House of Gold // Adopted by Tyler Joseph

Adopted

"What?" The woman cackled an ugly laugh. "You can't be serious." She said as Lily shrunk down embarrassed.

"Shows how much you care for her. You heard me, I'd like to adopt her." I went to grab Lily's hand but she flinched.

"What's your name?"

"Tyler Joseph." I declared.

"Mr. Joseph. Ahhh, there's so much more than announcing you want to adopt her." She spoke.

"Yeah, obviously I'd know. I'm not the one who sends her to school cold, hungry, and then beats her." I huffed angrily at the lady.

"Tyler STOP!" Lily cried out and began sobbing.

"To your room Lily." She commanded.

"No, Lily I didn't mean it like that! Wait, I meant I'd take care of you." I face palmed as she turned her back to me with a sob.

"I know paperwork. Money, got it. Look I'm capable of raising her." I promised and pulled out my wallet.

"We're gonna need to see a lot more from you. Do background checks. Birth certificates, more than a credit card. For legal reasons. Come in next week and we'll see." She smiled evilly.

"No. I'm laying my foot down. She's not safe here and I need to get her out of here." I announced.

"Ha. Good luck with that." She snorted and went to turn to her computer, ignoring me. "Have a good day Mr. Joseph."

"I'm calling the police." I threatened. My hand reaching for my phone.

She began to sweat, she dropped the papers she held in her hands. "I can assure you, that won't be necessary." She gulped but tried to play it off.

"Oh really?" My fingers ghosted over the 911 buttons.

"Lilith. Get down here you disobedient child." She snarled.

Lilith? I'd heard that name before. It was biblical. But she was no Lilith. She was a lily.

A frail little, pale little lily.

Her cheeks flushed pink, the way a lily might flush pink in the center.

"Yes Mrs. Robin?" She said in a robotic voice.

"Pack your stuff, you're going with him." She looked at her in disgust.

Lily's eyes began to fill with tears. "No, no, no, MA'AM YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" She wailed.

"Lilith that is an order. Do as I say." She spat. It showed how easily the head lady would rid of Lily.

Guilt sat in my chest. Lily didn't want to come home with me. She also didn't like her home now though.

Why didn't she trust me?

I couldn't be as bad as Mrs. Robin was to her now?

I still didn't know what happened yesterday for her to be yanked into that car.

She was dead silent as two tiny boxes fit everything she owned. I didn't know so I asked with a soft smile, "Want me to get the rest upstairs?"

"This is all I have." She responded sadly.

"Okay." I finished signing papers as Lily waited, stone-faced.

"Have a nice life you two." She announced.

"Thank you." I opened my car door and heard her stomach growl loudly.

I'd lied to that Mrs. Robin lady, and called the cops before driving off. A simple address was all I dropped, and hung up.

"Wanna get some ice cream?" I asked with a smile.

She didn't answer, her face staring out the window in silence.

"Well I say I cook us up some spaghetti, and then we go get some gelato." You'd think kids loved ice cream, and her eyes showed happiness for a split second, but she didn't respond.

I opened my car door, and raced to open hers, but she did it herself, and sent me a sad smile.

What would Jenna think?

That you're insane. I thought back.

My blonde-haired beauty opened the door. Surprise on her face as she saw her.

"Who might this lovely lady be? I don't remember you having a niece?" She laughed and stared at Lily oddly. No, this poor child with dirt-smudged clothes was not my niece.

"She's my daughter." I mumbled and hung my coat up on the hanger, taking Lily's for her.

Jenna's mouth dropped open. "Uh-I-What?" She asked shocked. "Excuse us Hun." She spoke to her and pulled me into a room.

"Who'd you get pregnant in high school? And why is she now all of a sudden in your life? Tyler, this is a child for God's sake—" She rambled angrily, hurt.

"Jenna. Babe. My adopted daughter. She goes to the middle school by the studio, and it's a long story, but she needed my help. And she's here to live with me. Until she grows up, so if you can't handle her, then I'm afraid you can leave."

I knew Jenna wouldn't leave me over something like that, but I hated the pressure I put on her. Heck she was my girlfriend, she wasn't ready to handle a kid.

"Wow." She mumbled trying to process everything. "This is a lot to take in."

"Look I'm not asking you to be her mother. But she's my daughter now. And you have to be supportive of that."

"What did Josh say? And I guess you expect me to watch her while you go off to work? Oh and tour, yeah, Ty, who'll watch her for four months?!" She burst.

"Josh doesn't know, she's at school the same time I'm at work, and maybe I'll take her on tour, who knows!" I defended Lily.

"Fine. Whatever." Jenna had never gotten mad.

She had every right to be, but I was just taken aback. My girl had so much love.

"I'm making spaghetti." I announced as Lily watched from the couch.

When dinner came around, us two didn't eat. Jenna picked at her food, as I did too. Lily was raised with manners, I could tell.

But she swallowed to food whole in seconds, thanking me, as her stomach stopped its constant growling.

"I was thinking we get you something for your room tomorrow. Clothes, books, anything you want darling, kay?" I asked as she nodded.

She couldn't contain her smile, but stayed quiet. She had a certain uneasiness still, but giggled while I took her to get gelato with me, and we ate it at the park.

Our little bond session pulled short, as I had to mess it up. "Why'd you go into that van that one day?"