Raven is a seventeen-year-old counselor who returns to the summer camp she once attended as a child. She carries deep anger regarding her father, who abandoned her family when she was seven years old. This bitterness directly impacts her behavior and causes her to ignore the responsibilities she holds toward younger campers.

Cam is a teenager from an affluent, mostly white neighborhood in Austin, Texas, who spends his summers in South Carolina. He actively changes his speech, clothing, and interests to fit in with the local Black community. He hopes these superficial changes will impress his ex-girlfriend.

Nivia is a seventeen-year-old legacy student at the prestigious Caswell Prep art school. She faces immense pressure from her family to pursue a career in law rather than follow her passion for art. She secretly maintains sketchbooks that capture her true artistic voice.

Shawn is a self-proclaimed nerd who works at the mall and views the shopping center as its own complex galaxy. He struggles with confidence, especially regarding his crush, and often feels overshadowed by more outgoing, stereotypically cool guys.

Cassie is a quiet high school student trying to process the death of a girl she only knew from gym class. She carefully guards her internal thoughts and is secretly dealing with questions about her own sexuality, fearful of how her peers might view her.

Flaco is a young boy living in Brooklyn who spends his summer days swimming and hanging out with his friends. He and his friends constantly observe the advertisements for elaborate sandwiches at local bodegas, using food to dream about better circumstances.

Joni is a high school senior from a wealthy family currently living in Chicago. She feels disconnected from her extended family in rural Missouri due to past insults about her interests and speech. She hesitates to share her college plans with her parents, fearing they will prefer a more prestigious school.

Sobechi is a disciplined, highly successful high school debate star whose mother emigrated from Nigeria. His life is strictly regimented around academic success and speech practice until new neighbors introduce him to an entirely different subculture and emotional outlet.

Keri is a high school sophomore struggling with the aftermath of a breakup. She attends a church retreat hoping to win back her ex-boyfriend but finds herself attracted to a new boy, leading to feelings of guilt and manipulation.

Lucas is Keri's critical and controlling ex-boyfriend. Even after ending their relationship, he expects Keri to cater to his preferences and attempts to manipulate her through guilt and demands for inappropriate photos.

Tank is a teenage boy whose family is the only Black household in North Salem. He faces intense pressure from his religious parents to win a triennial horse race to prove their family belongs in the prejudiced town. He secretly meets with the son of his family's biggest rivals.

Danté is a college freshman who works as a model to pay his tuition and dreams of starting his own fashion line. He is highly focused on his physical appearance, particularly his hair, until a supernatural encounter forces him to reconsider his connection to his ancestry.

Clara is a young girl whose family recently immigrated to the United States from Trinidad. While mid-jump on a dance floor, she experiences a traumatic assault that causes time to slow down, allowing her to rapidly calculate the societal risks of reacting.

Lena is a teenager struggling profoundly with grief and depression. She frequently visits the river and interacts with her twin sister, Madeleine, feeling a dangerous pull toward the water while clashing with her parents' expectations.

Devon is a recent high school graduate who wants to study sociology, despite her father's insistence on nursing. She is privately aware of her queer identity but has suppressed it since childhood out of fear of her father's disapproval.

Garry is a college freshman who uses computer coding as an escape from his complicated family history. Having left his abusive mother to live with his father at age ten, he nervously searches NYU for a girl he bonded with at coding camps over the past three summers.

Makenzie, often called Mak, is a teenager living in a wealthy, gated community in North Atlanta. Her mother harbors strong prejudices against poorer neighborhoods, leading Mak to secretly question these biases as she develops feelings for a boy from across town.

Nigeria, known as Geri, is a seventeen-year-old girl raised entirely within a strict Black nationalist organization. Homeschooled and sheltered, she secretly watches sitcoms and dreams of attending Columbia University, seeking to experience the world outside her father's rigid control.

Brooke is a ten-year-old camper who faces frequent bullying from other girls regarding her weight. She seeks a connection with her older half-sister, remaining resilient even when ignored or mocked by her peers.

