Girl Sees Mom Leave Parents' Bedroom in Tears Every Night, Sets up Camera inside

 Sophie didn't like her mom's new husband, Derrick. She thought he was too bossy and controlling, and she resented the fact that he had moved into their house. But what really worried her was the sound of her mom crying every night. Sophie couldn't stand to see her mother suffering, and she knew she had to do something to help her.

One evening, as Sophie was getting ready to go to band practice, her mom asked her to stay and play a game of Clue with them. But Sophie was not in the mood for family time, especially with Derrick. She wanted to be with her friends, playing music and having fun. When Derrick insisted that they all spend the night together as a family, Sophie became even more defiant and ran out of the house.

Sophie's band practice went well, but she couldn't stop thinking about her mom. She wondered what was causing her to cry every night, and she knew she had to find out. The next day in math class, she overheard her classmate Josh tapping his pencil on the desk. She recognized the rhythm and thought it might work well for a new song she was working on. They started talking, and she found out that Josh was interested in languages, including Braille and ASL. Sophie thought he was a nerd, but she was also impressed by his passion.

That night, Sophie was awakened by the sound of crying again. She listened carefully and realized that it was her mom. She got up and went to her mom's room, but her mom tried to send her back to bed. Sophie was persistent, though, and she demanded to know what was going on. Her mom finally relented and told her that Derrick had been physically abusing her.

Sophie was furious. She couldn't believe that someone would hurt her mom like that. She decided that she needed to gather evidence so that she could protect her mom. She started keeping a journal of everything that happened, and she started taking pictures of bruises and other injuries that her mom had sustained. She also talked to Josh and asked him to teach her Braille so that she could communicate with her mom secretly.

As time went on, Sophie became more and more determined to get justice for her mom. She spoke to a counselor at school who advised her to tell a trusted adult, like a teacher or coach, about what was going on. With the counselor's help, she reported the abuse to the authorities, and Derrick was arrested. Her mom was able to get a restraining order against him, and she and Sophie moved out of the house and into a new apartment.

Sophie was proud of herself for standing up for her mom and helping to bring her abuser to justice. She also learned a valuable lesson about the importance of speaking up when you see something wrong. She realized that even though she was young, she had a voice and a role to play in protecting the people she loved.

For the rest of the week, Sophie was kept awake by her mother's nightly crying. She couldn't help but worry about what was happening in her mother's room that was causing her to cry like that. She had no idea what Derrick was doing to make her mother cry, but she was determined to find out.

Sophie remembered an old nanny cam teddy bear that was hidden away in the garage. She eagerly retrieved it and took it apart to retrieve the camera inside. Although it was in bad condition and didn't record audio, Sophie felt that it would work. She hid the camera on the bookshelf in the corner of her mother's bedroom while Derrick was out.

However, when Derrick caught her in the act, Sophie was forced to pretend she was looking for a book. She walked away from the situation, her heart pounding in her chest. She hoped that she had hidden the camera well enough to catch Derrick in the act.

When Sophie watched the footage the next day, she was disappointed to find that it didn't reveal anything incriminating. All she saw was her mother crying on the bed while Derrick comforted her. She watched the footage over and over, but there was no sign of any wrongdoing.

Determined to find out what was going on, Sophie enlisted the help of her classmate, Josh, who was an expert lip reader. She showed him the footage and asked him to interpret it. However, Josh was visibly uncomfortable and hesitant to help.

Finally, he told her the truth: her mother was sick, and her illness was serious. Sophie was in shock. She had no idea that her mother was ill. Josh stayed with her as she processed the news and helped her research her mother's condition.

Sophie eventually mustered up the courage to confront her mother and Derrick about her illness. She demanded to know why they hadn't told her before. Her mother explained that they had been trying to find the right time to tell her and that they wanted to spend as much time with her as possible. Sophie was filled with regret for pushing her mother away and not spending enough time with her.

Her mother explained that the treatments for her illness were too expensive, and she had to make the most of the time she had left. Sophie was devastated. She had taken her mother's time for granted and now regretted it.

Sophie spent the next few weeks making up for lost time. She spent as much time with her mother as possible, doing everything they loved together. She also made an effort to be more present in her mother's life and to help her in any way she could.

In the end, Sophie learned a valuable lesson about the importance of cherishing the time she had with her loved ones. She realized that life was precious and that it was essential to make every moment count. Although she wished she had learned this lesson under different circumstances, she was grateful for the opportunity to make things right with her mother before it was too late.

Sophie was frustrated with the lack of progress in her mother's treatment. She collected Josh after school the next day and arranged to meet her other friends at Charlie's place. Charlie was taken aback by the presence of the church organist.

"Because he's my friend," Sophie defended Josh, "and because I've just realized that church might be the solution to my problem."

Sophie explained her mother's illness and her idea to help her through church. Her friends agreed to help, even if it meant doing something "weird." Josh was hesitant but ultimately agreed to help.

Over the next two weeks, Sophie's plan slowly came together. They played at a benefit concert in the church hall. They performed a rock version of a gospel song, which initially surprised the audience but soon had them singing along. The fundraiser was a huge success.

Weeks later, Sophie and Derrick anxiously waited in the hospital hallway for news on their mother's condition. When the doctor emerged from their mother's room, Sophie and Derrick jumped to their feet. The doctor had good news; their mother had responded well to treatment and would be kept in the hospital for a week to monitor her.

Sophie felt guilty for taking her mother for granted and apologized to her. She asked if they could move game night to Saturdays. The family spent a quiet evening watching a movie and playing games.

Sophie enlisted Josh's help to add some excitement to their game nights. They played Dungeons and Dragons, which confused her father and grandmother at first, but they eventually got the hang of it. Sophie was happy to see her family having fun and enjoying each other's company.

Months passed, and soon it was Mom's birthday. Sophie and Josh waited anxiously in the church hall for Derrick and Mom to arrive.

"Do you really think she'll like it?"

Sophie flipped her drumsticks through her fingers to burn off some of her nerves.

"She's going to love it." Josh grinned at her.

Sophie couldn't help but smile. When Josh looked at her like that, it made her heart flip-flops and her belly filled with butterflies. She was about to go to him, maybe to kiss him, when Derrick walked in with Mom.

Sophie played the opening chords for the song she and Josh wrote for Mom. Soon Josh's piano joined her. When Josh started singing the lyrics they wrote, Sophie and Mom locked gazes across the room. Both were crying.