"Hey, hey, hey, hey, slow it down." "Dear Mr. And Mrs. Andrews." "Mr. And Mrs. Baldwin." "Dear Lieutenant and Mrs. Franks." "Dear Mr. And Mrs. Peterson." "Dear Mr. And Mrs. Lupo." "I'm sure you've never received a letter of this nature before, and I'm also quite sure you'll be surprised by the circumstances under which I'm writing it." "My name is Alex Chivescu, and I'm a junior, soon to be a senior at Eagle Creek High School in Rochester Hills." "My parents moved to Michigan to go to college here, they divorced when I was two years old and I have not heard from my father since." "My mother is a nurturing and caring person who inspired my love of learning." "This paper says you're a doctor." "Well, sort of." "This is more than a piece of paper, Alex, this is why I came to this country." "It's why I've studied so hard." "Education is like a magic key to open any door." "With it, anything is possible." "Can I go to a school like this someday too?" "Absolutely, absolutely." "Your education is going to be even better than mine." "You'll go to a great university like..." "Harvard." "Is Harvard the best?" "The very best." "Then that's where I'll go." "You'll have to work hard." "I will, I promise." "You'll see." "You make me so proud." "So proud." "Perfect, what do you think?" "I think I want one too." "You can get a head start on that." "You do your homework while I make us some dinner." "Okay." "You hungry?" "Yes, I'm starving." "Good." "Um, my teacher said you wanted to see me, Mrs. Thomas?" "Yes, Alex, you know your mother's friend Miss Carson?" "Hi, Miss Carson." "Hi, Alex, why don't you have a seat?" "Alex, I'm sorry to have to be the one to tell you this, your mom's been in a car accident." "She's in the hospital." "But she's got good doctors taking care of her and I'm sure she's going to be fine." "Can I see her?" "Can I go in?" "Not yet, hon." "They'll be moving her to a regular room in a couple of days and you can talk to her then, okay?" "Is she gonna be okay?" "She's going to be fine." "Come on, in you get." "You know, Alex, we can visit your mom as much as you want once she's out of intensive care." "Would you like that?" "Okay, good night." "I'll see you in the morning." "Miss Carson?" "Yeah?" "Could you leave a light on, please?" "Of course I can, honey." "It's going to be okay, Alex, you'll see." "Okay, I bought some groceries, made soup and casseroles;" "you won't have to cook for a while." "Oh, thanks, Ellen, you've been so helpful, especially with Alex." "Here, have a seat." "All right." "Would you like me to stay with you and Alex tonight?" "No, we're fine." "You sure?" "It's okay." "You be a good boy and take care of your mom." "I will." "You know what?" "I'm going to make you some tea before I go." "Want to help me, Alex?" " Sure." " Okay." "My mother suffered a serious head injury from a car accident and developed bipolar disorder." "When she was on her medication, she was able to work as a professor and things were mostly normal." "But the medication had harsh side effects." "The drugs made it harder for her to think clearly." "Mom, I'm home." "She hated that so she stopped taking them." "Mom?" "Then she spiraled down, couldn't work, and became neglectful and abusive." "Mom, I got my report card." "Are you okay?" "I have a headache, Alex, leave me alone." "Okay." "I'll leave it here so you can sign it later." "Have a seat, Alex." "Your mom had to go back to the hospital." "What?" "What happened?" "She just had a little setback, but the doctors are taking really good care of her and she'll be home as soon as possible." "Now this is Mrs. Edenger." "Hi." "Hello, Alex, nice to meet you." "Nice to meet you too." "I'm from Child Protective Services." "Do you know what that is?" "Well, we find nice people to take care of children when their parents can't." "So while your mom is in the hospital... you'll stay with a family who live near here." "Why can't I stay with Miss Carson?" "Well, she won't be able to take care of you for as long as your mom is going to be in the hospital this time." "See, this isn't so bad." "Please don't make me stay here." "It's just for a few weeks, 'til your mom gets better, okay?" "Please don't make me!" "Alex, I need you to be a big boy." "Let's just sit down right here." "I've got to go and talk to your foster mom." "Maybe you can unpack your suitcase." "I'll come check on you sometime next week, okay?" "It's going to be okay, Alex." "When my mother was taken away from me" "I felt alone, abandoned, and I was terrified that I would never see her again." "I will never forget the first time" "I was put in a strange home with people I didn't know." "Days felt like weeks, a month without my mom felt like a lifetime." "Mom!" "Please don't leave me again, Mom." "Please!" "I'll try not to." "I'll do my best, okay?" "There were times when my mother returned from the hospital that I thought I had my life back, but it never lasted for long." "Mom, come on, it's Christmas!" "Mom, come on!" "Mom!" "Mom?" "Can you leave me alone please?" "But it's Christmas, Mom." "I have a present for you." "I made it myself." "Please not now." "My mother struggled constantly with the symptoms of her condition and the harsh side effects of the drugs she had to take." "Even when I was home with my mom it often felt like she wasn't really there." "Mom." "Mom?" "Can't you see I'm looking for a job?" "I need some lunch money." "Your lunch is supposed to be free." "You didn't fill out that paper I brought home from school." "I can't get free lunch until you do that." "I'll do it later." "What about lunch today?" "There!" "That's all I can do!" "I don't have a job, I don't have money!" "There was never enough money, and I always worried that we'd have enough food or that my mom would be able to pay our rent." "It wasn't easy, but I learned to fend for myself." "Open this door!" "Do you hear me?" "This is what I get for taking care of you and feeding you, devoting my life to you?" "!" "I pay the rent here!" "You open this door right now!" "I'm going to kick it in, Alex." "If you don't open this door right now you're going to be so sorry!" "Hey!" "(pounding on door)" "Hey, what's