Charlie was intrigued by the man named Dean… She was certain the voice she heard on the radio was Dean's voice. If she found him again, she would question him about that. Why did he lie?

There was no reason for her to keep thinking about it. She wouldn't have answers anyways… All she could do was enjoy her day in that beautiful city as best as she could.

Charlie got up from the floor and picked a pinkish sleeveless dress among the array of clothes on her bed. She set the dress apart from the others and went to the bathroom to take a shower.

After a relaxing shower, Charlie got dolled up and left the hotel to venture into the city by herself. As she was walking, she observed other people walking, entering stores, restaurants, and kids playing around… She also saw some dogs walking by their owners' side, and couples walking together.

She couldn't hide a big smile she carried on her face. She felt so happy, so… alive with the sounds surrounding her and the sun shining above in the sky. It was the best day of her life.

Charlie started to walk with little jumps while humming a song she heard on the radio earlier. She felt she could live there forever, and oh, she desired that… Among those people, among this environment.

She did a little spin in the street, catching some attention, and unexpectedly hit someone's back.

Her mind got lost in her imagination and for some reason, she thought it was Dean, just like last night. She was about to excuse herself with a smile when she saw it wasn't Dean as she hoped for… It was a man with black locks.

"Look where you're going, idiot!" He said in a bad mood before walking away. He didn't even care if she was a woman. He just called her an idiot.

"This feels like home…" She pursed her lips in a not amused expression. But still, she looked around once again. Even with this brief moment that reminds her of home… The place was vivid, pretty, and she wouldn't let this blow her plans on exploring there.

First, she needed to eat. It was lunchtime and it would be a great opportunity to meet the traditional dishes of that city.

She was in the same avenue of the hotel, looking at the movement in the streets until her eyes stopped by a sweet structure. It was a restaurant named "Jam's Food". The outside walls were white, with a few dark blue details on the door and window frames. There was a balcony above with a few tables and chairs. With a big smile, she stopped by its door, where a waiter stopped by her.

"Table for one, please." She replied before he even asked. She was so excited that she desired to enter there as fast as she could.

"Please follow me, madame." He smiled at her and got a menu in his arms, leading the way to a small table in the center of the restaurant.

Charlie suddenly stopped. "Hm… Can- Can I be on the balcony up there? Is that allowed?" She shyly smiled at him.

"Oh, of course! I'm sorry. I should have asked before." He apologized and then led the way to a small stairwell in the back corner of the restaurant.

As they got up there, he pulled out the chair for her, and she sat there. She could see the street which made her smile more than ever.

"Thank you." She bowed her head towards the waiter.

"No problem!" He said as he handed her the menu. "If you need any help, questions, or are ready to order, just call me or any other waiter. The chef's special for today is written in the back of the menu."

"Thank you so much—"

"Jim."

"Thank you so much, Jim! I will look in the menu now." She smiled gently and the man bowed in respect to her before he headed out.

As she was looking towards the menu, she heard humming… A familiar one that she quite didn't remember where she heard before.

Charlie was sitting on the edge of the balcony, so she stretched her neck to look down the street.

A tanned man with a white shirt, black suspenders, and glasses was walking in the street. It was him, wasn't it?

"Dean!" She called loud enough for him to hear. The balcony was on the second floor, so it wasn't very far away from the street.

The brunette looked around. Yes, it was him.

"Up here!" Charlie had her hand raised up. Dean's eyes went up, he looked extremely confused and had his eyebrows frowned. With suspicious squinty eyes, he looked up. When he recognized the blonde from yesterday, he tilted his head and chuckled.

"I can't believe-" He said a little louder, stopping down the balcony. "What are the odds?" He smiled bigger at her.

"I know right?" She giggled excitedly to see a familiar face. "Did you already have lunch?" She was almost getting up to lean over the balcony railing.

"Actually, I was about to head out to lunch." He smiled adjusting his glasses to see her better. The way the sun was positioned, it was hard for him to see her without having to blink a few times.

"LOVELY!" She exclaimed a bit louder than she desired. "Would you like to join me then?"

