A Mother finds blood in her baby's diaper, so she takes him to the hospital, where the doctors discover that the boy has a malignant tumor on his kidney. Her husband leaves work early to accompany her as they figure out what they need to do. He brings up money, and suggests that she, as a fiction writer, should take notes on everything going on in order to sell their story, but the mother refuses. At the hospital, a surgery is scheduled for the end of the week. While they wait, the mother and father get to know the other parents in the pediatric section of the hospital, some of whom have given up jobs, houses, and marriages in order to care for their children. The mother worries that she can't handle the stress and contemplates giving up, but the other parents say that even that is not an option. The baby's surgery takes longer than expected, but otherwise, everything is fine. The mother and father are relieved, but they know that this is just the beginning: they expect at least three months of chemotherapy. The mother has trouble looking at her child when he has all the tubes in him and even imagines stealing him out of the hospital, but she knows better than to do that. The night after the surgery, she has trouble sleeping. She gets up and looks at the baby, noticing that there is blood in one of the tubes. She gets a nurse, who gets the attending physician, a medical student. The mother doesn't trust him and has to convince him something is wrong. He eventually concedes to turn down the power of one of the machines. Over the weekend, the surgeon visits for a brief check-up and says everything is fine. Some of the mother's friends also visit, bringing gifts and company. Then on Monday, the oncologist comes and tells the parents that everything looks good. Because of the small size of the tumor, the baby is eligible for an experimental treatment plan that avoids chemo. The oncologist says he would probably choose chemo just to be safe, but the mother insists that the wait-and-watch option would be best. After signing some forms, they are able to bring their baby home. The mother ends up writing down the experience anyway, though spitefully, because they need the money.