"MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE!"

With her back turned to the entrance of the pub she had aimlessly stumbled into just a little over an hour ago, Jean took another swig of the glass of wine in front of her and winced a little at how fiercely the alcohol burned her throat, ignoring the fact that a new customer has just walked right into the dingy old pub.

She decided it was best that she checked her phone---it was Christmas Eve after all, it wouldn't hurt to check. Setting her glass of wine down on the coaster the bartender had provided her with, she rummaged her bag for her purse and pulled it out as soon as she found it. As she unzipped it, she heard the chime of the bell that hung over the main door, signaling yet again the entrance of a new customer.

This time, out of pure curiosity, Jean turned around to see who it was, only to be met with a blonde man who was easily a six footer, adorned in an all-black outfit; black jumper, black jeans, black trench coat---black everything. His blonde hair, however, looked bogus. The man stood there awkwardly as he looked around the dingy old pub.

The place was practically empty, excluding the few inhabitants namely Jean herself, an elderly couple sitting by the corner, a group of men and women who were seated right smack in the middle of the pub and Charlie the bartender.

While the six footer continued to scan the entirety of the place---even though there was nothing for him to scan, in Jean's opinion---she swiveled around in her chair and was facing the bar again. With her sim card now in her hand, she took her phone out from the pocket of her jacket and slid the card into the reader before switching it on.

She waited for the screen to fade out into her lock screen before being prompted by the request for her sim card password. She keyed in her password and waited for it to unlock. Within an instant, her phone was vibrating incessantly as she watched the number of messages keep totting up, along with the number of missed phone calls.

With her phone still vibrating non-stop in one hand, she reached for her glass of wine with her the other and took another swig out of it.

"Did you run away or something?" A voice spoke from behind her, tearing her attention away from her buzzing phone.

She turned around in her chair and nearly toppled off---because of how rickety it was---when a pair of hands reached out to steady her. She looked up only to find the six footer who was standing idly by the door just minutes ago peering at her from behind his black sunglasses---why in the world was this crazy fool wearing sunglasses in a dimly-lit place like this?

"I'm a grown woman, for goodness sake," Jean scowled at the man whose blonde hair looked even more bogus now that he was up close.

"A grown woman can opt to run away as well---you'll never know," the blonde shrugged before sliding into the empty seat next to her. "I mean, your phone's been buzzing non-stop."

Jean merely rolled her eyes before realizing that her phone had finally stopped buzzing. She looked down and was greeted with over four hundred messages and eighty-nine missed calls. She overheard the blonde ordering a bottle of beer before briefly asking Jean if she'd like another glass of wine. She threw him a sideways glance before nodding, accepting his offer to buy her another glass of wine.

"Why in the world are you wearing sunglasses at 10pm?" Jean asked, eyebrows furrowed at the odd looking man.

The blonde man sighed just as Charlie the bartender arrived with their respective drinks. Once Charlie was out of earshot, the blonde man turned his attention back to Jean, whose phone screen was still alight.

"Well, what's a lady like you doing here at 10pm in a red wig?" The man asked in return, not bothering about answering Jean's question just as Judy Garland's Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas started to flow through the speakers in the pub. "Are you trying to look like Ariel from The Little Mermaid?"

Jean was about to protest but clamped her mouth shut when she realized that there was no point in lying to the man---he already knew it was a wig she was wearing. She knew she should have opted to dye it red instead, even if it was just for a few weeks.

"Speak for yourself, wannabe Britney Spears," Jean retorted, trying to weasel her way out of having to give the man the confirmation he was seeking.

The blonde man looked rather amused as he raised his eyebrows. A smile took over his lips and Jean swore she heard him chuckle to himself. "Alright, Ariel. Believe it or not, I'm just trying to lay low for the holidays, hence the fake blonde wig," the man said, answering her question whilst he pointed at the wig that sat on his head. He quirked his left eyebrow, gesturing at her to answer his question now that he'd answered hers.

"Huh," Jean huffed lightly. "That's funny because I'm also here to lay low, hence the red wig as well. Should have opted to dye it red instead, shouldn't I?"

The man chuckled once more before taking another sip of his beer. "Seems like you and I are on the same boat."

"Guess so," she agreed with the nameless man, casting another sideways glance at him only to catch him smiling at her. The man successfully earned one in return from her and his smile widened at the sight of it.

"So, who are you, fake blondie?" Jean quizzed with an amused smile playing on her lips as her hand absentmindedly reached out to lock her phone before setting it on the bar top.

The nameless man swivelled in his chair and was now facing Jean. She took it upon herself to do the same so they were both now knee-to-knee with one another, their elbows resting atop the bar.

"Well, definitely not 'fake blondie', I'm sure." The nameless man flashed her a dashing smile before earning an eye roll from her.

"It's going to be 'fake blondie' from now on until you tell me your name, stranger. Besides, you hauled your ass over here when there are plenty of empty tables for you to occupy," Jean playfully retorted.

