Something Like Home

Laura rushes to Mom, crying with joy. She sobs and repeats “Mom” as they hug tightly. Laura finally feels loved and at home.

Mom laughs nervously and tells the office staff that Laura loves her so much she refers to her as “Mom.” Laura realizes she made a mistake again. She never should have revealed she was Mom, not Silvia. The secretary gets on the phone, but Mom rushes Laura toward the school exit.

The principal blocks their way. Unless Mom lets Laura go, he will call the police. She holds Laura tightly. Laura wants to go with her desperately, but she worries that Mom will get in more trouble. She thinks of Sparrow, Silvia, and Benson, unsure about her decision.

Recognizing Laura’s fear, Mom kisses her forehead and leaves. Laura is left crying.

After Mom departs, Laura sits in the office in shock. She keeps asking herself why she didn’t go along.

Silvia rushes to Laura’s school, but she doesn’t speak until they’re at the apartment. She asks if Laura understands the school’s concerns. Laura ignores her, but Silvia explains that if Mom took her, it would have been considered kidnapping. Mom could have gone to jail. Laura thinks “kidnapping” is impossible because she is her mom’s child and has always lived with her.

Laura yells at Silvia that she never loved Mom and doesn’t love or care about her either.

When Silvia is in the shower, Laura empties her backpack and fills it with clothes and some food. Though she knows someone will find her, she needs to escape. She takes Sparrow outside, and they run until she’s exhausted. They run to a pond with geese, finally stopping at a bench.

Laura compares people to geese, who have perfect bird families. Adult geese mate for life, and their babies stay with them for the majority of their lives too. They stick together. Laura wishes people would be more like geese.

Laura analyzes why she cares if Silvia, Mom, or Dad are worried. None of them are a reliable support system for her. Only she and Sparrow are a team.

Laura and Sparrow remain at the pond until dark. Silvia appears, and Laura apologizes, but Silvia isn’t upset. She thinks Laura was smart to bring Sparrow, since he loves her and will always protect her. Silvia feels bad about Laura’s tough day. Although she wants her sister to recover, Silvia says Laura is her top priority; she can keep Laura safe and provide all her needs.

Laura is relieved, but she doesn’t respond. Since she hugged her mom, she thinks moving forward will be impossible. She lost Mom again.

Laura fakes a cough the next day, so Silvia lets her stay home. She reminds her about the doorbell camera and suggests calling her if anything weird happens. Laura assumes Silvia refers to her parents arriving, though she doesn’t want them to find her if they’ll be sent to jail. Laura wonders why her parents can’t just complete rehab and return.

Although Sparrow may not need to be a therapy dog anymore, Laura still wants to teach him. Maybe her parents will go back to rehab, and then they’ll be ready. They work on stay and come commands for a while.

After school, Benson video chats with her. She’s grateful for a wonderful dog and a reliable friend.

Thanks to the gossip at school, Benson already knows about Laura’s mom coming to get her, but he listens to her story. Laura asks if he thinks people can change. He doesn’t know, but he hopes so. When Laura asks about his old friends, he admits he’s scared to try again. Laura believes in her parents, but she’s also afraid to be optimistic now.

Laura mails a letter to Harmonic Way in case her parents give rehab another chance. She encourages them to complete rehab or tell Janet they are working toward sobriety. They have to listen to social services, which Laura hates too, but then they can be reunited. She tries to convince them to get sober and follow the rules, so then they can be together.

Gray parrots are incredibly smart. Laura read studies about them working as a team to accomplish hard tasks, like puzzles. Some birds chose to work alone, even though they were given less food as a reward. They preferred their methods.

Laura compares her parents to the independent parrots; they both act in unexpected ways, but maybe she needs to trust them.

Laura feels paranoid about her parents coming to get her again. She imagines seeing them at school, the park, and other places. She hardly talks to anyone but Benson. Laura thinks she ruined her only opportunity to go with Mom when she visited her school. Perhaps Mom and Dad didn’t plan on coming back.

Through living with her aunt, Laura becomes a different person. She loads dishwashers, wears new clothes, and has a routine with dinner time. Silvia has rubbed off on her. She doesn’t recognize her identity. Worst of all, when she hugs Sparrow, she never wants to tell him goodbye.

Silvia surprises Laura by picking her up from school. They’re going to the family therapist. Laura is annoyed, but Silvia lets her pick the music and acts extra nice to her. Laura reconsiders therapy; maybe it could help them flourish as a family.

The therapy office is more like a play room with Legos, toys, and other kids. The therapist walks out wearing normal clothes. Due to the relaxing atmosphere, Laura believes therapy might be okay.

Dr. Tash (who goes by Dr. T., they/them) introduces themself as Laura’s therapist, and their dog is Ivan. They start off individually to get to know Laura’s needs better. Laura sits by Ivan, a gentle labrador, and pets him. Being with a dog makes it easier for Laura to express herself. She tells Dr. T. about everything, especially her frustration at her situation lasting way longer than planned. She’s also scared her aunt doesn’t want her.

Dr. T. asks her if Silvia has ever told her she doesn’t want her around. Laura admits she never said that directly, but asks why Silvia hadn’t shown up sooner in Laura’s life. Laura questions Silvia’s rules, long work schedule, and obsession with Puerto Rico. Laura doesn’t understand why Silvia never hugs her.

