As the week went on, Nora seemed to feel better and better.  According to Vanessa, her bruises were fading.  She was able to return to school on Tuesday.  When Friday came around again, I began to feel another pit in my stomach, knowing Nora would be going to her mother's for the weekend.  I told Nora I would meet her after school with her overnight bag and ride the subway with her.  Her mother had since moved into her own house a couple blocks away from where they'd been staying.

Nora was excited after school, and I was glad to see a smile on her face.  She was a tough cookie, but I missed her when she was away.  She told me about her day as we rode the subway out to Queens.  Nora knew where her mother's new house was, so she led the way.  When we arrived, Nora pushed the door open.  Laura was in the kitchen putting away dishes and pots from the numerous boxes that were spread around.

"Hi mom!" She called as she dropped her backpack next to the old-looking couch.  Laura appeared and opened up her arms to hug Nora.  I stood back, hands in my pockets as I waited patiently. 

"Why don't you go back to your room.  There's a surprise for you in there," she told Nora.  Our daughter smiled and hurried back towards her bedroom.  Laura turned to me, crossing her arms.

"I heard you got a restraining order against Larry," she told me.

"I did," I confirmed.  "I don't want Nora to see that man ever again."

"Don't you think you're being a tad bit dramatic?"

"Laura, that man basically assaulted our daughter.  She couldn't go to school on Monday because she was in pain," I pointed out.

"Well you don't have to worry," she told me.  "He won't be around at all this weekend.  I only see him during the week."

"Good," I told her.  "Have you been staying off drugs?"

"That's none of your business," she told me.

"It is when my daughter is staying with you," I countered.  Our child was in her care.  If she was high, she obviously wasn't going to be very reliable.  "Are you clean?"

"During the weekends, yes," she told me.  I guess it was too much to expect that she would give up drugs completely.  As long as she wasn't doing them around our daughter, I couldn't protest much.

I nodded and Nora ran back into the room with a basket filled with candy.  She hugged her mother.  "Thanks mom!!"

"You're welcome, baby," she said.  "Just don't eat it all at once.  I don't need you bouncing all over the walls."

I looked at Nora, knowing it was time for me to go.  "I'm gonna head out kid," I told her.  "Have a good weekend with your mom."

Nora stepped forward and hugged me warmly, then sat on the couch to dig into her candy.  It felt lonely on the subway ride back.  Coming back to the house without her felt empty.  I was so used to her being there that her absence was definitely noticeable. 

I had a meeting with my lawyer after that, so I took the subway to his office.  I wanted to update him on what had happened to see if it would help their case.

"Immensely," he told me when I finished telling him the story.  "It shows she's not able to provide a safe home, and the company she keeps is not suitable.  Would Nora testify?"

I sighed.  "I'd been wondering about that myself.  She doesn't want to jeopardize being with her mother, but at the same time she despises Larry.  I think she would."

The lawyer nodded and scribbled in some notes.  "Alright.  I'm going to ask for a court date, so hopefully our day will be set sometime next month.  It's not an emergency case, so it's not a priority."

We talked a bit more about our plans and how everything would work.  I was feeling more and more confident that the court would side with me.  At the end of our session, I was feeling encouraged.  I shook his hand and then left to go be with Vanessa and the boys.

When I walked in the door, I think Vanessa could tell I was a wreck once again.  It's strange how I didn't know Nora existed for thirteen years, and suddenly there was this person in my life that worried me and that I missed.  Nora knew I'd be texting her throughout the weekend to make sure she was okay and that Larry wasn't around.  I'd told her to call me immediately if he came around.

Vanessa walked up to me and snaked her arms around my body, pulling me towards her.  She gave me a supportive kiss on the lips and leaned back to look me in the face. 

"Try to relax," she told me softly.

"I can't stop worrying when she's over there," I admitted.

"I don't think she'd be stupid enough to do anything after last week," she pointed out, but I wasn't so sure.  Laura seemed like a piece of work.

"Daddy!" Sebastian squealed and ran towards me, dressed only in his underwear.  He was almost four now, so he was 95% potty trained.  There were accidents every now and then.  He loved his collection of underwear and often spread them out on the floor to admire them.  He had a pair with virtually every superhero available, along with his favorite shows and movies, like PJ Masks and Moana.  Soon, I was being dragged away, glad to have the distraction of my two sons.

