Summary

Seventeen-year-old Kiara Johnson wakes in her apartment at the Regal-Hi building in East Oakland to the sound of her neighbor Dee, a “crackhead” (3), laughing. Dee's boyfriend recently left her, and threw dog feces in the Royal-Hi's pool when he did so. Kiara's older brother Marcus, who has a tattoo of her fingerprint on his neck, is sleeping. Kiara finds a notice on their door from their landlord, Vernon, alerting them that he has sold the building and their rent will be increasing significantly. Kiara is working occasional shifts at a liquor store and Marcus is unemployed. Kiara goes next door to Dee's apartment and helps Dee's nine-year-old son, Trevor, get to the bus stop for school. She then gets on a city bus and goes to La Casa Taquería, a restaurant where her best friend Alé works. Alé gives Kiara breakfast and...