The man chuckled once more and shook his head in a very much beguiled manner before taking his sunglasses off. Once he'd pocketed them, his hand moved to slip the blonde wig off of his head and once he'd done so, Jean found herself gasping quietly to herself.

"You're that metal arm dude!"

Once again, an amused look washed across his face as he eyed her in sheer awe, his cerulean eyes on full display now that they were not shielded by his black sunglasses. "You are definitely the first person who's said that to my face."

Jean's eyebrows furrowed for what seemed like the third time tonight. "What? Metal arm dude?"

"Yeah."

"There's always a first for everything," Jean shrugged, her lips curved into a lopsided smile. The next question was already on the tip of her tongue when the man before her decided to extend his hand out for her to take, or shake at least. She peered at him from behind her eyelashes before sliding her hand into his, shaking it lightly.

"Sebastian," murmured the man. "But I think you probably already knew that."

"Honestly, I thought your name was Seth or something," Jean admitted sheepishly before she could bite her tongue, her cheeks now completely flushed. She was familiar with the movie franchise he was in but never took any particular interest in the cast.

"Seth Stan? Doesn't have a nice ring to it, does it?" Sebastian teased.

"I didn't even know what your first name was until five seconds ago, let alone your last," she quietly admitted, averting her gaze from his cerulean eyes to her burgundy boots. "But now that you brought it up, it sort of works---Seth Stan. Not bad if you asked me." Taking her eyes off of her boots, she reached for her glass of wine and instead of taking a huge swig out of it, she took a small sip.

Sebastian was still gazing at the woman before him in complete and utter awe. They say you meet the best people during Christmas and Sebastian couldn't help but agree with that saying right now, and he couldn't tell if it was the beer that was making him think this way or if it was genuinely what he was feeling. "You haven't ceased to amaze in all our time together tonight, Miss---?"

"Pierce. Jean Pierce," she completed his sentence for him before reaching to tug the red wig off of her head since they were on the first name basis now.

"I take it you're a James Bond fan?" Sebastian quizzed, taking another sip of his beer.

"My absolute favorite."

"And have I seen you before? Because I feel like I have---"

"I star in The Originals," Jean interjected. "The TV series," she mumbled solemnly, feeling her mind being clouded once more by the thoughts of Terry, along with the things he said to her on the night of their break-up. She screwed her eyes shut momentarily and tried her best to hide her face behind her long locks as she forced herself to rid those horrendous thoughts from her mind.

She didn't need to think of him, not anymore and especially not tonight. All she wanted tonight was to enjoy the company of her new found friend, so with that, she straightened up in her seat and cleared her throat before throwing Sebastian a question. "So, what in the world brought here? I mean, I half-expected an actor like yourself to be having the time of his life with his Marvel cast mates or something."

The corner of Sebastian's lips curved upward a little at her confession. "I needed to get away from everything this time. I felt like everything was becoming a little too much so I made a quick decision to break away from the usual gang for the holidays and spend some time on my own. Sometimes, it's best to spend time with yourself, even if it's just for a little while."

Jean's breath hitched in her throat, silently watching as he averted his gaze from her to the sage-colored floor, shifting a little in his seat. She'd come here with the exact same agenda---just weeks ago, she'd felt like her head and heart was going to burst from everything that was going on and staying in New Orleans with her friends was only going to bring back unwanted memories, especially ones that consisted of him.

"Guess you and I really are on the same boat," Jean commented, reaching for her glass of wine once more.

Sebastian's head whipped up so fast Jean was actually wondering how he wasn't suffering from some sort of whiplash. His lips curved into a smile and Jean found herself smiling at the sight of him doing the same. "Never thought I'd find someone who actually has roughly the same thoughts and agenda as I do---what a Christmas miracle this is."

Jean threw her head back, laughing as Sebastian watched her in utter fascination. He watched as she raised her glass of wine in the air, silently inviting Sebastian to do the same with his glass of beer. He reached for his drink and brought it up, leveling it with Jean's.

"To Christmas miracles---guess they do exist after all," Jean announced ever so grandly before tilting her glass toward his.

"To Christmas miracles," Sebastian beamed as he tilted and clinked his glass with hers, allowing the sound of it to resonate across the entire room.

In a matter of seconds, everyone else in the pub was raising their glasses, making a toast and cheering happily as they ordered more drinks. Sebastian and Jean looked around the dingy old pub and gazed at the people in total wonderment, admiring how carefree they were and how jaunty and contented they all looked.

They turned their attention back to each other and shared a knowing look, both of them simultaneously breaking out into a huge grin before sheepishly adverting their gaze to the sage-colored floor with their smiles still plastered on their faces. Guess it was a holly jolly Christmas after all.

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a/n; wey hey sebeaaaaan 👀 i hope you guys liked this chapter as much as i loved writing it! x

AND MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE, LOVES 💟❄☃️