"You look handsome." you said leaning in the doorway watching Corbyn fidget with his tie in the mirror. He smiled softly, his eyes focused on his reflection. You walked over and finished tying it for him, brushing over his collar and kissing his cheek. "How are you feeling?" you asked and he sighed. "I'm nervous. I'm not sure how any of this works and I'm hoping that we can get this settled as easily as possible but with Renee," he forcefully exhaled, "I have no idea what to expect." You put your hands on his cheeks and looked directly into his eyes. "You've been going over everything with your lawyer for days, they know how to handle this stuff. No matter what happens she's always going to be your baby and no one can change that. You gotta get going, you don't wanna be late." you said softly and he nodded. He leaned down and gave you a quick but loving kiss, grabbing his keys and heading out.

Corbyn drove to the courthouse in silence, putting on music would cloud his mind too much. He didn't even realize how tightly he was gripping the steering wheel until his hand started to cramp. He winced, extending his fingers and pulling into an available parking space. Corbyn headed inside and met his lawyer, Scott Michaelson. Scott was a friend of his dad's and he kindly offered to represent Corbyn in the custody battle. He patted Corbyn's back and watched him take a deep breath. "Remember, try to keep yourself calm in there. She's probably going to say some things and they'll make offers that will upset you. Your main priority right here is Charlotte and what's best for her, yeah?" "Yeah." he breathed.

The meeting was being held in what looked like a conference room. At one of the long tables, Renee sat at the end next to her lawyer and a court official next to them. She seemed like she'd gotten herself together; she wore a nice dress and her hair was done nicely, but Corbyn refused to believe that she'd turned herself around based on cheap mascara and one simple dress. He sat down across from her next to Scott, eyeing the stacks of papers on the table. He took notice of the colored tabs on various pages peeking out, the confident but calm demeanor of Renee's lawyer and the copies of Charlie's legal documents neatly together in one folder. Corbyn swallowed hard and bounced his foot against the ground. "Alright, let me be frank with both of you." the official said, grabbing her and Corbyn's attention. "The point of this meeting is to try and get a few things settled without having to involve a courtroom. Everyone's goal is to figure out what is best for your daughter. I want you to understand that if we cannot reach a conclusion within this meeting, this case will most likely go before a judge. Knowing that, do you both wish to proceed?" Corbyn's eyes darted to Renee, who was already looking at him. "Yes sir." Corbyn said and Renee nodded in agreement. "Alright then, let's get started." Papers were given to each of them, hours were spent scanning documents and discussing the timeline of Charlie's life thus far. "Mr. Besson, you've been Charlotte's primary caretaker her whole life?" Corbyn nodded, "Yes, I never filed for sole custody but she's been with me. My mom, my bandmates sister, and my girlfriend have also been involved in taking care of her." The court official wrote on a pad of paper as Corbyn spoke. "Any particular reason for not filing?" Corbyn shrugged, looking over towards Renee who was whispering to her lawyer. "She was on drugs. I didn't find it necessary because I didn't think she was ever coming back." he said coldly. Scott put a hand on Corbyn's arm to silently tell him it was okay. Before the official could say any more, Renee burst out, "I'm done with drugs, Corbyn. You can't keep throwing that in my face anymore." Corbyn scoffed and rolled his eyes causing both lawyers to step in. "Hey, hey. How about we take a 15 minute break, okay? Everyone relax." Scott said and Corbyn mumbled a 'fine by me' and walked out. He turned the corner and leaned against the wall, letting out shaky breaths. He pulled his phone out of his pocket to text you.

Corbyn sighed and shoved his phone back in his pocket, heading back into the meeting. The lawyers, the court official and Corbyn and Renee all settled back into their seats. "After some reflection during the break, my client wants to ask your client a few things about his home life." Renee's lawyer told Scott. Scott motioned to Corbyn, who nodded. "That's fine." Renee turned in her seat to fully face him. "Y/N is your girlfriend?" she asked, but it came out as more of a statement. Like she knew it but wanted one last chance to question it. "Yeah, she is." Corbyn stated. He could see Renee's eyes start to water, tears slightly brimming her waterline. She inhaled deeply and let it out shakily, her nails tapping against the table. "Are you really happy, Corbyn?" she questioned. He smiled gently, nodding at her. "I'm so happy. Charlie, Y/N and I are all very happy." Renee sniffled, choking back tears of what Corbyn could only imagine as regret. "Does she love her?" she said, her voice cracking and barely above a whisper. Corbyn thought about you and Charlie: how much she adored you, the endless tea parties and tucking her in at night. He thought about his lockscreen, a picture of you and Charlie at the park. It gave him butterflies every time he saw it. "Yes," he said, a watery smile on his face, "she loves her so much." Not sad tears, but happy tears while he realized how lucky he was. Renee wiped a stray tear from her face and smoothed out her dress. She cleared her throat and put her hand on her lawyer's arm, "Jen, I don't think I need to do this anymore." 'What?' and 'Excuse me?'s were said around the table but all she did was nod. "I've made so many mistakes and I will regret leaving my baby for the rest of my life, but it would be another mistake to disrupt the wonderful life she has now." she explained, looking between her lawyer and Corbyn. "If there's ever a time in her life that she wants to know me, I'm open to that. Corbyn should have full custody of Charlotte." Corbyn's mouth hung open, unsure how to process what she was saying. "Are you serious?" he asked and she nodded, her bottom lip sucked between her teeth. "Please take care of yourself and Y/N, and keep my baby happy for me, yeah?" she said and he nodded, overwhelmed with emotions.

Corbyn came in the front door to you in the kitchen and Charlie playing on the living room floor. "Daddy's home!" Charlie squealed, running over to hug him. "Hi princess!" he smiled, picking her up and holding her to his chest. He propped her up on his hip and walked into the kitchen, kissing your shoulder. "Hi there." you said, stirring the vegetables around the pan in front of you. "I missed my girls today." he said, running his hand up and down your back. "Charlie, can you go grab my phone for me? It's on the couch." he asked, letting her down from his grip. Once she was out of the room, you turned around and grabbed his hand. "Do you wanna talk about it?" you asked sincerely. He brought your hand up to kiss your knuckles and smiled at you. "Tomorrow morning. I just want to spend the rest of today enjoying being with my two favorite people." You leaned up and kissed him, turning back to continue cooking and feeling his arms wrap around your waist.