sat her down and her focus immediately flicked back to the television screen in front of her. Fabian glanced at the telly, laughing slightly at her movie choice before removing his scarf and jacket and hanging them by the front door. Taking a deep breath, Fabian gathered his composure before turning around to approach Nina and tell her what he was feeling. To his surprise, the young woman was curled up against the arm of the couch, swiping at tears that were falling from her eyes.

"Nina?" Fabian asked in alarm, rushing over to her and sitting down. "Nina, love, what's wrong?" Nina took a shuddering breath.

"His heart grew three sizes!" She exclaimed, gesturing to the TV. "Look how much he loves everybody! I wish you loved me like that!" She wailed, refusing to meet the eyes of the man next to her. Meanwhile, Fabian's eyes widened in surprise.

"Nina." He said firmly, but the girl still refused to look at him. "Nina!" He said again, this time grabbing her gently by the chin and turning her to face him.

"What?" She whined, hurt bubbling in her eyes. Fabian felt as though he had been punched in the chest and, instead of saying anything, he pulled Nina into a tight hug.

"I'm so sorry," He whispered into her ear repeatedly. "I'm so, so sorry." Nina sniffed and lifted her head from Fabian's shoulder, fixing him with a puzzled look.

"You're sorry?" She asked timidly, wiping at her eyes once more. Fabian nodded intently and went to explain, but Nina held up a hand. "No, wait. I'm hungry." With that, the light haired girl stood up off the couch and walked into the kitchen, leaving her ex-boyfriend sitting on the couch in confusion. Shaking it off, Fabian stood and followed Nina, offering Sibuna a pat on the head as he passed. The cat mewed in affection and followed as well.

He found her in the kitchen staring intently at a casserole on the stove. He stood silently for a few moments, waiting for Nina to do something, but she just stood examining the dish.

"Neens?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you planning on eating the food or just staring at it?"

Nina looked at Fabian with an unimpressed look. She gestured to the food before explaining;

"Last time I touched it, it burned me." Fabian nodded in understanding and moved forward to test the heat of the pan. "No!" Nina exclaimed jumping forward and grabbing Fabian's wrist. "I did that and it hurt me!"

"Nina, relax." Fabian murmured, stroking her hair with his other hand. "How long ago did you touch it?" Nina thought for a moment before replying confidently.

"About forty-five minutes ago." Fabian smiled and shook his head.

"It'll be fine." He insisted. He grabbed a bowl out of the cabinet and a serving spoon out of the drawer before dishing out a small amount of casserole and handing it to Nina. "Eat." The young woman nodded and sat down at the small table. She took a hesitant spoonful, never taking her eyes off of the other person in her kitchen. She chewed cautiously and then swallowed, never breaking eye contact with Fabian. Then suddenly, she started to laugh. "What is it?" Fabian asked, raising a concerned brow.

"This tastes absolutely awful." Nina stated, taking another spoonful. Fabian laughed and went to sit beside her, scooping up a bit of the gunk with his fingers and tasting it.

"It's not that bad." He said, though he was obviously trying to hide his look of disgust. Nina laughed, feeling a little less drunk with some food in her stomach- even if it was disgusting.

Nina finished off her food, standing up from the table and placing her bowl in the sink.

"So," she started, now that she was in sounder mind. "Why are you here?" Fabian flinched slightly before going to stand next to her.

"I made a mistake," he said guiltily. "Breaking up with you- it was stupid and selfish and I was being such a prat." He admitted, playing with the hem of his shirt in nervousness. Nina was silent so he took it as a cue for him to continue explaining. "You never told me when things were bugging you. I'm not placing blame on you- I should have known when you were upset. I should have been there to help you through it instead of accusing you of being self absorbed. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I guess I'm just that much of a prick that it took me sitting alone on Christmas Eve to realize it. I'm so sorry Nina, so, so sorry." Fabian finished his explanation but still didn't dare look up. He heard Nina move in front of him, but remained stationary.

"Fabian," Nina said softly, just inches from where he was standing. He still didn't look up, so Nina reached her arm forward and grasped Fabian's hand. His head shot up and the two made eye contact, blue meeting green in an intense gaze. "I need to know." She said finally, causing Fabian's heart rate to increase. "I need to know if you love me." Nina gazed so intently into Fabian's eyes that he felt she was peering down into his very soul. He shuddered at the intensity and grabbed her other hand with his own as well.

"Always." He breathed, touching their foreheads together. Nina let out a relieved laugh, a smile breaking out on her face. Without a moments hesitation, both young adults had their arms around the other and were kissing passionately.

After a few moments, they broke apart for air. Nina took the opportunity to relieve the pressure on Fabian's mind and whispered in the heavy silence;

"I love you too. Always. After all, nobody wants to be alone on Christmas Eve." With a smile and exclamation of joy, Fabian lifted Nina up and spun her around the kitchen, laughing all the way. Pulling her close, he buried his face into her hair and breathed in the scent of her shampoo that he had missed so much over the past couple of months.

"Happy Christmas Nina." He whispered, holding her close.

"No Fabian," she corrected humorously. "Merry Christmas."

"Meow!" Sibuna hollered, weaving in between the couple's feet in a demand for attention.

"Merry Christmas to you too, Sibuna." Nina said with a laugh as Fabian bent down to lift up the cat and give it a scratch. The two smiled at each other as they pet the tabby, content in the fact that neither would have to be alone that Christmas after all.

Merry Christmas Everybody :)