From all the way in warm South Carolina, John Laurens and his not-so-close family move to New York, resulting from his fathers' job promotion. Being a sophomore with high anxiety levels and a hard time handling everything, he's as much of a shithole you'd expect him to be. Just on his first day of school at Townsend Harris High School, he meets a boy. A boy who gave him hope to coming to school and getting out of bed every morning. Hope to live.