"Hey Y/N, it's me, Corbyn. You probably know that, obviously. Fuck I sound like an idiot. Anyways! Charlie's missing you and I was wondering if you'd wanna come over tomorrow? I'd like to you see you too so uh, yeah. Call me back when you can."

This was the voicemail from Corbyn that you woke up to. You'd missed his call during your meeting and then you had to work for a few hours. After all of that you immediately went home and collapsed in your bed, too exhausted to be awake any longer. You called him back once you listened to it the next morning but no answer. You took matters into your own hands and decided to just head over to his house. You'd done it plenty of times. You rolled out of bed and got in the shower, having your own private concert to your Spotify playlist. Once you got out you picked out a pair of ripped mom jeans, some slip on sandals and a yellow cropped tank top for the moderately warm day in L.A. You fixed your hair and put on a small amount of makeup, grabbing your bag and heading out the door.

You woke up feeling good, enjoying your music with the windows down on your way to Corbyn's. You pulled your into his driveway and let yourself in the front door. "Hello?" you called out and you heard the soft sound of small bare feet coming down the hallway. The sound stops right at the end of the hall and you can see a glimpse of messy blonde hair hiding behind the wall. "Hmm," you said aloud as you walked around the living room, "that's weird! I could've sworn Charlotte Besson lived here! I guess I'll just have to go." "Y/N, I'm here! I'm right here!" she exclaimed and came out from hiding. You acted shocked and opened your arms to her. "Oh! There's my girl!" you smiled and she ran up to you, letting you pick her up and rest her on your hip. "I missed you munchkin." you said, kissing her cheek. "I missed you too." she said, leaning her head on your shoulder. "Where's Daddy?" you asked as you set your bag down. "Sleepin'. I woke up before him." she said and you headed up the stairs to Corbyn's bedroom. You peered through the crack of his slightly open door and told Charlie to be quiet as you tiptoed in. Soft snores came from his parted lips and his hair was like Charlie's, blonde and going in different directions. You leaned down holding Charlie on your side and pointed to Corbyn's cheek, mouthing to her to give him a kiss. She giggled a little too loudly and did it, Corbyn's eyes fluttering open. Once he registered who was standing at the side of his bed, he lazily smiled and stretched. "My favorite girls are here." he yawned and you scooted his legs over, sitting on his bed. "Aren't you a sweetheart?" you beamed and he chuckled, pulling Charlie over to him. "What do you want for breakfast Baby B?" he said, trying to tame her wild hair. You inhaled sharply and he glared at you, "What?" "You don't really have anything to make breakfast with." you said and he clicked his tongue. "Looks like we have to go to the store!" he said, looking back at Charlie. He started to sit up and you stopped him, "I'll go! I'll take Charlie with and we can have a little grocery date. You stay here and shower and stuff." you said and he gave you the 'Y/N you're being too nice" look. "Are you sure? You don't have to do that." You tickled Charlie's side, "Are you kidding? Why would I pass up quality time with my favorite Besson?" you said and Corbyn stuck his tongue out at you. "C'mon babygirl," you said as you got up, "let's go get you dressed and we'll head to the store." She jumped off the bed and ran to her room, but then immediately ran back and over to Corbyn. "Thank god you're back! I thought you forgot." he said dramatically and she scrunched her nose. "Good morning Daddy, I love you." she said and he kissed her head. "I love you too. Now go get ready!"

"Y/N do you think Daddy would be mad if we got another bag of Goldfish?" Charlie asked from her seat in the cart. You chuckled to yourself, grabbing another bag off the shelf. "No. Honestly, it would probably make him happy." She squealed in excitement and took it from you, holding in on her lap. The two of you made your way through the aisles of the store, picking out the necessities for the house and a few treats that you were (almost) positive that Corbyn wouldn't mind. As the two of you were picking out a flavor of ice cream, you noticed a small older lady down the aisle from you. She was staring at you and Charlie, but not in a creepy or unsettling way. It was more like amusement or adoration as she watched the two of you giggle and debate over ice cream. She approached the two of you and rolled her cart next to yours. She smiled down at Charlie, "Well, aren't you just the cutest little girl." she said and Charlie's face blushed, the stranger's compliment making her shy. "Say thank you, sweetie." you coaxed with a smile and she turned to the woman, said a small but happy "Thank you." The woman looked to you and put her hand on her heart, "You have a beautiful daughter. She's gonna break hearts when she's older." You panicked for a quick moment, unsure of how to respond. You didn't want to make it awkward by saying 'Oh, I'm not her mom. I'm just her father's best friend who basically mothers her.' Instead you just smiled at her and thanked her politely. She carried on with her shopping and you went the opposite way, heading to the checkout. After putting all the groceries in the car, you got Charlie buckled in and went back to Corbyn's. On the way there, you looked through the mirror to see her in the backseat. "You're being awfully quiet." you inquired and she looked up, a look of curiosity on her face. "Y/N, did that lady think you were my mommy?" she asked. You heart dropped. You didn't want to say too much, but you didn't want to leave her too curious and end up asking Corbyn questions. "Yeah she did, but that's okay. It happens sometimes."

She nodded and seemed satisfied with your answer. You let out a deep breath and started thinking about the topic. Corbyn hadn't explained any of the Renee situation to Charlie and even if he wanted to, she wasn't old enough yet. She didn't have any concrete concept of who Mommy was. She didn't ask about it too frequently and Corbyn knew that she'd eventually start asking more, but neither of you prepared to be in a moment like this.

Once you got back from the store and put everything away, Corbyn invited the guys over to play video games. The guys got there and everyone was having a good time, snacking on junk food and playing with Charlie in between each of their turns. You were in the kitchen getting yourself something to drink and Jack came in, asking you to toss him a water bottle. You threw it to him, "Can I ask you about something?" He nodded as he sipped his water. "Shoot." "If Lav only had you, and Gabbie was a horrible, absent mother but you had someone else in your life who basically took her place in Lav's life, how would you explain that to her?" you asked and Jack's eyes went wide. You side-eyed him and he exhaled, rubbing his hands together. "Alright, what happened?" You sighed, "At the store today a lady complimented me on my "beautiful daughter" and Charlie started asking about Mommy in the car. I don't know what to tell Corbyn or if I should tell him. I know even the slightest mention of Renee still send him into a spiral and I don't want that for him or for Charlie." you explained and Jack's face fell, knowing exactly what you meant. "I know, he gets real dark when it comes to her. But honestly Y/N, I think you should tell him. She's gonna start asking more questions now if it sparked an interest in her." You rested your chin in your hand, biting your lip. "Just have a sit down and talk with him. It might be easier for him knowing you're there and open to talking him through it." Jack suggested and you nodded, knowing he was right. "You're right. Tomorrow night I will. Thank you, J." you said and gave him a hug. The two of you went back out into the living room and joined everyone else. You sat and watched the boys play games while simultaneously watching Corbyn playing on the floor with Charlie. You smiled to yourself, the two of them together melting your heart no matter how many times you see it. An aching pit in your stomach counteracted the butterflies when you remembered what you had to talk to him about, and you hoped that the moment you were witnessing would stay like that forever.