*Now Ronnie's POV*

I pulled into my driveway and shut off the car. I looked in the rear view mirror. A frown formed instantly on my face. It was odd to not have Charlie in the back seat waiting to go inside with me. I opened my car door and stepped out. I grabbed my bag and got out of the car, walking into the house.

I shut and locked the door behind me before dropping my bag on the kitchen counter. The house was quiet. I wasn't used to it. I walked through the house trying to find something to do. The living room was a little cluttered from a busy work week so I decided to tidy it up a bit to keep myself distracted.

I straightened up some shoes and some blankets when I came across one of Charlie's favorite toys. I sat down on the arm of the couch and clutched the toy to my chest. I held back the tears as I pet the toy almost like it was a puppy. I quickly wiped away one tear that slipped out before standing up and taking the toy to Charlie's room.

I shut the door to her room before heading into my bedroom and straight to the conjoining bathroom. I started the bath and checked the temperature before grabbing some bubble bath and squirting some in the water. Lavender instantly filled my nose and helped me relax. I went back to the kitchen.

I grabbed a beer out of the fridge and cracked the cap off on the counter top before taking a huge drink of it. I walked back to the bathroom and put the beer on the counter. I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and looked at it. It was a little past eight. Charlie should be heading to bed soon, at least I hoped.

I turned off the water and stripped my clothes. I put my beer and phone on the edge of the tub making sure both were close, before sinking into the tub. I went all the way under and held my breath as long as I could before I came back up for air. I sucked in all the air that I could and pushed my hair out of my face.

I sat back and let my back and head rest against the wall of the bathtub as I closed my eyes. I grabbed my beer from the edge of the tub and took another drink. Between the alcohol and the hot bath if I wasn't careful I could easily fall asleep. I grabbed my phone and clicked on the music tab, letting it fill the quiet bathroom.

We used to lay in bed all tangled up
But now we sleep on separate sides
We don't talk but still we call it love
It's like we're leading different lives
Can you push away when I hold you close?
Say it to my face if you wanna go
Or if you're gonna fight for me, let me know
'Cause I don't wanna lose you this way

I quickly hit skip on the song. It haunted me with memories. Memories that I didn't want to be thinking about right now. I hit the skip button a few more times just to see what music would come on. I laid back in the tub and took another sip of my beer as another song came on through my phone.

Cause lately you make me weaker in the knees
And race through my veins baby every time you're close to me
Take me away to places I ain't seen
They say you've got a hold on me
And I won't disagree

"Fuuuuck," I breathed as I submerged myself back under the water trying to get everything out of my head. Under the water everything sounded like it was in a tunnel. I could still hear the music playing but it was muffled. I broke the surface of the water as soon as I ran out of breath. That's when my phone started to ring.

~~

*Jeffrey' POV*

Charlie and I were sitting outside around a small fire. Surprisingly as soon as Ronnie left I was expecting Charlie to have a meltdown, but she didn't. She played with a lot of new toys in her room while waiting on the pizza to be delivered. After having some pizza we went out back and started a fire.

After the fire was lit Charlie and I went back inside and piled a tray full of chocolate, marshmallows, and graham crackers before heading back outside. I grabbed a beer for myself and a juice box for her on the way back out of the door. We got settled around the fire and I stuck a marshmallow on a stick before handing it to Charlie.

"Be careful you don't burn it," I said as I sat back in my chair and grabbed a marshmallow for myself. I stuck my marshmallow at the edge of the fire while grabbing my phone out of my pocket. I sat it on the arm rest of my chair and hit the play button  on my phone before taking a sip of my beer.

I don't want to live in this town
Maybe I'm making it something
Bigger than it's gotta be now
It's just I don't wanna turn into nothing
I could never get you to stay
Knowing this will never be something
You don't even want anyway
The hunter's becoming the hunted

How long 'til I lose you?
How long 'til I lose you?
How long 'til I lose you?
How long 'til I lose you?
How long 'til I'm
Swept up, carried away
Hanging on to all that I can
How long 'til I lose you?
How long 'til I lose you?

I quickly hit the button to stop my music and took a huge gulp of my beer. I looked at my marshmallow. It was completely burnt. I sighed and pulled it out of the fire. I blew out the flame and took off the black part before sticking it back in the fire to get a little brown. Once I was satisfied, I ate it.

After Charlie had had a couple s'mores, I finished my beer, and stamped out the fire. It was getting late and I needed to get Charlie in bed. "Alright, kiddo, it's time to turn in," I said as I cleaned up our mess. Charlie got out of her chair and followed me back into the house through the sliding glass door.