going on in there?" "What?" "Look, lady, how many times do I have to come down here?" "If you don't keep it down, I'm gonna call the police." "You don't have to do this, let me go back to my apartment." "I'll..." "I'll calm down." "I'll be fine, okay?" "Just let me..." "Please..." "I don't want to go." "I..." "I..." "I can't do this." "I'll be okay." "Oh, there's my son, don't put in front of him." "My mother was taken away from me many times." "Sometimes my mom was taken away for weeks, other times for months." "She'd be hospitalized and put on medication and I'd end up living with strangers again." "After a while, she'd return to stability and I'd be placed back in her care, but it always felt precarious." "I lived in fear because I knew that a life with my mother could never last." "Before long, she'd go off her medication and everything would fall apart again." "I felt bad for my mom because she couldn't take care of herself let alone take care of me." "When I was 16" "I left my latest foster home and returned to live with my mother." "Fortunately for me, our apartment was located in the Eagle Creek High School district, one of the best in the state." "It wasn't easy coming in as a junior after the semester had already started." "Your transcript is certainly impressive, Alex." "I mean, one point below a perfect score on your ACT." "Wow!" "I mean, considering how many schools you've attended, your GPA is especially remarkable." "Yeah, I, ah, I moved a lot." "Well, you keep this up and you're well on your way to getting into a top school." "Any idea where you'd like to go?" "Harvard." "Well, that's a lofty goal, but one I think you can reach." "Now, look, you're going to have to keep up your grades." "I will." "I made a promise." "Okay then." "I'll do my best to help you keep that promise." "That needs to be much better." "This is a nice start." "Exceptional work, Alex." " You need to buck up." " He got an "A."" "All right, people, listen up." "The midterm assignment for this semester is a 50-page paper on an aspect about government that you will choose." "(all groaning)" "Okay, okay, don't worry." "You can work in groups of up to three people." "Hey, new kid." "Nice work in Rowe's class." " That guy never gives an "A."" " Yeah, it's like his thing." "An "A" represents perfection, and I've never seen a perfect paper." "I'm Lucy, this is Danny." "Alex." "We were wondering if you wanted to work on the midterm with us?" "Really?" "Yeah, I mean Danny here is a straight "C" student so he'll be tons of help." "Hey, you should talk, Picasso." "All she cares about is art and poetry." "Social studies isn't her thing." "You can see what you'd be getting yourself into." "I mean, neither one of us is a brain like you." "Not a problem, when do you want to start?" "Do you want to meet at my house on Saturday, 10:00?" "10:00?" "You know I sleep 'til noon on Saturday." "Fine, 11:00." "Alex?" "Sounds good." "Okay, but I'm going to be in a coma for the first hour." "You're always in a coma." "Eagle Creek High became everything to me." "I immersed myself in studies and found compassion and support from my new friends." "When chaos reigned at home, the school became a refuge for me." "Mom?" "What are you doing?" "I'm sick of these medications, the side effects are making me worse!" "I can't focus, my... my head is throbbing." " I can't think!" " Stop it." "Please!" " Mom!" " It hurts!" "But you know what happens when you stop taking them!" "I don't care anymore!" "We really lucked out with you, Alex, we might actually do all right on this paper." "We're going to get an "A."" "You sound pretty sure of yourself." "We have to." "I've got to maintain a 4.0 to have any chance at getting into Harvard." "Harvard?" "Right, and I'm going to play shortstop for the Detroit Tigers." "So you think I'm delusional?" "Yeah." "I don't." "I'm 1,000% positive you can do it." "Mom?" "I'm home!" "Mom, there's no food!" "(sobbing)" "I'm gonna get going, my mom and I are going to an art show." "Whoa, check this out, crazy lady, 9:00." "Alex!" "What are you doing here?" "You should be home!" "I've been looking everywhere for you!" "Why do I have to track you down?" "I had to come all the way over here, why?" "Calm down." "You don't tell me what classes you're taking or what you're doing after school!" "Nothing!" "Mom, don't do this to me, please!" "Don't you dare tell me what to do, I'm your mother." "You respect me!" "Ah, excuse me, Mrs. Nistor?" "Ah, did you stop by the office and get a visitor's pass?" "What?" "No." "I'm sorry, it's school policy." "Wanna come with me?" "You wanna come?" "Alex, wait!" "Leave me alone!" "Alex, please can you talk to me?" "There's nothing to talk about!" "My mom is crazy, okay?" "Well, what's wrong with her?" "Well, she's sick, and she can't help it." "We can't afford insurance so she can't get good treatment." "They hospitalize her when it's a crisis and when she's on her own, she just can't cope." "If you knew what she used to be like before she got sick..." "She has a PhD." "It kills her when her mind can't function the way it did." "That must be really hard for her, and you." "I think I know what you're going through." "Oh, I doubt that." "My father's a recovering alcoholic." "Before he got sober, he was completely unpredictable." " Sorry, Lucy, I had no idea." " It's okay, he's good." "He's in a program and he's doing really great." "He's my dad again." "What are you going to do about your mom?" "I don't know." "I mean, I want to save her, but I don't know how." "Sounds pretty stupid, huh?" "No, it sounds heroic." "What happened?" "I'm sorry, Alex, your mother couldn't pay the rent." "You've been evicted." " Where is she?" " Hospitalized." "She went off her meds again!" "I told her she's got to keep taking them but she won't listen." "I found an emergency foster home for you." "Great, my fourth!" "Well, hopefully your mom will stabilize in a couple of weeks." "Aww, what's the point?" "She'll just go off her meds, go crazy and wind up right back in the hospital!" "I understand how frustrated you must be." " No, you don't!" " Yes, I do!" "Now, I've made arrangements for someone to come