"You'll never stop me, superheroes," I challenged my son.

"Yes...we will," Sebastian replied seriously.

"How do you propose to stop me?"

"This is Firestorm!"

"That's Firestorm? Yikes. Who else ya got?"

"I'm Spider-Man!"

"Yikes! I'm scared of Spider-Man! Who else ya got?"

"I'm...." he paused, "I'm sss...s.s..." he paused, and I waited patiently for him to continue. "I'm...I'm...I'm Fall Down Man."

"Fall Down Man?!"

"I can make you fall down, Joker!"

"Oh no!"

"And I'm Speederman."

"Speederman?!"

"I can put speed on anybody and they will be in..jai..and all the Jokers are bad guys and they will be in jail!"

"Yikes!"

"I'm Flash!"

"You're the fastest. Are you faster than Speederman?"

"Yeah...Yeah I'm Flash and I can put you in jail."

"Guhhhahhhhh!!! I'm getting out of here!" (Real video! https://twitter.com/lin_manuel/status/1012678633360633856?s=21)

Vanessa announced that dinner was ready, so I picked up Franky and put him in his high chair.  Mac and cheese and chicken nuggets for the boys, and some chicken and rice for us.  After I'd gotten the boys set I pulled out my phone and shot Nora a text to make sure everything was okay.  She replied a couple minutes later that everything was fine, so I tried to start to relax.  Vanessa had poured me a glass of wine to help with the process.

When V came back out I was apparently looking pretty miserable sitting on the couch.  She sighed and crossed her arms with me.

"Call Chris and see if he's free," she told me.  "I don't want you moping around all weekend."

I looked at her and saw she was dead serious.  My wife didn't usually tell me to do anything, so I knew I must really look pathetic.  It had been a while since I'd seen my good buddy, Chris Jackson.  He'd been in our wedding and of course had been in Hamilton and In the Heights.  I decided that was a much better idea then laying around.  I pulled out my phone and texted Chris.  He and a couple buddies were planning on hitting up a few bars around 9:30.

I took a shower and put on a nice pair of jeans and a button down collared shirt.  I think Vanessa was secretly glad to have a night to herself, as when I was leaving I noticed she was already in her jammies with a glass of wine and Netflix on.

"See you later," I told her and headed out.  I took the subway downtown and found the bar Chris said they were meeting at.  He and his buddies already had a booth so I slid in the end.  There were a few introductions, though I already knew a couple of them.

I ordered a vodka, then another, trying to drown out my worries.  I started to feel myself relax a bit as the alcohol worked its way into my system.  However, I wasn't really joining in the conversation, which is pretty unlike me.  I was listening, staring at my drink most of the time.  We paid our bill and decided to head down the block to our second destination.

"Hey, man," Chris called me as the group started walking ahead.  I hung back, putting my hands in my pockets.  "V texted me.  She said you're in a rough place."

I wasn't surprised.  He and Vanessa were pretty good friends themselves.  "Yeah, I'm having a hard time not worrying about Nora.  She's with her mom all weekend."

"How's the court case coming?" He asked.

"It's alright," I told him as we walked.  "We'll go to court soon.  When Nora was at her mom's last weekend, her boyfriend ended up abusing her, so we'll be bringing that up."

"Damn," Chris commented, shaking his head.  He knew I must have had a hard time not tracking the dude down and beating him to a pulp.  No one hurt my kids.

"I put a restraining order on him but I'm still worried," I confessed.  "I don't know who Laura brings over there."

"She'll be fine, Lin," he tried to assure me.  "She's a tough kid.  She's got street smarts."

Chris had met her on a couple occasions, so he knew her feisty spirit.  She didn't let people push her around.  If she got into any trouble, he knew I would be there to help her in a second.  He put a supportive hand on my shoulder.

"Hang in there, dude," he told me as we reached the next bar.

"Thanks, Chris."

I kept chugging back the drinks, desperate to numb myself.  We stayed out until the bars closed at 2 a.m.  Chris must have thought I was pretty trashed because he rode the subway back to my place with me.  I stumbled in the door around 2:30, laughing and delirious.  Chris told me goodbye and I wandered back to the bedroom, trying to be quiet so I didn't wake Vanessa.

I brushed my teeth, then stripped off my shirt and jeans and climbed into bed.  Soon, I was off in dreamland, dreaming about Sunday afternoon.