Headline: Joshua Bassett has found Christianity. What does this mean?
February 24th, 2023
Joshua
~~~
My alarm goes off, signaling it's time to get to the studio to meet up with my parents and my manager.
I sigh, throwing off the covers before standing up and stretching, before going off to the bathroom and turning on the shower.
My days have been crazy lately; the world has been absolutely crazy over my "new-found" Christianity that I no longer have the energy to go into the spotlight.
But for the sake of my music, that's what I'll do. A week ago, I led my first ever worship tour in LA and the news blasted me again.
A knock on the door sounds downstairs.
I turn off the water as I step out and pull on a shirt and sweatpants, going to see who is at the door.
I open it to reveal Olivia, who appears to be crying and she isn't alone; a little girl stands behind her, her brown eyes mimicking mine.
"Olivia?" Her name is foreign on my lips as she nods. The last time we had seen each other, alone, had been in December of 2020. And, even then, I was going back and forth in my mind about whether or not I wanted to keep my relationship with her.
"Josh," she says, her voice almost a whisper. The little girl steps between Olivia's legs, and I find myself crouching down to wave at her.
She looks up at Olivia and whimpers softly; Olivia brings her close to her and strokes her brown curls.
"Lily, it's okay. He's a good person," she says. She looks back at me with pleading eyes.
Lily?
The memory clicks then. A few weeks after the night we spent together in December, when I broke things off, she looked discombobulated and... different.
I look back at the small girl, whose face resembles my own, and she doesn't break the eye contact.
"Lily, how old are you?" I ask, hoping that this is just a dream. There's no way I could be a father right now, especially to a child that I never knew existed.
She holds up two fingers, and Olivia chuckles.
"She'll be two in September," she says, looking at me.
"I have a daughter?" I ask.
She nods. Tears threaten to spill over her eyes.
"I had to hide her away from the world. I didn't want her to become a poster child for Hollywood. I didn't want them to know," she ushers out, fumbling with her hands.
My phone rings, and I look at the number.
Mom.
"My mom's calling. I'm supposed to be at the studio now to work on some songs," I say, and I feel bad when Olivia's gaze drops to the floor.
Lily pulls softly at my hand. "Daddy," she whispers.
A small smile appears on my face as I take in her sweet little face and I kiss her head.
"I have to go, little one," I say. "Daddy will be back."
I look at Olivia, who bites her lip in a way I know she's trying not to cry. "I promise," I say, hoping she'll understand.
She nods and takes Lily by the hand. "We'll be here waiting," she finalizes, and with that, I'm in the car speeding down to the studio.
~~~
"Josh, where have you been? I called your phone twice! This album needs to be out by the end of the week," Mom chastises as I enter into the studio room where Dad and my manager are waiting.
"There he is," Dad sounds relieved as he hugs me.
"Thought you wouldn't make it," my manager says, clapping me on the back.
I sigh and enter behind the glass, sitting down on the stool and getting the mic ready.
~~~
At two p.m. I return back to my house, and smile when I see Olivia sitting on the couch, a sleeping Lily on her lap.
The television is playing quietly. She turns it off and looks at me. "Do your parents know?" She asks.
I shake my head. "I can't tell them. They'd go absolutely crazy over me having a kid right now," I say and get a glass out of the cabinet before filling it with water.
I take a slow swig before returning my gaze to the two on my couch.
~~~~
"You sure you don't mind us staying here for a while?" Olivia asked that night as she tucked Lily into the bed before getting in beside her and kissing her forehead.
"No," I shook my head and gave her a small smile. "It gets lonely here sometimes. And this is just until you get back on your feet."
She nodded. "Yeah, it is. But if we're imposing, just say the word and we'll go back to my parents."
I shook my head, fighting back the urge to pull her to me and feel her body against me.
How I longed to feel her against me one more time.
I looked at the small girl in the bed, the way her brown curls danced around her fair skin, her lips pulled into a smile as she dreamed.
"Does she ever just blow you away?" I wiped the tears that began to fall and let out a small chuckle.
Olivia nodded. "She pulls at my heart too, everyday. She was my saving grace. I remember when I first found out that I was pregnant, I was terrified because I didn't know how to raise a child, all alone. My parents, they went above and beyond to help me and they love Lily to pieces. She's got your eyes, if you noticed. She's my little piece of you I'll have forever," she whispered.
I smiled. "Goodnight."
She smiled back and waved sleepily. "Goodnight, Josh."
YOU ARE READING
Lily: a Jolivia story
Fanfiction"I'm passing Pasadena; do you still live in LA?" In which Joshua Bassett doesn't know he has an almost one-year-old daughter with his ex-girlfriend, Olivia Rodrigo. But that's not what he's worried about. Oh, no. He has his own life to worry about...