Dean stayed still for a bit, thinking and looking at the restaurant. "Absolutely, my dear." What did he have to lose? "Be right there."

And then he vanished from her sight. She adjusted herself in the chair, all excited… But why was she so excited? Probably because he was very gentle to her yesterday, and she was able to know him better… And ask what she was wondering. Why he was kind to her, but – lied about his name…

Dean suddenly appeared on the balcony with a big smile on his face. "Excuse me." He said before getting a chair off the empty table next to them and sitting in front of her. "I see that you didn't waste time exploring the city's gastronomy."

"Well, you know what they say! You never truly know a place until you try its gastronomy." Charlie smiled, adjusting the menu over her hands.

"I guess you are right." Dean chuckled. "The next thing I was going to advise you to try was our meals." He placed his hand over the table, and that's when Charlie noticed he didn't have a menu.

"Oh, I'm sorry, do you want to see first?" She closed the menu and handed it to him.

Dean raised his hand with a smile and shook it in the air. "No need, my dear. I know this place very well."

"Is that so? Then, you wouldn't mind suggesting me a special dish, would you?" Charlie smirked at him while leaning over the menu that she placed upright on the table. She was almost playing with it to balance herself.

"In fact –" He paused, his hand went to his chin and he made a thoughtful expression. Charlie's smile faded a bit. It would be okay if he didn't want to suggest, she was just trying to tease the man after all. "- Yes, I wouldn't mind." His chuckle made Charlie's shoulder relax and a giggle escaped from her lips.

"I suggest you, mademoiselle, the delightful Jambalaya. It is, no doubt, one of my favorites!" He leaned over the table, covering the side of his mouth with his hand to whisper to her. Charlie leaned even more to know the secret, but just now she noticed his scent. His scent was totally different from what she was used to. The men in her 'land' always had peculiar smells like alcohol, smoke, and meat… His scent was good, almost a hypnotic fragrance.

"But I must say, my Jambalaya is way better than any other Jambalaya you will find in this city." He smiled bigger to her while Charlie's eyes were wandering in the man's expression. His smile was big, and his eyes were shiny and brown. She didn't notice that before.

"Now, you got me curious to try your Jambalaya!" Charlie blinked a few times, leaning back and smiling excitedly.

"Maybe if we keep encountering each other like today, I can prepare a special Jambalaya for you." Dean made the same gesture as the blonde, leaning back to his seat.

"I would love that to happen!" Maybe because he was the first person she 'met' while running to New Orleans. Charlie felt safe around the man she barely knew, which was uncommon for her. "Jambalaya then!"

"Fair enough. I also recommend—" Dean interrupted himself, and then gave a good look at Charlie, raising his chin. He was analyzing her.

Charlie's eyes widened for a second with the brunette's abrupt change of expression. At first, she thought he was 'checking her out' as the men from where she was from usually did… But his look was different, there wasn't a malicious aura on it.

She opened her mouth to question the man, when he proceeded.

"Are you a minor?"

With her mouth opened, her expression changed almost as abruptly as his. She frowned her brows, and her head slightly tilted with a confused smile.

"Ahm, no."

"How old are you?" Dean kept his analyzing face.

Charlie blinked a few times, then looked to the menu. The 22-number glowed through the paper. "22 years old actually!" She raised her nose and crossed her arms as if she was offended. "But thank you for thinking I was younger." She finally chuckled, relaxing her arms and glancing back at him. "How about you?"

"Oh, delightful! I'm 23 years old, mademoiselle. Asking just to be sure I could recommend you the house's wine."

"Perfect, I want this!" She smiled even bigger. So, he was "one year" older than her…

Dean raised his hand. As soon as the waiter arrived, he asked for two dishes and one bottle of Sauvignon Blanc wine.

While Dean was talking to the waiter, she observed him. His mannerisms and the way he speaks. He was indeed a gentleman. He sounded very kind towards her, and very polite to the others.

Charlie was the one analyzing him now. His voice was strong, audible, and somehow enthusiastic… She connected his voice to the radio host once again.