and take these into storage, okay?" "Just pick out a couple things that you need and I will take you to your foster placement." "My mom was always being taken away from me." "And while my social worker helped keep me fed, clothed and sheltered, the cycle of instability started to take a toll." "For six years I had been in and out of foster homes, my mom in and out of hospitals." "I kept telling myself that someday she'd get better, be like her old self again and stay that way, but I finally had to face reality;" "it just wasn't going to happen." "If anything was going to change it would be up to me to change it." "I just, I can't take it anymore." "The depression, the rants, the constant uncertainty." "Nobody should have to live like that." "What exactly are you asking, Alex?" "I'm asking to terminate my mom's parental rights." "I have the right do that now, I'm 16." "Do you fully understand what that means?" "Means that I don't have to be afraid of her hurting herself anymore." "Or me." "It doesn't mean I don't love her." "Let's begin." "Alex, these attorneys are here representing your mother." "The court doesn't allow her to be present during your testimony so that you may speak freely and honestly." "Do you understand?" "Very well, let's proceed." "Alex, explain to Judge Brady why it is you want your mother's rights to be terminated." "Please believe me, Your Honor, this was the hardest decision I've ever had to make." "I love my mother;" "she was a role-model for me when I was little." "I got my curiosity and love of learning from her." "But she's a very different person now and if I'm put back in her custody, the circus will go on." "The circus?" "The craziness." "Being evicted from our apartment, not having enough food, police being called by neighbors because of her screaming, going in and out of foster homes." "Do you understand what this means, legally?" "Yes, ma'am." "It means that, according to the law," "I won't have a mother anymore." "Alex... how could you do this?" "I'm sorry, Mom." "(sobbing)" "Well, your mother's testimony didn't help her case." "The judge has granted termination of parental rights." "You won." "No, I didn't." "Nobody won." "You're 16, Alex, finding a permanent placement for a teenager, I'm sorry." "You'll be living here now." "What about school?" "Well, you can stay at Eagle Creek." "Umm, the orphanage has a driver who will transport you and the school district will reimburse them." "So I guess it's official now." "What?" "I don't have a family anymore." "All right, here's an information packet." "As long as you accept all the rules here, you'll do just fine." "Rules?" "There's no fighting, no loud music, lights out at 10:00." "But I usually stay up studying later than that." "Well, you'll have to have your homework done by 10:00." "I have five or six hours of homework a night." "Well, we could possibly make an exception." " Yes, sir." " Okay." "It says here we're not allowed to have a checking account." "That's correct." "But I need mine so I have a safe place to keep what I earn from my job at the bookstore." "No, no, no, no, you're not allowed to have a job, son." "I've never lived in an institution like this before." "This is different for me, but maybe I'm different from the kids you're used to dealing with." "I work hard and I'm highly motivated," "I'm saving money for college." "Don't you want kids to come out of here and go on to make something of themselves?" "That's what I'm trying to do." "All right, but that does not mean you are free to come and go as you please." "Okay." "Oh, one more thing, do you have a cell phone?" "Yes, sir." "All right, hand it over, you're not allowed to keep that." "But I won't be able to stay in touch with my friends." "Well, it's a security issue." "Phone please." "Hi." "I'm Alex Chivescu." "What kind of name is that?" "Romanian." "But I was born here so I'm American." "Yeah, I was born here too, people still call me Mexican." "Hey, hop in, Alex." "How do you know my name?" "Oh, I've heard all about you." " You have?" " Hmm, let's just say you don't exactly fit the profile around here, you know what I'm saying?" "Listen, this is a long drive to Eagle Creek." "Why don't you hop up front here with me?" "All right, buckle up, my man." "By the way, I'm Henry." "Can you let me out here?" "Well, we're not at your school yet." "That's okay, this is good." "Your friends don't know where you're living, do they?" "No." "Okay, well, I'll pick you back up here after then." "That would be great, can you come at 5:00?" "Sure thing, 5:00 it is." "Thanks, Henry." "Wooo!" "Check it out, we got an "A."" "That's capital "A," baby!" "Thanks to Alex." "We should celebrate." "Do you guys want to come to my house and order pizza?" "I can't." "I have something to do." "I'll catch you guys later." "Later, dude." "Ahh, my first "A"!" "I love that guy." "Oh, my God." "Hey, Henry, thanks for picking me up." "It's so stupid!" "I hate this crap." "I mean, who cares about "X"s and "Y"s?" "What's the point?" "You know, it's really not that hard once you get the basics." "Yeah, well, I'm never gonna get it!" "What, you win all these?" "Yeah." "What's this one for?" "It's a National Merit Scholarship." "And what's that?" "It means I get a scholarship for $2,500 when I go to college." "2,500 bucks?" "What if you don't go?" "Do you get to keep the money?" "No, but I'm definitely going to college." "Man, kids like us don't go to college." "I will." "My mom told me a long time ago that education was like a key that could open any door." "What are you, some kind of brain?" "Yeah, I guess." "I mean, I could help you." "I tutor kids at school to make extra money," "I'd tutor you for free." "And why would you do that, huh?" "Make sure I don't beat you up?" "Yo, I'm just messing with you, man!" "Yo, I could tell you was kinda scared!" "Yeah, well." "Hey, man, I can't have guys thinking" "I'm an easy target, you know?" "You wanna have a look at that equation?" "Not really." "Come on, I'll show you." "Open it up." "Where'd you start?" "It's right over here, right?" "Look what I ran across today," ""A Tale of Two Cities."" "You remember?" "You used to