Enter what is an alternative universe to most of America, a West Oakland, California neighborhood, circa 1990, where 13-year-old Ryo is luckier than many kids because he has a mother, Tracy, who loves him, and an extended family of father-figure, Brownie, a Vietnam War combat veteran, and "grandfather" Jon, a World War II Merchant Marine sailor. Ryo also has a loyal best-friend named Chipmunk. And, Ryo has a dream of becoming an airplane pilot.

Still, he cannot remain unaffected by a seemingly hopeless environment from which there appears to be no escape, doomed to be grounded forever without the wings of money. And, for kids like Ryo and Chipmunk there seems to be only one way to get money... by working for the young drug dealer, Big Bird. Sensing Ryo's intelligence, 15-year-old Big Bird grooms him for inside work and promises to fulfill Ryo's dream of flying, while making Chipmunk a runner to distribute his wares to street-corner dealers and carry back the profits. Ryo also befriends Big Bird's bodyguard, a strange silent boy named Greyhound who ran away from Mississippi and is bound to Big Bird for saving his life, though realizing he's just as trapped as the poor little suckers out on the street.

Ryo is warned by those who love him that he and Chipmunk had better get out while they still can. But, how else can he earn the money to escape the 'hood and make his dream of flying come true?