14-year-old Ann’s mother sends her to collect alimony from her father, and Ann makes sure to wear her best clothes. She looks forward to seeing her father again and hopes that his new wife is not there so they can talk freely about old memories. Her mother has given her explicit instructions to tell him that they are only asking for what he legally needs to pay. Ann’s small reunion with her father is a happy one, until she shows him a paper detailing all the payments he has missed. She is embarrassed to bring up the alimony, and he angrily complains about her mother but cannot deny anything written on the accounting sheet. Ann tries to explain that her mother works but still has no choice but to ask for alimony.  Shifting the conversation, Ann tells her father about a prize she won for a poem at school. She gives him a copy of her small poem and is delighted when he praises her for it. Her father’s new wife comes back home, and Ann decides it is time for her to return home. While saying goodbye, her father returns the copy of the poem, distractedly saying that she forgot it. Ann returns home and tries to lie about her father’s reaction to their request for the alimony. Her mother frets over his neglect of Ann, who is in need of new winter clothes and other things. Ann breaks down in tears, and her mother tries uselessly to comfort her.