Matt asks Grandpa if Grandpa can visit Aman, but he is resistant to the idea. Matt knows how stubborn Grandpa can be, so he does not push it. Matt joins Grandpa on his habitual morning walk along the river with Dog. To Matt’s surprise, Grandpa broaches the topic of Yarl’s Wood. He says that Grandma used to visit the detention center to cheer up prisoners who did not receive visitors, though Grandpa never had the courage to join her. Matt tells Grandpa that Aman wrote him a letter describing the six locked gates and barbed wire separating him from the outside world. After hearing this, Grandpa makes up his mind to visit Aman.

Prior to retirement, Grandpa was a journalist. Thanks to his investigative skills, he quickly confirms that Aman and his family are still in Yarl’s Wood, and he secures permission to visit them on Wednesday. Grandpa is nervous on the way to the detention center, wishing that Matt could go with him. Matt reassures him that he will like Aman and that Aman will remember him. Passing the barbed wire, Grandpa is incredulous that they keep children in there.

Grandpa is nervous as he approaches the gates, but thinking of Matt gives him strength. As he enters Yarl’s Wood, Grandpa wonders what he can actually do to help Aman. He is greeted by stern security guards and the sound of children crying. In the bleak, supervised meeting room, he sees Aman and his mother. They do not smile when they see him. Aman’s mother looks withdrawn, and Aman is smaller than Grandpa remembers. He looks like he’s on the brink of despair. Grandpa reminds himself not to pity them: They are people, not just victims. As they speak, Aman has to translate for his mother. He only becomes animated when Grandpa mentions Matt. Grandpa is surprised when Aman suddenly brings up his mother’s frequent panic attacks and the medication that the immigration officials give her. Aman explains that she was once imprisoned in Afghanistan, where the police beat her. Sometimes, seeing the English police and immigration officials gives her a panic attack.

A guard suddenly appears with the Monopoly game that Matt sent Aman—the guards had confiscated it when Grandpa entered the facility. Aman brightens up: It is his favorite game, and he and Matt used to play it often. He laughs about the irony of the “Go to Jail” space. A guard tells Aman to quiet down, warning him that the visit will end if he doesn’t. Grandpa angrily asks if they are only allowed to cry and not allowed to laugh, and the guard scowls and leaves. This is a small victory, but Grandpa can tell that it means a lot to Aman, who gives him a thumbs up.

Amal wins the round of Monopoly that he and Grandpa play. Triumphantly, he tells Grandpa that he takes after his father, who was a farmer and a good businessman in their hometown of Bamiyan, Afghanistan. Then, Aman says that he is sad that he will likely not see Matt again. Grandpa knows this is true, but he tries to give Aman hope. Grandpa takes out a family photo to give Aman, which was Matt’s idea. The same guard who reprimanded Aman for laughing shouts at Grandpa when she sees him handing this over, but she relents when she sees that it is harmless. Grandpa wants to retort, but he knows it will not help Aman.

Seeing Dog in the photograph, Aman’s eyes fill with tears. He says, “Shadow,” and rushes from the room, followed closely by his mother, leaving Grandpa perplexed. Another guard comes over and confidentially tells Grandpa that Aman and his mother are temperamental. Grandpa bites back his anger for a second time.

Grandpa waits around for a while, hoping that Aman will come back. He does not understand Aman’s reaction to the photograph, but he feels like he betrayed Aman. Aman returns a short while later. He is quiet, but he shows Grandpa a printed picture of his soccer team. It shows his friends outside the barbed wire, who are holding up a banner reading, “WE WANT YOU BACK” (23).