Myron is a teenager living in Franklin, South Carolina. He has a secret passion for musical theater and showtunes but often hides these interests to blend in with his peers, serving as a contrast to Cam's overt efforts to perform an identity.

Jessica is Cam's ex-girlfriend who abruptly stopped talking to him months prior. She holds strong convictions about social issues and police brutality, expecting the people she cares about to share her awareness of the real world.

Ryan is Nivia's roommate at Caswell Prep. Coming from a family deeply rooted in the art world, she experiences intense expectations to win the school's Jabec Art Prize and struggles to produce authentic work under the pressure.

Nivia's father is a successful professional who expects his daughter to follow in the family's footsteps by attending law school. He views art as an impractical pursuit and emphasizes the difficulties she will face as a woman of color in the professional world.

Dayshia is a girl who attends the mall employee party. While Shawn perceives her as entirely out of his league, she hides her own nerdy interests and prefers genuine conversation over superficial charm.

Known as "Cologne Kiosk Cameron," he is a well-dressed, highly talkative mall employee. He constantly promotes his cologne samples and acts as a rival for Dayshia's attention, displaying an overconfident attitude.

Amir is one of Shawn's friends and coworkers. He constantly encourages Shawn to talk to his crush and actively meddles to force them into a conversation.

Tessa is a deceased student whose wild, uninhibited nature left a strong impression on Cassie. During their time in gym class together, Tessa casually observed Cassie's behavior and perceptively recognized her hidden sexuality.

Junior is Joni's cousin who lives in rural Missouri. He harbors resentment toward Joni's family for moving away to the suburbs and acting superior. He previously insulted Joni by calling her an "Oreo," creating a lasting rift between them.

Dez is a free-spirited musician who dresses in black and plays in a metal band. She challenges Sobechi's rigid lifestyle, introducing him to heavy metal music that awakens new, intense emotions within him.

Sobechi's mother is a Nigerian immigrant who places immense pressure on her son to succeed academically. She views metal music and distractions as dangerous and enforces strict rules to ensure Sobechi wins his competitions.

Dara is a girl at the church retreat whom Keri initially dislikes out of jealousy regarding her physical appearance. The two girls unexpectedly bond over shared experiences of pressure from the boys at the camp.

Skyler is the son of the Smith family, who openly display racist symbols and hold a bitter rivalry with Tank's family. Despite his family's prejudice, Skyler secretly connects with Tank and admits his true feelings to his parents.

John is an enslaved person living in the 1840s who appears as an apparition in Danté's water basin. He fetches water for his master and struggles to understand Danté's modern lifestyle, vocabulary, and profession.

Madeleine is Lena's twin sister who historically rebelled against their mother's expectations through her clothing and hair. She exhibits signs of severe emotional distress, leaving a lasting impact on Lena and her boyfriend James.

James is the boy who lives next door and dates Madeleine. He shares a deep, unspoken grief with Lena, ultimately accompanying her to the river and helping her process their mutual loss.

Sarah is a local girl in Parish Point, Maryland, who frequents the library run by Devon's grandmother. She introduces Devon to her supportive college friends and provides a safe space for Devon to explore her romantic identity.

Inaaya is a talented coder who connects with Garry over several summers. She faces immense pressure from her mother to practice traditional Islam, creating a tension between her family's expectations and her own exploratory nature.

Garry's mother is a woman living in Brooklyn who was emotionally abusive to Garry during his childhood. She attempts to reenter his life and make amends as he heads to college, forcing Garry to confront his lingering anger.

Kamari is a tall, athletic basketball player from a poorer area of Atlanta. He is the subject of harsh rumors and judgment from Makenzie's family, but he demonstrates unexpected kindness and a love for reading fantasy books.

Dr. Jones is Geri's father and the leader of a Black nationalist group. He teaches his followers that society is entirely divided along racial lines, enforcing strict isolationist rules that restrict his daughter's education and social exposure.

Kamau is Geri's queer best friend who also lives within the Movement. Like Geri, he feels stifled by the organization's restrictive beliefs and plans to leave the group permanently upon turning eighteen.