After a grueling day on set, I headed back to our Welsh home. The boys had already gone to bed, so the adults were relaxing in the living room. Nora was, predictably, in her room since she had been in a foul mood lately. I sat and relaxed with my wife and parents for a good half hour, just unwinding from my day with a beer. Even though she was a sourpuss, I still wanted to see my daughter. I knocked on her door and walked in.

"Hey, there," I said. "Did you enjoy visiting the set today?"

"Yeah, it was cool," she said, sitting up on her bed.

"Did you FaceTime with your mom today?" I sat down next to her on her bed.

"Yeah. She looked pretty good."

"Good, I'm glad to hear that."

"She said for you to call her," she told me.

I wondered what was up. I hoped she didn't have news that she had relapsed again. I chatted with Nora for a few more minutes but it was obvious she didn't want to talk. I headed back to my bedroom and called Laura's number.

"Hi, Lin," she answered.

"Hey," I answered. "Nora said you wanted to talk to me."

"Yes," she said. "When we talked earlier she was practically begging me to come home. Has she talked to you about that at all?"

"She has," I said. "I think she's worried about you and misses you. But I'm concerned that if she comes back she'll get in the way of your progress."

"Me too," she said honestly. "I don't want to tell her that, but with her being away it's given me more time to focus on myself."

"That's what I figured," I agreed. "I'll tell her she needs to stay here."

"Thank you," she said.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm doing better, thanks," she said. "Leslie's been helping me a lot."

We talked for another minute or so, then hung up. I headed back to Nora's room to deliver the news to her.

"I just got off the phone with your mom," I told her. "She seems a lot better."

"Yeah she does," she smiled.

"We talked about you wanting to go home," I went on. "And we both agreed that it would be best if you stayed here."

She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Seriously?"

"It's gonna be easier to focus on her health if you're with me."

"Why are you guys plotting to make me miserable?!" She accused.

"We're not, Nora," I told her. "You have to understand that your mom is not well. She needs to focus on herself."

"So I have to stay here for two months?!"

"Yes," I said. "You can be a big help with the boys."

"I don't want to be a big help with the boys," she pouted, crossing her arms.

I sighed. "I know you're disappointed, but this is the way it has to be. Come join us in the living room if you want to hang out."

I left her to mope and joined the rest of the family for more drinks and talking. It was hard not to enjoy myself in the company of my wife and parents. We all got along famously and I was so thankful they were here with me. Filming for two months by myself would have been incredibly lonely.

The next day, Nora was even more miserable. I could tell she resented me for the decision to make her stay, but it was really a joint decision by her mother and me. As far as Nora was concerned, it was all me. I knew she was upset but I wasn't prepared for what she did next.

Vanessa and I were awoken in the middle of the night by a phone call. I didn't recognize the number, but something told me I needed to pick up. It was the Cardiff Airport Security team.

"Hello, is this Lin-Manuel Miranda?" A Welsh-accented man asked.

"Yes," I said.

"I have a Nora Thomas here with me," he explained, and I was immediately concerned. What the hell?

"She's at the airport?" I asked in shock.

"Yes," he said. "She attempted to board a flight to New York City, but since she's under the age of sixteen, she required an adult escort or prior arrangements with the airline.

"Okay, I'll be right there," I said, and hung up. I got out of bed and Vanessa sat up, concerned. "Nora's at the airport," I said to her.

"What?!" She asked, exasperated. "How?"

"I don't know," I said as I put on my jeans and a t-shirt. I hopped into the rental car and high-tailed it to the airport. The place was huge, so it took me a while to get to the room where they were holding her. When I saw her sitting in a chair, I breathed out, relieved. She'd come really close to hopping on an international flight alone.

An agent walked up to me and introduced himself. "We interviewed her, but she wasn't very cooperative. I'm not sure how she purchased the ticket, but she had her passport and was ready to go."

"Thank you for contacting me," I told him. "Is there anything else you need from me?"

"No, sir," he told me. I nodded and walked over to my daughter, who looked pissed. It didn't surprise me that she was uncooperative with her interview.

"Let's go, Nora," I told her. She had her arms crossed. She got up abruptly and didn't even look at me as she began walking ahead. She was walking the wrong way.

"Left," I called to her, and she changed directions. As we neared the parking garage, she slowed down so I could lead her to the car. We got in, but I didn't start the car yet.

"I cannot believe you pulled something like this," I said simply. "This was incredibly unsafe."

"I want to go home," she said firmly, her arms still crossed.

"I know," I said, then put the keys in the ignition. "We'll talk at the house."

The rest of the car ride was silent as I breathed to calm myself down. I knew Nora could be brazen, but this was a new low for her. When we arrived home twenty minutes later, she went straight to her room. It was still dark outside and the house was asleep.

"Go back to bed," I told her when we got inside. "We'll talk in the morning."

She gladly went to her room and climbed into bed. I'm sure she wouldn't be up for hours, having lost a lot of sleep during the night. However, I had to film the next day and I wasn't about to let her stay home and sleep. Vanessa and my grandparents had plans for the day and I didn't want to make them cancel to watch Nora. So, at 7 a.m. I went into her room and woke her up.