read this to me when I was little." ""It was the best of times," ""it was the worst of times," ""it was the age of wisdom," ""it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief..."" "I've been in the system since I was five, how 'bout you?" "Since I was 10." "Newbie." "So, what's the deal with your parents?" "Dad gone, mom crazy." "Same as me, man." "We could be brothers." "Your dad's not around either?" "Hell no." "I don't even know who my dad is." "So why is your mom crazy?" "She's a crackhead, your mom on dope too?" "No." "What's so funny?" "It's just being on drugs makes your mom crazy, right?" "Not being on drugs makes my mom crazy." "I don't get it." "She's sick." "She needs medication but she hates taking it." "That sucks." "All right, 8 ball corner pocket." "All right, pressure's on." "Oh, I'm so good." "Now who's going to school, professor?" "Rack 'em up." " Fight, fight!" " Take him!" " Yeah, yeah!" " You got him, you got him!" "Good!" "Fight, fight, fight!" "Come on, man, you're on top of him!" "Fight, fight, fight, fight!" "Come on, come on!" "Carlos, what are you doing, man?" " Let him go!" " What's going on?" "That's enough, get up!" "Hey, that's enough!" "Back up!" "Now you know the rules!" "Carlos, I warned you about this." "But he was trying to steal..." "No, no, no, no, no, no excuses." "Both of you get to my office." "Now!" "Carlos!" "What's going on?" "They're kicking me out, sending me someplace with more supervision." "Probably be some kind of lockdown." " No, they can't do that." " It's my third fight." "That jerk Feldman won't even listen to my side." "All he cares about is the rules so I told him what he could do with his stupid rules." "Ahh, Carlos!" "I'm gonna miss you, bro." "I'm gonna miss you, too." "Won't be missing your algebra lessons, though." "Stick with it, you can do it." " Yeah, right." " I mean it!" "Don't give up." "Don't you give up either." "Harvard?" "Man, that's gonna be cool." "(dance music playing)" "Hey, man, check it out." "My dad let me borrow the car." "Why don't you hop in, we can give you a ride." "Oh, that's okay." "I've already got a ride." "All right." "Your friends?" "Yeah." "I'm sorry, Alex." "(telephone ringing)" "Hi, Alex." "Something wrong?" "Is it my mom?" "Your mom's okay." "But I'm afraid we have some bad news." "Due to budget cuts, the school district can't afford to transport you here next year." "And I've spoken to the director at Mercy Point and unfortunately they cannot cover the costs of driving you either." "What does that mean?" "Where will I go to school for my senior year?" "You'll have to attend a high school closer to the orphanage." "No!" "My counselors, teachers and friends are all here!" "Alex, I am sorry..." "Don't you understand?" "!" "This school is the only real home I've ever known and now it's being taken away, too." "It's not fair!" "Alex!" "I'm sorry, Alex." "I tried, I really tried." "Apparently there's some rule against me driving you on company time." "That's not fair, Henry!" "Changing schools, it could keep me out of Harvard!" "Man, that school was everything to me." "I know how you must feel." "No, you don't!" "You have no idea how it feels," "I've worked so hard for so long and now you're just going to take this away..." "You just hold on!" "Now maybe I didn't go to college." "Hell, I didn't even graduate from the 8th grade, but I sure know what it feels like to be disappointed!" "And I know what it feels like, Alex, to have something taken away from me." "I'm sorry." "Henry, I didn't mean to take it out on you." "Yeah, you did." "Now you may be all book smart but you sure ain't people smart." "It's just that's all I have." "Listen, that's not true." "That's not true, you got friends." "You got people who care about you." "You know, I might not be much, but you got me, too." "Come on, let's get out of here." "It's just I don't know what to do, Henry." "They're taking school away from me." "Listen, man, you got a good head on your shoulders, so think." "You can come up with a plan." "Use those famous smarts of yours for something other than trying to keep people from getting close to you." "Think, man." "You're right." "Social services is never going to help me." "Maybe not." "Come on, let's get back." "What's the rush?" "You going to make me drive, Henry?" "Come on, let's go!" "Come on!" "All right." "Hey, hey, hey, hey, slow it down." "(telephone ringing)" "You've reached Mrs. Edenger at children's welfare, please leave a message." "Mrs. Edenger, it's me, Alex." "I just wanted you to know that I'm through waiting for you to find a family for me." "I'm going to find one myself." "I'm sure you've never received a letter of this nature before and I'm also quite sure you'll be surprised at the circumstances under which..." "My mother is a nurturing and caring person who inspired my love of learning..." "I understand it is a great emotional and financial burden to take a 17-year-old into your home straight "A"s, advanced-placement college classes and a strong desire..." "My most fervent dream is to be accepted into Harvard University." "You have no commitment to me after I graduate from high school next year fail to respond to my urgent and dire as of now I am a ward of the state..." "My social worker has kept me fed, clothed and sheltered but she doesn't understand how desperately I want to stay in the same school for senior year where the counselors who know me will help me apply to colleges," "where the teachers who know me will help me write letters of recommendation and advise me and where my friends will be there to support me." "I'm a good kid in a bad circumstance." "I need a home." "Thank you." "Alex Chivescu." "Hey, any replies to your letter yet?" "Yeah, all negative." "Look, there's something I want to tell you, man." "I kinda asked my parents if you could live with us but they said no." "It's nothing personal." "It's just, y'know, they both work such long hours." "It's okay, I understand." "Sorry." "Hey, don't be." "I asked my parents too." "They actually considered it but..." "You guys, it means a lot to me that you asked." "Thanks." "I got a letter for you, bud." "Dear