Sam Gardner is a "good boy". He lives with his Dad and older brother after his mom left the family. He thrives at school as a "gifted and talented" 6th grader in Mrs. Stackhouse's class. He enjoys playing foursquare with his competitive friends, Omar and Justin, and loves watching Noir films and writing his own hard-boiled detective stories.

Sam's black-and-white world gets disrupted once Sadie, the mischievous new girl from Rancho Cucamonga, transfers into his class. She cunningly convinces Sam to steal hot lunch tickets from Mrs. Stackhouse's desk so they can eat for free.

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Sam's guilt eats away at him as he tries to reconcile his new romance with Sadie, while keeping his "good boy" appearance.