"You're coming with me to the set today," I told her. "Bring your laptop."

She just rolled over and ignored me. I returned ten minutes later and stripped the covers off of her. "Come on, Nora."

"I wanna stay here," she moaned sleepily.

"I'm not leaving you here unsupervised," I said. "We're leaving in 15 minutes. Let's go."

A few minutes later, she sauntered out to the kitchen in some sweats and a hoodie, still half asleep. She made herself a bowl of cereal as I finished getting ready. A couple minutes later, we were out the door.

I had a dressing room at the studio, so we went back there. Nora plopped down on the couch and I started to organize my things for the day. I had about half an hour before I had to be in hair and makeup.

"So," I said, sitting down. "Explain how you ended up with a ticket to New York City and ended up at the airport."

She sighed. "I stole your credit card after you went to bed and booked the flight," she said. "Then I got an Uber. I would've gotten on the flight if they hadn't had that stupid rule about a parent escort."

"Thank goodness they did," I clarified. "So, your plan was to hop on the plane and be with your mom."

"Yep," she said.

"Do you see how that could be dangerous?"

"You forget that I lived in the ghetto in Queens," she said. "I can take care of myself."

"I know you like to think you're grown, but you're not," I told her. "What you did last night was incredibly foolish. You stole from me and you went behind our backs after you'd been told no. Why can't you accept our answer?"

"Because it's not the right one!"

"I know you're not happy, but that's the way it is. I was beginning to have a lot of trust in you, Nora, but this has put us two steps back. More like ten steps back."

She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I can't exactly ground you, so instead you'll be with me on set every day. You'll help out where you're needed."

"But what about my education?" She asked surprisingly.

"Oh, about that – I checked your progress this morning and you've done jack for the last week," I told her. "So today, you'll be hanging out in here working all day. You are not to leave unless it's to go to the bathroom. Am I clear?"

"Crystal," she said.

"Good," I stood up and got my costume for the day out of the closet. "Get out your laptop and get started. I'll be checking your progress at lunch."

I left and headed to the hair and makeup department a little early, but they'd rather be ahead of schedule than behind. I told them I had my daughter with me and to let me know if they needed help with anything. She'd be busy for a few days making up her missed work, but after that she'd have some time on her hands and I knew she'd be bored.

We had a full morning of shoots. I went back to my dressing room around noon and found Nora asleep on the chair, curled up. She looked so innocent asleep. I woke her up and asked her to show me her school account. She'd gotten three assignments done. Not bad.

"Alright, let's go get some lunch," I said. The catering department was set up in a nearby building. We both got a plate and joined some of the crew at a table. I introduced her to everyone and they were eager to ask her questions. Nora seemed to like the attention.

"She's an indentured servant for the next few weeks, so let me know if you have work to be done," I told them. "Especially lifting heavy things and doing disgusting jobs."

It was a long day of filming and we didn't get done until around seven. Nora was allowed to go to the catering building to get snacks when she needed them. When we drove home, it was dark, and I realized that I wasn't going to be able to tuck the boys in at night for a while. Most nights I was getting home well past their bedtime.

Nora collapsed on her bed in her room when we arrived. I joined everyone in the living room and they wanted to know about what had happened the night before. They'd heard a little from Vanessa, but that was it. I told them about how she'd stolen my credit card to book a flight and an Uber. They shook their heads in disbelief at her brazenness. My parents were quickly learning what a firecracker she was.

"She'll be coming to the set with me every day for a while," I told them. "I'm not letting her out of my sight."

"No, I wouldn't either," my dad agreed. "She's a daring little thing, isn't she?"

Vanessa and I both nodded in agreement.

A while later, we climbed into bed. I kept my wallet in my bedside table, along with Nora's passport. The weekend was in a couple days, so I'd be able to spend more time with my family. With the demanding filming schedule, it seemed I left before everyone got up and barely had a chance to see them in the evenings. I reminded myself it wouldn't last forever, but it was hard right now.

Vanessa and I were cuddling when we heard little feet in the hallway. Someone struggled to turn the doorknob, and a few moments later, Sebastian made his appearance. He grinned when he saw me and propelled himself onto the bed.

"Daddy!" He exclaimed as he came to lay on me.

"Hi, buddy," I said as I wrapped my arms around him, planting kisses on his head. "I missed you."

"I missed you too," he said. I ran my fingers through his short hair and he smiled up at me. "What did you do today?"

"We went on a boat ride and we had a picnic," he informed me.

"And he got an ice cream cone that he let melt all over him," Vanessa said. "That required a bath."

Sebastian giggled and snuggled in a little more. We chatted for a while longer and Sebastian eventually fell asleep on my chest. I let him lay there for a while, enjoying feeling the weight of him on me; his gentle breathing. About fifteen minutes later, I carefully sat up and carried the little tyke back to his own bed. I tucked him in and returned to my own bed. I had a full day of filming ahead of me, and I needed my rest.