Alex, my wife and I were deeply moved by your letter." "We'd like to meet you and discuss the possibility of sharing our home." "Yes!" "I made you some chocolate chip cookies," "I hope you like them." "Wow, thank you, Mrs. Franks, they sure look good." "They're our son Paul's favorite." "He's at Camp Lesjune for basic training." "Takes after me, I'm a lieutenant in the US Army." "We live off base." "Our house is modest but we have an extra room now that Paul's gone." "Did you get a lot of responses to your letter?" "No, sir, only you and Mrs. Franks." "And you can call us Julia and Richard, and don't you dare call him sir." "We might be in the army but we do not run our house like a barracks." "Well, I'm sure you want to know more about me." "Ever done drugs?" "No, sir." " Drink?" " No." "Been in trouble with the law?" "No." "That's all we need to know." "You mean that's it?" "No more questions, no thinking about it?" "We took Paul in as a foster child and ended up adopting him, we have no reservations about taking you in, Alex." "Well, thank you, Mr. Franks, Mrs. Franks." "I mean, Richard and Julia." "Wow." "(whistle blowing)" "All right, hustle up!" "This will be the kind of home I never had." "After everything I've been through it feels like I can finally relax." "That's a good thing." "What if it's too good to be true?" "Don't overthink this, Einstein." "Just let yourself be happy for once." "You deserve it." "Hi, Alex." "Hi." "Mr. Feldman told me you were here, is everything okay?" "We stopped by because we wanted to tell you in person," "I'm being transferred to a base in New York." "We leave in two months." "Oh." "But we want you to come with us." "You'd take me with you?" "Of course." "You have a home with us as long as you need it." "I don't know what to say." "Say yes." "I'm really grateful but moving away would defeat my whole purpose and it's the reason I wrote the letter." "I want..." "I need to stay here and graduate from Eagle Creek, and I can't leave my mom." "At least when I'm here, I know she's nearby." "We understand." "Is there another family you can stay with?" "Oh, sure, definitely." "I am so sorry, Alex." "We really wanted this to work out." "Good luck, son." "Bills, bill and bill, there you go." "Do either of you know someone by the name of Alex Chivescu?" "Nope." "Who is he?" "I don't know, let's find out." "Oh, goes to Eagle Creek High, and he lives in an orphanage." "How sad." "He's looking for a foster family to live with during his senior year." "He's going to college after that, his father is out of the picture and his mother has psychiatric issues and lost custody of him?" "We need to meet him, Mom." " Jen." " Mom." "Look, this isn't like your stray dogs or cats or wounded birds..." "Or turtles." "Exactly, that you brought home since you would walk." "I mean, this... we don't even know this kid." "It's probably a scam." "Dad, can you imagine that the guts that it took for him to write this letter?" "He's turning to total strangers because he has nobody else." "You don't even know him, Jen." "Well, I know that he's got to feel scared and desperate." "I have you guys, this kid doesn't have anyone." "We need to help him." "Bringing a stranger into our home is serious business." "We need to learn more about him and then we can talk about it." "All right." "I'm going to go check if he's on Facebook and add him as a friend." "Okay." "Our daughter has a very big heart." "Yeah, well, I know where she gets that from." "But, Suzanne, this has to be a thoughtful discussion." "There's too much at stake for our family and for this young man." "I know." "He's on Facebook!" "Let me see." "He's kind of a nerd in a nice way but a total brain." "He looks friendly, Mom." "He does, Jim." "Oh." "So when can we meet him?" "Now hold on, you two, come on." "Dad, I'm going to be going to college in the fall." "You and Mom are going to be here all alone." "The empty-nest thing is going to be really hard on you." "Or liberating." "No more loud music, no more giggling girls at sleepovers." "Very funny." "I suppose we could just meet the boy, Jim." "Yeah, I suppose we could." "Yay!" "That's all I'm promising." " Sure." " Sure." "Thanks." "I didn't realize I'd be so nervous." "Me neither." "Mr. And Mrs. Bante?" "Yes." "Alex, nice to meet you." "It's nice to meet you, too." "You want to grab a seat?" "Sure." "Okay." "Don't forget your coffee." "Well, Alex, we spoke to your school counselor and obviously you're an excellent student and that's just great." "But Suzanne and I want to know some more things about you." "Of course, sir, um, here." "Here's some of my awards, my high school transcript, and these are letters of recommendation from some of my teachers and my social worker." "Alex, you're not applying for a job." "If we do this, we're not asking for you to live with us for a year or so, we're inviting you into our home to be part of our family, permanently." "Permanently?" " That's right." " Yeah." "So you really need to think about that, and so do we." "Okay?" "Yeah." "Hello?" "Yes, Mr. Bante." "Thank you, sir, thank you very much." "I can be ready then." "Okay, okay, bye." "Hey, Alex, you almost ready?" "We're parked out front." "I'm all packed." "Where are the rest of your things?" "I thought you said you had a lot of stuff." "Well, this is it, everything I own." "Okay." "Great, we'll give you a hand." "Here I'll take that, Alex." "We'll meet you in the car." "I don't know what to say, Henry." "I wouldn't have made it without you." "No need, my man, this isn't goodbye." "You'll come and see me?" "Of course!" "Still gotta finish teaching you how to drive." "Your parallel parking needs a lot of work, you know." "I know." "Here we go." "Hey, Alex, it's nice to finally meet you." "I'm Jen." "It's nice to meet you too, Jen." "Come on, I'll show you to your room... actually it was my old room." "Well, I don't want to take your room." "Oh, no, it's okay." "I moved into the smaller guest room." "I leave for college in a couple of weeks so I won't be home that much." "It will be your job to look after my parents, make sure they don't party too hard." "Two years ago I was diagnosed with