I liked Wales, but I really missed my mom. I hated that she had relapsed and was obviously struggling, but I was thousands of miles away. Why had dad dragged me across the ocean? Why did I have to put my life on hold just because of his job? It wasn't fair to expect a 13 year old to put her life on hold, was it? This had to be child cruelty.

I knew I was starting to be a pain. I just wasn't happy. I'd never admit it to dad, but I kind of missed school and I missed the city. Wales was so...rural. I didn't like how quiet it was. There was hardly any traffic noise and it was pitch black at night.

My grandparents were sticking around for the first two weeks. I wondered if dad would let me go back with them. Everyone was gung-ho about doing all the touristy stuff. Seeing castles and really old stuff. It rained constantly. One day, after being dragged to yet another castle, I hung back from the group, kicking at the gravel. The hood on my rain coat was pulled over my head and it felt nice to be hidden from the world. Finally, it was time for lunch.

As we ate, I just felt miserable. "Dad, can I just go back home after this?"

"We're, like, almost an hour from our house," he told me. "I'm not driving you back."

"But I'm so bored!"

"It's history. Soak it in."

"We've seen, like, half a dozen castles. They're all the same. Really old stones with grass growing everywhere. Whooppeeee..."

"What's with the attitude?" He asked me.

"I don't have an attitude," I countered. "I'm just bored."

"Well, find a way to turn your mood around," he said. "No one wants to be around a sour puss."

"Sour puss? What's a sour puss?"

"You."

I rolled my eyes and finished off my sandwich. As the day wore on, I just hung back and thought about my mom. We hadn't FaceTimed in several days and I was dying to talk to her. It couldn't really happen until the evenings because we were out all day and there was a 5 hour time difference.

Finally, we drove back to our house. I immediately disappeared into my room and collapsed onto my bed. The sounds of the rest of the family, happy and in good spirits, travelled through the doors. They didn't have anyone to worry about. No one they loved was alcoholic and in danger of relapsing.

I knew dad wasn't happy with me. I'd been grumpy all day, not really participating. He was loving everything. Predictably, there was a knock at my door and he came inside, closing the door.

"Hi," he said, pulling up a chair.

"Hi," I mumbled, my chin resting on my hands.

"What's going on with you? You seem miserable."

"I don't want to be here," I said through gritted teeth.

"Nora, you don't have a choice right now, I'm sorry. I have to be here for my job."

"But I want to be with mom! Why can't I just catch a plane back to New York?"

"I'm not sending you across the ocean on your own," he told me.

"Then can I go back with Abuelo and Abuela?" I asked hopefully.

He sighed. "Do you really miss your mom that much?"

"Yes," I said. "I'm worried about her."

"But it's not your job to worry about her," he said, like it was easy. "There are adults there taking care of her."

"But she's my mom!!" I yelled.

Lin closed his eyes and was silent for a few minutes. "Fine. If you're this miserable, you can go back with your grandparents next weekend. But you're not to give them any problems whatsoever."

"Can't I just stay with mom?"

"No, she needs to focus on herself."

"Why do you get to decide?" I challenged.

"Because I want your mom healthy and if you're there she's going to be distracted," he told me.

"So, what, I'm a burden on her? Maybe she misses me."

"I'm sure she does, Nora, but it's easier for her to get better if she's focused on herself."

"You just don't want me to be with her," I quipped.

"That's not true," he said firmly.

"Bullshit," I muttered.

"Hey!" He raised his voice. "Watch your language."

I huffed and kept my mouth shut. He was so maddening. It was obvious that he was trying to keep me away from her, like she was a bad influence. She was my mom and I wanted her.

"Dinner will be ready in 45 minutes," he said as he stood up. "Then you need to get started on your school work."

He closed the door behind after he left, leaving me to mope by myself. I checked the time and decided to FaceTime mom. I let it ring, but she didn't answer. Sighing, I gave up.

I ate dinner silently, pushing around my peas. Again, everyone around me was chatting happily, obviously at ease. I felt like I had a huge thunder cloud above my head. I wanted the sunshine, but I knew the storm hadn't yet passed.

I disappeared into my room and pulled out a book I'd been reading. I wasn't in the mood to do school work at all, and hadn't been for a few days. I'm sure I was way behind on my assignments, but I really didn't care right now. How was I supposed to concentrate?