Dr. T. encourages her to express these feelings and questions to Silvia. They ask if she’s ever requested hugs from Silvia. Laura thinks Silvia should instinctively know that kids like hugs.

The next morning on their drive to the dog park, Laura asks Silvia why she doesn’t hug her. Silvia is awkward, stating she’s not a hugger.

At the dog park, Laura practices introducing Sparrow to strangers and new dogs. He does well. When she leaves Sparrow with Benson to practice separation, the puppy howls. Laura keeps walking away. She understands that it’s hard to trust people will return. She and Sparrow need practice with patience and trust.

Laura confesses to Benson that she doesn’t have a reason to train Sparrow anymore. If her parents never return to rehab, his training doesn’t matter. Benson helps reframe her perspective—because Sparrow was the best part of his hospital time. Benson says the training makes her, Sparrow, and other people happy, so she should continue.

While Sparrow and Zelda play, Laura tells Benson more about social services. They think they know the best school, home, and lifestyle for her, but she should be with her loving parents. Benson replies that social services may be in charge, but they can be wrong.

Laura tells him they will always be friends, no matter where she lives. She never meant they’d only be temporary friends.

Benson goes motionless. He sees Brayan, his past baseball friend. Benson explains they used to be close friends. Laura encourages him to talk to Brayan. They could reconcile.

Benson runs over and yells Brayan’s name, and the boys start talking. Laura is satisfied she helped Benson reconnect with a friend.

Laura says hi to Brayan and then checks on Sparrow. The boys are awkward, but she can tell they’re talking. With Benson’s inspiration, Laura vows to message her previous friends from her laptop. She will contact them as soon as she gets home.

Laura and Silvia are both present for their session. Laura wants Dr. T. to recap their alone time, so they share everything Laura discussed. Silvia is shocked about Laura thinking she never tried to connect with her before. When Laura was a toddler, Silvia tried to help Laura; she wanted to support Laura when her parents’ substance abuse disorder was at a critical point. Silvia asked Laura’s parents for contact again when she was in first grade. They never let Silvia have a relationship with Laura.

Laura processes this information. She tears up, wondering why Silvia would stop trying.

Laura responds that Silvia surrendered. She thinks Silvia wants to be the superhero parent. Silvia insists she loves her sister and wants Laura to be with her parents when they’re healthy and capable. She agrees with Laura; she never should have given up. Silvia admits her mistake but promises she is on Laura’s team now and forever.

Dr. T. is proud of the progress, so they decompress with coloring sheets made for people who are stressed. Laura gets extra coloring pages for her and her aunt to do at home.

That weekend, Silvia wakes Laura up early. She gives Laura and Sparrow life jackets, and she has a kayak on the car’s roof. Mom and Silvia used to kayak often.

They drive to a reservoir and kayak through the water. Laura loves seeing birds, like ducks, and turtles. Silvia asks her about Puerto Rico for Christmas—but they won’t go unless Laura is interested. They can bring Sparrow too.

Laura asks if her grandparents hate her mom. Silvia says they are sorry for their mistake, and Mom is stubborn and hasn’t given her parents another chance—which is understandable. Laura reassesses the Puerto Rico trip.

Therapy has helped Laura and Silvia communicate. They share more time together and pleasant things, like kayaking.

Laura wonders if she can have more than one family.

She writes another letter to her parents. She shares the family therapy progress. Laura knows about them being sick before and getting better, which proves Mom and Dad can recover again. Laura describes Sparrow, expecting they’ll like him and let him join their family. She hopes they’re safe and return to Harmonic Way. If Brenda finds her parents, she will send them the letter.

Sparrow has the hardest time with supervised separation. At the park, Laura gives Silvia his leash and walks away. Sparrow stays while Laura walks farther and farther away, then hides behind a car.

It’s hard for both of them to be apart, but Sparrow doesn’t howl. After a while, Laura comes back, and Sparrow is still sitting quietly. They all celebrate. Sparrow completed his last obstacle.

On the day of Sparrow’s Good Citizen Test, Laura is nervous. Sparrow might lick the tester’s face or forget his commands, or she might make mistakes in guiding him.

Silvia and Benson are there cheering Laura and Sparrow on, which inspires her. Silvia is excited, stating her pride and letting Sparrow lick her hand. Laura is starting to love her aunt.

Sparrow excels at the Good Citizen Test. Laura was nervous, but Sparrow performed all the tasks perfectly. She doesn’t know the next steps for Sparrow or her life, but she believes in herself, her dog, Silvia, and her parents.

Her parents finally write her a letter. Mom and Dad are back at Harmonic Way. Mom admits they should have focused on their recovery and love for Laura, rather than anger or the challenges of rehab. Mom promises nothing is her fault. They’re proud of her and want to be more “hopeful,” and “forgiving” like her. With apologies and lots of love, the letter makes it clear her parents are trying hard. If they reach sobriety, Janet tells Mom they can have visitation with Laura after the holidays.

In some species of birds, the adults care for all the babies. Laura used to think this behavior was strange, but now she understands. Sometimes, it takes multiple members to make a family. She is at peace with living with her aunt. She loves Silvia, her parents, and Sparrow. She knows they will all reach belonging and togetherness.