Lupus." "I have flare-ups sometimes." "Last spring, I had this really bad attack." "I had chest pains and I couldn't breath, and I collapsed on the bathroom floor." "Must have been scared." "Oh, I was terrified." "Fortunately, my parents found me right away and I had to go to the hospital for like a "kazillion" tests and my mom and my dad, they never left my side." "I can't imagine what it's been like for you, not having your parents around." "I mean, it's just the way it is." "I don't even remember my dad, but my mom was incredible." "Before she got sick she was on her own, raising a kid, somehow still managed to get her PhD." "Well, now we know who you got your brains from." "Yeah." "Disturbed?" "The Black Keys?" "Sierra?" "Okay, no way!" "What?" "When it comes to music, we were definitely separated at birth." "Oh, I wish I wasn't going to college so soon;" "you are going to be a cool little brother." "Just don't be bratty." "Deal, as long as you're not bossy." "Hey!" "Welcome to the family!" "(laughing)" "So don't worry about me, 'cause I found a really nice foster family and they have a daughter who already feels like a sister." "I'm still working hard towards getting into Harvard." "My counselor thinks I can do it." "Remember when I made that promise to you?" "I'm going to keep it." "I miss you, Mom." "Love Alex." "Hey, there he is." "Good morning, Alex." "Morning." "Eggs and toast okay?" "Thanks, Mrs. Bante." "You know, Alex, you don't have to call us Mr. And Mrs. Bante." "What would you like me to call you?" "I don't know, Jim and Suzanne?" "Whatever you're comfortable with." "Yeah." "Well, I'm comfortable with Mr. And Mrs. Bante." "Okay." "Grab a seat, Alex." "We never had a chance to talk about your chores." "Chores?" "Yeah, everyone pitches in here, so when Jen leaves for school, you'll take over her jobs." "Well, what kind of jobs?" "Well, for example, today's trash pick up day, so when you leave the house, you'll put the cans out." "When you come home from school, you'll put them back in the garage." "We'll talk about the rest later, I gotta run." "Bye, honey." "Bye." "I will see you guys tonight." "Scrambled?" "Ah, yes, please." "Great." "I can't take it, it's too much." "And a bunch of chores, too." "And Mrs. Bante came into my room, tried to get me to talk to her." "Well, imagine that." "Okay." "Remember to check your side mirrors." "She wants me to talk about my feelings." "So what's the problem?" "I don't know, they're not my parents, you know?" "I wish they'd stop acting like they are." "Why?" "Because I don't need that." "You don't need it, or you don't know how to handle it?" "I wish they'd just let me pay rent and leave me alone." "Really, Alex?" "I mean, is that what you really want?" "Hey, Alex, how was school?" "Fine." "Learn anything interesting today?" "Not really." "Can I have an apple?" "Alex, this is your home, you don't have to ask." "Y'know, when Jen was in senior year all she wanted to do was bring her friends over and..." "Mrs. Bante, I got lots of homework to do." "Yeah, sure, go ahead." "(knocking)" "Come in." "Hey, Alex, I just wanted to say good night." "Good night, Mrs. Bante." "Alex, I want you to know that you're part of our family now and the thing about families is that we can talk to each other." "So if there's anything you want to say..." "I'm fine, Mrs. Bante." "Good." "But if you ever do want to talk," "Jim and I are ready to listen." "Okay, um, all right, good night." "Night." "It's a miracle he turned out as well as he did." "He doesn't know how to do the most basic things and his social skills definitely need some work." "I think his upbringing was a lot more difficult than we realized." "Well, at least he talks to you, Jim." "He barely says a word to me." "Don't take it personally, honey." "It's not about my feelings, it's about his." "I can only imagine what it must be like for him." "I just wish that he felt safe enough with us to open up and share what he's going through." "Suzanne, he barely knows us and he definitely doesn't trust us, not yet." "Well, what if he never can?" "Well, that's up to him." "He'll let us past his defenses or he won't." "There has got to be something we can do to help him." "All we can do is treat him like what he is, a member of this family." "Jim, are we crazy to have gotten into this?" "Probably, but no matter how it turns out" "I'm not going to be sorry that we tried." "You?" "No." "Good." "Call us as soon as you get there, okay?" "I will, Mom." "And I know you're going to be busy, but please stay in touch." "Okay." "Go." "Keep an eye on them;" "don't let them get into too much trouble." "It will be okay." "They're not the coolest parents in the world but they'll be there for you just like they've always been for me." "Wouldn't ya know it." "I finally get a brother and I have to leave." "Are you gonna miss me?" "Nah." "Ha, very funny." "See you at Christmas." "See ya." "(horn honking)" "But, Mr. Bante, I don't need you to give me money to buy Christmas gifts." "I don't want to be a charity case." "Don't give me that, Alex, you're not a charity case." "Don't assume what people feel for you is pity." "It might actually be something else." "Alex, come here." "Listen to me." "I want to be clear here." "You've had a rough time, life hasn't been fair, but it wasn't your fault." "Now it's natural to feel sorry for yourself, but that's not going to get you anywhere." "Look, we respect everything you've accomplished, but more so we respect who you've become." "Now, I know it's been hard all this time with your dad not being around, maybe I can help you with that." "Now what do you say we get this tree in the house, huh?" "It's a beauty, isn't it?" "Hey, remember this little guy?" "Oh, yeah." "(laughing)" "Hey, Alex, come on in, decorating the tree is the best part." "Oh, look, this is Jen's Christmas ornament she made in second grade." "Look at that." "Everything okay, Alex?" "I, um, I got my report card." "I don't know if you guys want to see it or not." "Absolutely!" "Yeah, of course, we do!" "Will you look at that..." "straight "A"s." "Alex, that's great!" "We're so proud of you." "Nice work, this calls