"I can explain."

Charming crossed his arms as he stood outside 'Wonderland'; his back leaning up against the cold brick wall as Taehyung paced back and forth in front of him. After he had stepped off the stage and caught him searching about the floor for something, he and Taehyung had moved to enter the alley outside. Charming was confused, and he needed answers. He had no idea why the other was there. He thought that he was back at the apartment while he went on his date.

"Just spit it out," Charming said.

Taehyung stopped his pacing as he turned to look at Charming who had cocked a brow at him.

"Well?"

"I wanted to follow you about this evening to make sure that everything went smoothly, and to be around if things went south."

"Did you not trust me to do this by myself?"

"We were just worried."

"We," he said. "Meaning the other three were in on this too?"

"I was...communicating with them all evening with an ear piece."

Charming turned his eyes skyward, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. He supposed that he appreciated the support, but they were all so confusing. They wanted him to try things on his own and in the same breath they helicoptered around him.

"Does it help if I tell you that I thought you handled everything greatly tonight?" Taehyung continued when the other didn't answer. "Especially when it came to taking the stage just now."

Charming's eyes reconnected with Taehyung who had pulled a half hopeful smile in the hopes that the other wasn't mad. Charming couldn't stay mad at them, cracking a small smile of his own.

"I appreciate the compliment. I just wish you guys would stop sending me mixed signals. You want me to be independent but yet you stalk me. And what kind of disguise is this?"

Charming leaned forward to tug at the beard that Taehyung had picked up at a prop shop along the way to the restaurant. When Charming tugged at it, the whole thing ripped off his face to the pained reaction of the other.

"GEEZUM CHARMING!"

Charming held the detached hair in his hand as he looked from it to Taehyung who put both hands up to his face as if it were on fire. He couldn't help but to laugh then. Before Charming could say anything more, he heard the side door open that they had exited from. His head turned and his eyes landed on the woman that exited. It was her. Aurora. She looked his way; her eyes flicking to the hair in his hand.

"What is that? A rat?"

Taehyung stopped stumbling about in pain, quickly snatching the hair from Charming's hand and turning his back. Charming was usually good at words, but he couldn't think of anything to say as the woman smirked and made her way over to him.

"I know you were following me," she continued. "You're not very subtle about it. Why were you following me?"

"I...uh..."

"Cat got your tongue?" she asked with a twinkle in her eye, looking at the other man that still had his back to her. "Who's your friend?"

"The rat hair man," said Taehyung in a purposefully gravelly voice.

"Funny," she said as her eyes turned back to Charming. "I need you to answer why you were following me. Otherwise I'm going to report you to the police."

"What? I...I..."

"Relax," she said with a chuckle. "I'm just kidding about the police part. Not about needing the reason though."

"I wanted to make sure you were okay after the restaurant," Charming finally managed to get out.

"Why didn't you call out after me instead of following me?"

"I...I didn't think about it."

"Didn't think about it, huh?...What's your name?" she asked as she looked over the well dressed man before her.

"Charming," he said to which she immediately laughed out loud.

"Nice stage name."

Charming was about to open his mouth to correct her that it was his actual name, but Taehyung reached out a hand to grip Charming's arm. He got the hint, just nodding his head.

"I suppose it is," said Charming. "Aurora is a nice stage name too."

"Well that is actually my name, and not a stage name," she said. "'A princess name for my little princess' as my mother always says...I don't know why I just told you that."

He smiled softly, holding out a hand towards her.

"It's nice to meet you face-to-face Aurora," Charming said as she smirked softly, reaching out a hand to put into his.

"Nice to meet you too, Charming," she said. "You did a good job tonight by the way. Dirk likes putting people on the spot. DJ Dirk the Jerk."

"That's not very nice."

Her fairy laughter echoed in the alley again as she shook her head. "Well, neither is rat face a nice name. Dirk the Jerk is a nickname he chose for himself. Men don't make sense a lot of the time."

Taehyung still had his back to Aurora since the fake beard wasn't sticking to his face all that well, and he didn't want to reveal who he really was to her. He knew that he was one of the 'men' she was referring to.

"Well, I'll let you and your friend go," continued Aurora as her hand slipped out of Charming's. "I have to get home before it gets too late. But...maybe I'll see you again here sometime?"

Charming didn't know what to say, slightly falling sideways into the wall when Taehyung elbowed him.

"Um...yeah. That would be nice."

Aurora gave Charming a brilliant smile then before turning and walking off. When she had rounded the corner, Taehyung turned to fully face Charming.

"Charming, do you even understand what just happened?"

"Maybe?"

"She is into you," said Taehyung. "She is hoping you'll come back here so you can cross paths again."

"So I can delete the app?" asked Charming as he dug his cell phone out of his pocket; the screen flashing on and off as yet another notification for the dating app appeared.

"Not so fast, tiger. You can't put all your eggs in one basket."

"We're not talking about eggs though..."

"No. Not what I meant! I mean you shouldn't count your chickens before they hatch..."

"Not talking about chickens either."

"I think you're being this obtuse on purpose now," said Taehyung with a huff, trying to think of a more literal way to word it for Charming. "I'm saying that you should wait to see how things go with Aurora first. She could just be another friend in your life. You don't know if she is the one."

'Then maybe you should tell that to my heart,' thought Charming. His heart hadn't stopped rapidly pounding in his chest since he laid eyes on her, and he was already finding himself looking forward to seeing her again.