the battle - a single dad!charlie short story
when the letter from the court had come in the mail charlie had thought it was a joke. some sort of mean prank from some teenage fan who had looked far too deep into his past history and wanted to get at him somehow.
or maybe it was a joke from his brothers, teasingly making fun of him.
but then the phone had rang, and it had been a lovely woman from the family courts saying that her name was emma, and that she was going to do everything she could to help him.
and thatâs how charlie found himself in a courtroom on a wednesday morning, margaux dressed in her best dress, him in a suit, and his family and owen filling the room all praying for the best results.
the judge began the trial, first calling on charlie to plead his case. he took a deep breath, glancing across the room to where margaux was sat next to a court official, before standing up.
âwhat is your name?â the judge asked.
âcharles gillespie, sir.â charlie answered politely.
âmr gillespie, we are here today to discuss your daughter, margaux ivy gillespie. is that correct?â the judge checked and charlie nodded.
âyes it is your honour.â
âthe mother of the child, mrs callahan, claims that you have kept the child from her, and has asked the court for full custody. what are your thoughts on this?â the judge questioned.
âwould you mind if i started at the beginning sir?â charlie checked. the judge gestured for him to continue.
âof course not. go ahead mr gillespie.â he said.
âthank you sir. it all started back in 2016. i was 17 years old at the time, and was in an on again, off again relationship with jane⊠sorry, i mean mrs callahan. she was 25 at the time. she fell pregnant and we decided to keep the child, then 9 months later she was born. the day after she was born we brought her home from the hospital, and the next morning i woke up to a note from mrs callahan saying that she wasnât ready to be a mother and that she was leaving me to raise the baby alone.â charlie explained.
âand how old were you at this time?â the judge interrupted.
âi was 18 sir.â charlie answered. the judge scribbled something down before looking back up at charlie.
âcontinue.â he instructed.
âi moved back into my parents house with the baby, and have raised her alone ever since.â charlie finished.
âhow old is the child now?â the judge questioned.
âshe will be 6 years old in november sir.â charlie smiled slightly.
â6 years oldâŠâ the judge repeated. âdo you have a wife, mr gillespie?â
âno sir, i am in a relationship with my partner, but we are not married.â charlie replied.
âis she here today?â the judge asked.
âhe is, yes.â charlie said, emphasising the first word. the judge shot him an apologetic look.
âoh forgive me for assuming. would i be able to speak to him, by any chance?â he asked.
charlieâs lawyer nodded, motioning for owen to stand up and come to the front of the room.
âwhat is your name sir?â the judge asked, once owen was stood in front of him.
âowen joyner.â owen answered, his voice shaking slightly, and it took everything in charlie not to get up to comfort owen.
âmr joyner, how long have you been in a relationship with mr gillespie?â the judge questioned.
âa year and a half your honour.â owen replied. the judge nodded.
âand do you live together?â
âyes your honour.â owen smiled slightly.
âwould you say that mr gillespie is a good parent?â the judge questioned. owen nodded quickly.
âthe best parent iâve ever seen, your honour. you could ask anyone, theyâd all say the same thing.â he agreed.
âthank you mr joyner. you can take your seat.â the judge dismissed, and owen smiled.
âthank you your honour.â he said, before turning and heading back to his seat.
âi would like to hear from the mother of the child now.â the judge demanded, and jane stood up. âwhat is your name?â
âjane callahan sir.â jane answered, and charlie frowned slightly before his eyes landing on the wedding ring on janeâs hand.
âmrs.â jane corrected.
âmrs callahan, is what mr gillespie said about the birth of your child and the proceedings of the next few days true?â the judge questioned. jane nodded.
âand at any point in the next 6 years of the childâs life did you try to contact mr gillespie, or provide support for the child in any way?â the judge asked, eyes narrowed. jane shook her head.
âso you abandoned the child, and did not try to get in contact until you filed for full custody of the child, is that correct?â the judge continued.
âyes sir, but i-â jane tried but the judge cut her off yet again.
âthen iâm not quite sure why you believe that i will be giving you the child if you have not made any effort yourself until this point.â he said, and charlie bit back a grin.
âcan i please speak your honour?â jane questioned, her tone cold.
âif you must.â the judge replied.
âi believe that mr gillespie is an unfit father.â jane said. âhe often engages in drugs.â
the judge turned his attention back to charlie.
âis that true mr gillespie?â he asked.
ânot often sir, but yes.â charlie replied honestly.
âwhat drugs?â the judge questioned.
âonly marijuana sir, which is legal in los angeles, which is where i live. and never around my daughter. only if i am away from her, or if she has already gone to bed.â charlie explained.
âi see.â the judge nodded, before turning back to jane. âas it is legal, i cannot made judgement on marijuana use. is there anything else?â
âhe has an unstable career.â she suggested.
âwhat do you do mr gillespie?â the judge asked.
âiâm an actor.â charlie answered. the judge nodded.
âcan you afford to provide food and shelter for your child?â he asked. charlie nodded quickly.
âabsolutely sir.â the judge turned back to jane.
âanything else?â he questioned.
âhe swears in front of her. and letâs her swear too.â jane tried.
âwhat language mr gillespie, or his child for that matter, may use is none of my business. if he wants to allow her to curse that is his own decision as a father, and is not illegal by any means. it sounds to me, mrs callahan, that you have no real reason behind your custody claim other than wanting to hurt mr gillespie, is that the case?â the judge raised an eyebrow. jane shook her head.
âno sir.â she denied.
âi donât believe you. this case is dismissed. mr gillespie retains full and sole custody of margaux ivy gillespie.â the judge decided, picking up the pieces of paper on his desk.
âwait! you didnât ask the child what she wants.â jane interrupted. the judge glared at her, but nodded.
âvery well. margaux sweetheart, could you stand up for me?â he said, his tone gentle.
margaux nodded, standing up from her seat.
âhow old are you margaux?â he asked.
âfive, but iâm gonna be six soon.â margaux grinned widely, showing off the gap in her teeth from where she had lost first tooth a few days prior.
âthatâs exciting.â the judge smiled. âdo you know why weâre here today margaux?â
âare you gonna take me away from my daddy?â she asked quietly.
âwould you like to leave your daddy?â the judge questioned. margaux shook her head firmly.
âno, i wanna stay with daddy. and koa and papa and cruzy too.â she said quickly.
âour dogs.â charlie explained, when the judge glanced to him for clarification.
âcan i ask you a question margaux?â the judge began, turning his attention back to margaux.
âdo you know who that lady there is? the one with the red dress on.â he asked, pointing to jane. margaux nodded.
âwhat do you know about jane?â the judge questioned.
âi was in her tummy and then i was borned and she didnât love me and daddy anymore so she went away, and daddy looked after me and gave me lots of hugs and makes me waffles.â margaux answered, and charlie couldnât help but smile.
âwould you like to live with jane?â the judge asked.
âno thank you.â margaux replied, pausing to listen to the court official next to her before speaking again. âi have to call you your honour.â
âthatâs quite alright dear.â the judge laughed. âi think that settles it then. case dismissed.â
jane huffed, standing up and storming out, her lawyer following on her heels. charlie stood up from his chair, picking margaux up when she ran over to him.
âi get to stay with you daddy!â she grinned, the french words flowing off her tongue. âforever and ever.â
âiâm so glad.â charlie smiled, responding in english. âi love you too much to let you go.â
âcan we get ice cream now?â margaux questioned.
âwe definitely can.â charlie agreed, moving to join the rest of his family, thankful that everything had gone the way it was meant to.
âany flavour you want.â