for a celebration." "Do you have an extra card I could have for my mother," "Mrs. Bante?" "Yeah, of course, Alex." "Here you go." "Thanks." "Would you help me with the tree?" "Yeah." "You know, Alex, if you wanted to get a present for your mother" "I could take you shopping, pick out something nice." "No thanks, Mrs. Bante." "Well, if you wanted to visit her, I could take you there." "I don't think so." "Alex, it must be hard spending Christmas without her." "No, I've spent a lot of Christmas's without her." "College girl's home!" " Hey!" " Mom!" "Oh, welcome home, sweetheart!" "Did Dad tell you how much we missed you?" "Only for the last 300 miles." "Good, good, well, let's get you settled." "There's tons of food in the kitchen." "It is so good to be home with my folks and my little bro." "College is great but the food sucks." "I'm so excited for mom's Christmas Eve dinner tonight." "The turkey smells so good!" "Believe me, you're going to want seconds." "Jen... how come you don't mind sharing your parents with me?" "It doesn't take anything away from how they feel about me." "They have plenty of love to go around." "It's just who they are." "But they hardly know me." "I mean, how could they love me?" "Because they do." "You're worth being loved, Alex." "You know that, right?" "Are you going to go see your mom on Christmas?" "No." "Or at least call her?" "Do you ever talk to her?" "I, um, I write to her." "Well, that's good." "What's this?" "I don't send the letters." "Why not?" "You don't know how angry she was, Jen." "Especially when I went to court to terminate her rights." "I abandoned her, just like she did to me only she couldn't help it." "Neither could you." "Well, I don't think she'll ever forgive me." "Of course she will, she's your mom." "She loves you no matter what." "Come on, let's go." "Where to?" "Let's go give your mom the best Christmas present that she has ever had." "Jen, I can't." "Come on!" " Come on!" " Jen!" "Nistor, apartment 103." "Wait, wait, wait, Jen!" "What if she freaks out?" "Come on, Alex, we're here now, you can do this." "No, no, no, I can't, Jen, please, I can't," "I'm not ready to see her, please!" "Jen, please!" "I'm sorry, Alex, I didn't realize." "Do you want to leave the letters?" "No, this was a mistake coming here." "All right, let's go." " Merry Christmas, everyone!" " Presents" "Come here quick!" "All right, which one's mine, which one's mine?" "Well, well, it looks like Santa was generous this year, huh?" "Okay, I want you both to open these first." "That's for you and..." "Slow down." "What is it, what is it?" "That's for you." " Mom." " Do you like it?" "This is awesome!" "I cannot believe that you saved all my old t-shirts!" "I did, I did." "There's one from your tennis team, your debate club when you ran for student counsel and a whole bunch of music groups I've never heard of." "Me neither." "I cannot wait to put this on my bed in my dorm room!" "Oh, I'm glad you like it, Merry Christmas, sweetheart!" "Thank you." "Well, how about me?" " I made it." " Yeah, right, thank you." "I hope you like it, think of it as a family heirloom." "Something you can keep forever if you want." "It's amazing." "The letters spell out Harvard." " Thank you." " You're welcome." "Jen, just give him a minute." "This is a good thing, he should be happy." "I think he is." "He probably never had much of a real Christmas growing up." "I'm sure it's just a little bit overwhelming for him." "Yeah." "Dear Mom," "I heard you're out of the hospital." "I hope you're feeling better." "Even though I haven't seen you in a long time" "I want you to know I think about you a lot and I miss you." "Here's my number in case you want to call sometime." "I hope you have a great holiday, Mom." "Love Alex." "(cell phone ringing)" " Hello?" " Alex?" "Mom?" "How are you?" "I'm all right, much better being in my own place." "Is it nice?" "Yes, yes, it is very nice." "Maybe you can come visit me sometime?" "Sure." "And, um, is it all right where you are?" "Yeah." "Yeah?" "Are they good to you?" "Very good." "Thank you for the card, it's beautiful, and it means so much to me." "I wish you were here, Mom, I miss you." "I miss you." "Merry Christmas." "Merry Christmas." "Well, it all looks great." "Alex, we have a family tradition." "Before we enjoy dinner, we all like to share what we're thankful for." "If you feel like it, I hope you join in." "I'll go first." "I'm thankful for sharing this special time of year with the three of you." "I'll go next." "I am thankful for my beautiful family, especially its newest member, Alex." "I'm grateful for my parents who help me through all the difficult times." "And my new iPad." "(laughing)" "Umm, I'm thankful for... having a normal Christmas." "Well, okay, I like that." "Let's raise our glasses." "To a normal Christmas." " To a normal Christmas." " Normal Christmas." "(glasses clinking)" "(laughing)" "Okay, let's eat." "I'm starved." "All right, sweet potatoes, Mom?" "Yeah." "Alex, pass the buns around, please." "But, Mr. Bante, you didn't need to buy me a suit." "Alex, you're not going to wear a t-shirt and jeans to your high school graduation." "And what about your college interviews?" "It's too expensive." "Hey, you let me worry about that." "Hey!" "You wanna go to prom with us?" "Are you kidding?" "No, people go in groups all the time..." "Well, not everybody but..." "Yeah, come on, dude, it'll be a blast." " What's the theme again?" " "It's a jungle out there."" "Yeah, me Tarzan, she Jane, you Cheetah." "Very funny." "No, seriously, will you go?" " Sure." " All right." "Well, how are you feeling about your Harvard interview?" "It's coming up, isn't it?" "31 hours and 14 minutes." "Don't worry, you'll be fine." "Just remember, be yourself, look 'em in the eye, give them a firm handshake, okay?" "Okay." "(cell phone ringing)" "Excuse me, I gotta take this." "There you go." "Mom, calm down." "(yelling)" "I can't understand you, okay?" "Okay, don't worry about it;" "I'll take care of it." "Thanks for coming." "I didn't know who else to call." "Not a problem, what happened?" "I don't know exactly." "I thought she was doing okay." "Now she's