After graduating rehab, Mom is allowed home while Demon remains in foster care, visiting the house under Miss Barks’s supervision. Demon savors the familiar rooms and small gestures like cookies, but fears the hour will end. He gathers a few toys to take back, wary of Fast Forward’s control at the foster home. On the drive, Miss Barks chats about her teaching goals and asks Demon about his future, a question he can only answer with survival.

During a longer Saturday visit, Mom shares a surprise: she is pregnant, due in April. Demon imagines being a big brother and they spend a joyful day raking leaves, playing games, and marking heights on the wall. Talk of space for the baby exposes tension with Stoner, who resists moving and resents the pregnancy, dampening the mood.

When Stoner arrives, Mom tries to set a friendly tone. Stoner quizzes Demon about his behavior, accuses him of attitude problems, and cites counseling terms, insisting Demon will need medication for oppositional defiance if he returns. Mom attempts to distract with talk of Christmas and the Peggots’ Knoxville trip, while Demon notes Miss Barks has approved the Peggot family.

Stoner escalates, making a racist remark about the baby and asserting that Miss Barks has no say in family matters. He declares Demon is barred from the Peggots and claims he will get an injunction. Mom subtly signals this is bluster, but the threat lands. As the microwave clock crawls toward pickup time, Demon sits frozen between a hostile home and a harsh foster placement, counting down the minutes.