I dropped the tray and the empty beer bottle in the kitchen before leading Charlie to the bathroom. She stood up on the small stool I had put in the bathroom and grabbed the toothbrush and toothpaste I had for her. I leaned against the doorway and watched her brush her teeth in the mirror.

I frowned slightly, emotions overwhelming me. I loved that she was in my life now, but watching her do something so simple like brushing her teeth made me realize how much I had already missed out on in her life. She finished brushing her teeth, rinsed her mouth, and turned to me with a giant smile before hopping down from the stool.

She pushed me out of the bathroom and shut the door. I chuckled and walked back into the kitchen giving her privacy. She seemed to know her nightly routine even though she was in a different place. I quickly washed the tray from our s'mores and threw away the trash before leaning against the counter waiting on her.

The door finally opened and Charlie stepped out in her pajamas. I smiled at her and grabbed her hand leading her to her bedroom. Charlie hopped up in her new bed as I plugged in the night light for her. I sat on the edge of the bed as she got under the covers and laid back on the pillows.

"Are you ready to call your momma?" I asked her. She nodded her head and snuggled into the pillows some more as I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and dialed Ronnie's number. Charlie giggled at me as she grabbed a stuffed animal that was sitting on her bed and squeezed it to her chest.

"Hello," Ronnie said. Her voice sounded monotone, almost sad. It made me frown. I wondered what was going through her head right about now. Charlie leaned forward, grabbed the phone out of my hand excited and almost toppled off the bed while doing so. I chuckled and steadied her as she sat back on the pillows.

"Hi momma!" she said bouncing slightly in the bed. I heard Ronnie chuckle through the phone. "Hi baby! Are you having fun?" she asked her. Charlie nodded but quickly realized her mother couldn't hear her and squeaked out a 'yes,' before launching into a story about everything we had done in the past couple of hours.

I listened intently as Charlie didn't miss one detail about what happened in the past few hours. Her hands were moving wildly as she spoke about the events. I watched her and noticed how much she looked like me. Her dark, almost black hair that had that slight curl to it like mine. Her hazel eyes were bright, yet soft, just like mine.

"Goodnight, momma! I love you," Charlie said while handing the phone back to me. I smiled and took it, while standing up from the bed. "I'll be right back, Charlie," I said as I exited her room and shut the door behind me before heading back to the kitchen to give myself a little privacy. I leaned against the counter and put the phone to my ear.

"Hey," I said still wondering how she was doing. "Hey yourself, it sounds like you and Charlie had a good day," she said. I smiled and nodded. "We did, she seems to really like the farm," I said as I went to the refrigerator to grab another beer. I cracked the cap on the counter before leaning back and taking a huge drink.

"Is she going to bed?" she asked me. I placed the beer on the counter. "Yeah, I'm heading back in there to tuck her in right now," I said. I heard Ronnie sigh on the other end of the phone. "What's wrong?" I asked her as I took another sip of my beer. "This is just a lot to take in," she whispered.

I ran a hand through my hair. "I know, Ronnie. Trust me. My brain is still trying to process that I have a daughter and that she's currently sitting in the other room," I said as I finished off my beer and threw the empty bottle in the trash. I turned off the lights in the kitchen and made my way back down the hallway to Charlie's bedroom.

"I'm sorry, Jeff," Ronnie whispered. I smiled as I peeked back in Charlie's room to find her already asleep. "It's okay, Ronnie. We'll talk about it some other time. Right now, I need to get Charlie turned into bed," I said. Ronnie sighed. "I need to turn in too," she as I flipped off the light in Charlie's room.

"Alright Ronnie, I'll talk to you tomorrow," I said before hanging up the phone and tucking it into my pocket. I walked into Charlie's room and pulled the covers up to her chin before planting a kiss on her forehead. She stirred, but settled again as she snuggled with her teddy bear. "Goodnight, baby girl. Daddy loves you," I whispered before walking out of her room and pulling the door closed behind me.

~~

*Ronnie's POV*

I hung up with Charlie and Jeffrey and the sadness instantly washed over me again. I laid my phone on the night stand and changed into my pajamas before crawling into bed. I plugged my phone up to the charger and decided to listen to music again to put myself to sleep. I hit the play button and relaxed.

I need love
Love enough to ease my worried mind
And  your touch
I think about so much I'm losing track of time

I've been waiting
Breathless, I'll be restless til I'm yours again
Am I crazy
For even letting myself let this happen?

When the night moves us closer together
We move to the heat of the moment we fall into
We can make it last forever if we try
When the night moves

I didn't bother turning the song off as I pulled the covers over my head trying to block the music. A tear escaped out of the corner of my eye and I quickly wiped it away. This was going to be harder than I thought, sharing Charlie, but after five years it was going to be something I would have to get used too.