When Abi’s mom, Diana, is admitted to the hospital with intense pain and a high fever, the diagnosis is clear: appendicitis. Surgery is scheduled, and Abi prepares to be the supportive daughter. But before being wheeled into the operating room, Diana makes an unusual request—she asks Abi to go home and burn a black notebook on her bedside table.
Confused but curious, Abi drives home and finds the notebook. Despite her mother’s instructions, she opens it and discovers it’s filled with detailed sketches of her father, Adam, whom Diana loved deeply, even after their painful divorce. The last page has a poignant note: “I loved you, Adam. Even when you didn’t love me back.”
Unable to destroy the heartfelt drawings, Abi returns to the hospital with the notebook. When Diana awakens from surgery, she admits her fear that if she didn’t survive, Adam might find the notebook and know how much she still cared. Abi reassures her mother that the secret is safe, and they share a moment of understanding and healing. As Diana recovers, the notebook becomes a symbol of her unspoken grief, now shared and accepted by her daughter.