"A-Dean… I need to ask you something." She finally said it.

Dean looked at her and with a smile, he raised his hand. "Of course, dear. Just give me one moment." His attention went back to the waiter. He whispered something to the man, to which he nodded with a smile and went back to the building to prepare their order.

Charlie tilted her head once again. She was curious about what Dean whispered to the man, but she was more curious about her question.

"Go on, Charlie. What do you want to ask me?" He adjusted himself over the chair.

"I- Hm. I was at the hotel this morning, and I wanted to ask." She leaned towards him to whisper. "Your real name is… Alastor, isn't it? Or is it otherwise?"

Dean looked at her with a smirk and frowning his eyebrows, then he chuckled.

"If I got a penny every time someone asks me that I-" Dean was about to finish his sentence when Charlie cut her.

"Why did you lie?" She looked worried. Was he truly the same as every other person from her homeland?

"I didn't. Actually, many people think I'm, in fact, him-" Once again, Charlie interrupted him, now placing her hand over his.

"You can tell me… I know you are lying; I know you barely know me to trust like that, but I promise no one will know… Just, why?" Charlie had her hand over his yet, she was almost grabbing it.

The sudden contact made Dean bring his hand back to him. He didn't like to be touched like that, but it didn't annoy him as it usually would. It actually surprised him.

He was looking at Charlie with his eyebrows arched, until he relaxed and chuckled. He adjusted his glasses over his face and started to talk a little lower so no one could hear them.

"You won't give up, will you? You still think I am lying?"

"I know you are… I just want to understand why." She said softly and kind of worried.

"Very well." He coughed to adjust his voice with his hand over his mouth. "My name is Alastor Garcia. And yes, I'm the radio host you probably heard." He knew Lorraine's rooms, the expensive ones at least, had a radio next to the bed.

"Now, why did I lie. You see… My work is everything to me. There's such magic in entertaining people without them knowing who you are… How you look like… A voice with no face. There's such a delightful mystery on it that I enjoy…" He was speaking with a certain passion about it. A passion that you could see through his brown eyes shining through the glasses while he was talking. "Also, I don't quite know you, dear. So why would I break such 'magic' for you?" He made jazz-hands in a playful way when he said the word magic.

"Oh, I see. You also like to have your own private life… I imagine." She leaned closer to him.

"Yes, indeedly, dear." He smiled gently at her.

"I can understand that, quite a lot. That's why I promise you that your secret is safe with me!" She hooked a thumb to her chest with a proud and ambitious smile.

Alastor chuckled, frowning his eyebrows. "You are quite charming, Charlie." He said with an innocent tone. It wasn't in a flirtish way or such.

"Well, thank you, sir! And, since we are being honest… I lied to you about my age." She smiled leaning to him.

"Oh, no. You are a minor, aren't you?" He looked worried for a second.

"No. Actually, I'm 267 years old." As soon as she said it, Alastor backed up and looked at her face. She looked so serious and he looked so confused. Charlie wasn't expecting such a reaction. She widened her eyes and then giggled. "I'm just kidding, I'm 22 years old!" Once she said that, he started to laugh nodding his head.

"And I thought I had such a great sense of humor with the name Dean." After he laughed, he whispered for her.

"Where did you come up with the name 'Dean', Al?" Charlie's expression had a smile, but a curious shine in her eyes.

"There's John Doe, right? When the true name of a person is unknown or is being intentionally concealed…" Alastor continued as Charlie was leaning in even more to know the story behind the name. Her expectations were high. "So, I thought Dean Doe sounded funnier. Like a doorbell! Even if I don't use 'Doe' as the surname, because, quite obvious." He laughed a little louder, and Charlie shook her head, widening her eyes.

"Quite a humor you have…" She mentioned, and then she couldn't handle it. The joke was so silly, but seeing him laugh genuinely made her laugh with him.

Beta Readers Corrections:

Colbalt: Colbalt15
Angel: Angie_Bun
Sierra: iced_coffee_11