One summer in New York City, 13-year-old Mister's hard-living mother is apprehended by the police, leaving him and 9-year old Pete to survive alone while dodging child protective services and the dangers of the Brooklyn projects. Faced with more than any child can be expected to bear, the resourceful Mister nevertheless feels he is an unstoppable force against seemingly unmovable obstacles. But what really keeps the pair in the survival game is much more Mister's vulnerability than his larger-than-life attitude.