been evicted and she's back in the hospital." "Okay." "This is why I'm always afraid to let her back into my life." "Do the Bantes know about this?" "I didn't want to tell them." "Well, I'm pretty sure they'd want to help." "You okay, Alex?" "I should have been there for her." "I should have taken care of her." "You're just a kid." "You couldn't take care of her." "You need help." "You need to tell the Bantes." "Get them involved." "No, this is none of their concern." "Yes, it is because you're their concern." "That's the problem, Henry." "They want to help too much." "Because they care about you." "That's just the way moms and dads are, man." "I already have a mother." "Oh, Alex, it's not the Bantes fault that your mom couldn't take care of you." "You gotta stop blaming them." "Everybody needs somebody." "Stop trying to act like you're different." "Alex, where have you been?" "We've been worried sick about you!" "Are you all right?" "It's my mom." "I need your help." "It's going to be okay." "She's in room 304." "We can go up anytime." "Do you want us to go in with you?" "Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to go in alone." "Of course, we'll wait here." "Just take as long as you want, okay?" "Dr. Reynoldson, you have a call at Nurse's station 2." "Dr. Reynoldson, phone call at Nurse's station 2." "Mom?" "I'm sorry I never came to see you." "I wrote to you." "I don't know why I didn't send them but I want you to have them now." "I'm sorry about everything, Mom." "Alex." "Should we go talk to him?" "Not right now." "He needs a little time to deal with whatever happened back there." "His Harvard interview is tomorrow." "Come on." "(knocking)" "Come in." "I brought you some hot chocolate, put little marshmallows in it." "Jen likes it that way." "I thought maybe you would too." "Thanks." "Here you go." "Anything else you need, Alex?" "Anything at all?" "No." "Okay." "I'm sorry, Mrs. Bante." "Sorry for what?" "You tried to do all this nice stuff for me and I couldn't handle it." "I wasn't used to it." "I know." "You thought I was trying to take your mother's place." "You do all the things that I needed her to do." "I felt guilty about thinking you were better at it than she was." "Alex, your mother couldn't give you what you needed but I know she tried as hard as she could." "How can you be so sure?" "Because I know how much a mother loves a child, how much we want to protect them." "And if we're unable to do that it's because it's out of our control." "It's the worst feeling in the world." "I know your mother loves you, Alex, I know it." "And so do I." "(knocking)" "Rise and shine, buddy, today's the big day." "Suzanne pressed your suit, picked out a tie, and we're having French toast for breakfast." "Alex, why aren't you dressed?" "Yeah, your interview is at 11:00." "It's all the way across town." "I'm not going." "What?" "I mean, what's the point?" "I've just been kidding myself." "Why would Harvard take a kid like me?" "I've been in and out of seven foster homes and nothing ever works out so why would this be any different?" "I'll tell you why, Alex, because you have a gift." "One that you inherited from your mom, and her of all people would hate to see you throw that gift away." "Did something happen at the hospital?" "If you talk about it maybe we can help." "Please." "When I was 10 and I saw her in the hospital for the first time, you know what really got to me?" "It was her hands." "At the time, I called them her alligator hands because she had them curled up tight against her chest like this." "I saw those same hands again last night." "After all these years, nothing's changed." "She's never going to get better and it's always going to be the same." "You can't give into that." "But what if I end up like my mother?" "Alex, that is not going to happen." "I just wanted her to tell me I could do it." "She knows you can do it." "And so do we." "You know what, Alex, we haven't asked a lot of you but we're asking now." "Go upstairs, put that suit on and let's get you to that interview." "A firm handshake, right?" "That's right." "Alex Chivescu?" "How do you do?" "Please come on up, we've got lots to talk about." "Well, how'd it go?" "I gave it my best shot." "That's my boy." "Come on." "Jim, it's here!" "It's here?" " Yeah." " All right." "Now, before I open this, there's a couple things I want to say." "Okay." "First, I respect you both, Mr. And Mrs. Bante, more than anyone else I've ever known." "Second, I used to think that this was everything." "Now, I still hope I get in but if I don't, I'll go somewhere else because the thing is I already have what matters most a family." "Alex, open it." "(laughing)" "I made it." "What?" "I made it!" "(laughing)" " Yeah!" " He's going to Harvard!" "I gotta call Jen and Lucy and Danny!" "Go, go, go!" "He did it, Jim!" "No, we did it." "(laughing)" "That's good, right, I got this." "Okay, squeeze in, you guys, squeeze in." "All right, Eagle Creek grads, say, "2009."" " 2009!" " Whoo!" "That's good, that's good, one more, one more, 2009." "2009!" "Oh, man!" "(applauding)" "I don't believe it," "I'll be right back." "I can't believe you guys came!" "My man, of course we came!" "We couldn't miss this party!" "Listen, you need any help with that college algebra, you know who to call." "Yeah, how've you been, Carlos?" "I'm good." "I'm working, I'm going to community college." "Yeah?" "Taking classes in welding." "You ought to see this guy with a blowtorch." "I'm awesome." "Yeah, I bet you are." "Um, excuse me." "I am so proud of you." "Thank you." "Thanks for coming, Mom." "I wouldn't miss this for the world." "I read your letters." "It really means a lot to me that you wrote them." "I'm sorry I never mailed them." "No, Alex, I'm sorry." "I'm so..." "I'm so very sorry you had to go through everything you went through." "It wasn't your fault, Mom." "Thanks for that." "Okay, anyway..." "I got you something." "This is on loan until you get one of your own from Harvard, and I know you will." "I..." "I just want you to know that whatever I become, whatever I achieve is because of you." "I love you, Mom." "I love you, too." "Congratulations."