The next day, Vanessa came to wake me up. I faked that I was feeling sick. She felt my forehead and said I didn't feel hot. I told her my tummy hurt – a physical symptom-free affliction. She brought me a bucket and set it by my bed. As soon as everyone had left, probably to go see another castle, I got out of bed and went to the living room. I turned on the TV. British TV wasn't quite up to snuff with American, in my humble opinion, but I managed to find something decent to watch. I curled up with a blanket and watched TV all day.

They came home around five. Sebastian had a shield and fake sword he must have gotten at one of the gift shops. He wielded it, waving it around, making noises. Vanessa sent him out to the backyard so he didn't destroy the house. She sat down on the edge of the couch and stroked my hair.

"How are you feeling?"

"A little better," I said.

"Did you throw up?"

I shook my head no. "Just nauseous all day."

"Have you eaten?"

I'd had a couple bowls of cereal and some toast. She heated me up some tomato soup and made me some grilled cheese. I happily accepted and ate it at the coffee table. It felt nice to get taken care of and fussed over. I was allowed to continue to laze around on the couch.

The following day, Lin was beginning filming his show His Dark Materials. He was playing Lee Scoresby. Apparently, it was based on a book series, but I have never read it. It was a fantasy thing, which I wasn't that into. We all went to the set to see how it all worked.

I expected it to be a flurry of activities with action everywhere, but in reality it was pretty boring. Most of the time, people were just sitting around waiting. I watched dad do some of his takes. He was interesting to watch. I thought it was cool how he could just transform himself into another person.

We stayed for a couple hours, then left to go have lunch and do some more touristy things while Lin continued to film. As we were walking around, my phone buzzed with an incoming FaceTime. It was my mom. I excitedly pressed accept.

"Mom!" I greeted her as I stepped away and found a spot to sit.

"Hi baby!" She said. She looked better. The bags under her eyes were less visible and her skin looked healthier. She looked fresh. "How's Wales?"

"It's okay," I said. "I've seen tons and tons of castles. A lot of the food is terrible."

She laughed. "I've heard that about British food," she said. "Have you been watching your dad on set?"

"We went today for the first time. It was kinda cool, but also kind of boring. They wait around a lot."

"Cool," she said. "Well, I wanted to let you know I'm doing well. I haven't relapsed since the other day and I'm feeling better. I think it might actually work this time."

"Great, Mom!" I said, feeling relieved. It had only been a few days, but before she had made it almost a month. Small steps. "Hey, mom. I was thinking about coming back early when my grandparents leave next week."

"Why do you want to do that?"

"Because I miss you," I admitted.

"Baby, I miss you too but you have a great opportunity over there," she reminded me. "Living in another country is such a cool experience."

"But they're gonna be here for months," I reminded her. "Dad won't let me fly over alone, so I have to either go with Abuelo and Abuela, or come home with them."

"Nora, I think you should stay," she told me. This wasn't what I wanted to hear. I wanted her to want me to come back. I wanted her to need me around. "Are you worried about me?"

"A little," I admitted.

"Well, don't," she said. "I'm working on myself and it's an adult issue. You don't need to worry about it."

Mom and Dad both said that, but I couldn't help but worry. It was frustrating being a kid and not being able to do anything about mom's problems. I wanted to help somehow, but she kept saying it was an adult issue.

"Mom, please," I said, getting upset.

She sighed. "Don't get upset, baby. Is your dad around?"

"No, he's filming," I explained. "I'm out with Vanessa and everyone else."

"Well focus on enjoying yourself," she said. "Tell your dad to call me later."

I imaged they were going to talk about how to plot against me together. I hated that they seemed to be in cahoots now. They communicated about me a lot now that mom was out of prison.

"Okay," I said reluctantly. She leaned forward and kissed the screen and I did the same. We hung up and I immediately felt lonely.

"Come on, Nora!" Abuela called from the hill they were all about to climb. She waited for me, smiling, as I slowly walked over. She put an arm around me as we began to walk.

"Was that your mom?" She asked me. I nodded. "I know you're worried about her. But she'll be fine."

"Everyone keeps saying that, but you don't know for sure. She relapsed the other day."

"Lin told me about that," she said. "That's unfortunate, but the important thing is that she's trying again. She's going to keep trying until she gets it right."

Abuela gave my shoulder a supportive squeeze as we followed the rest of the family. Everyone was happy, laughing. Sebastian was running, care-free. I wish I could be like that, but my mind continued to be riddled with worry.