The Fisher family arrives at their new home in Lake Windsor Downs, a gated suburban community in Tangerine County, Florida.

Paul is barred from joining the Lake Windsor soccer team because his IEP prevents the school from insuring him.

Lightning strikes and kills Mike Costello during afternoon football practice at Lake Windsor High.

Paul and Joey attend a post-funeral carnival and watch Tangerine Middle students vandalize the Wonders of the World exhibit.

A sinkhole opens beneath Lake Windsor Middle School and swallows the portable classroom units.

Paul transfers to Tangerine Middle School and earns a spot on the War Eagles soccer team.

During the first football game of the season, Antoine Thomas fakes the two-point conversion and Erik falls in the mud.

Joey Costello launches a racist tirade in the hallway at Tangerine Middle and eventually abandons the school.

The War Eagles defeat the Lake Windsor Seagulls to win the county soccer championship.

Erik Fisher backhands Tino Cruz hard enough to knock him off his feet during a confrontation at the Fisher home.

Arthur Bauer blindsides Luis Cruz with a blackjack to the temple at Erik's instruction while Paul watches from hiding.

Luis Cruz dies, and Paul researches the injury and concludes Arthur's blow caused a fatal blood clot.

Tino and Victor crash Senior Awards Night at Lake Windsor High and attack Erik; Paul helps them escape.

As Erik confronts Paul at the vandalized wall, he uses the name Castor, unlocking Paul's buried memory of his blinding.

Paul confronts his parents about Erik and a friend spray-painting his eyes; his parents admit they knew all along.

The Fisher family arrives in Lake Windsor Downs, where Paul's older brother Erik pursues football fame and Paul finds his path to soccer blocked by his IEP. After lightning kills a neighbor's son and a sinkhole destroys his school, Paul transfers to Tangerine Middle and earns a place on the War Eagles soccer team. Erik's cruelty escalates when he strikes Tino Cruz and then orders Arthur Bauer to violently assault Tino's older brother Luis, who later dies from his injuries. Paul helps the Cruz brothers confront Erik at Senior Awards Night, setting off a chain of events that forces the Fisher family's secrets into the open. A traumatic recovered memory reveals that Erik had a friend spray paint into Paul's eyes, causing his vision loss, and his parents finally admit they knew all along. With Erik facing arrest and the football dream destroyed, Paul begins a new chapter at a new school, unburdened by fear.

The central story of Paul Fisher's year in Tangerine, Florida.

Paul discovers that a muck fire has been burning continuously underground near the Lake Windsor neighborhood.

Paul makes an impressive save at Lake Windsor soccer tryouts and earns the nickname Mars.

Erik and Arthur openly laugh and joke about Mike Costello's death in front of Paul, sickening him.

Mom calls a community meeting to debate moving football practice to mornings to avoid lightning strikes.

Paul views Mike Costello's body at the public visitation, encountering a dead person for the first time.

In the War Eagles' first away game an opponent smears mud in Paul's eyes and Paul attacks him.

After the first away game Victor tells Paul that War Eagles have brothers to back each other up.

Paul scores a goal while filling in at fullback during a home soccer game, earning his teammates' respect.

Mom arranges for a local journalist to write about the female War Eagles players; Shandra Thomas sprints away.

The Homeowners' Association meeting reveals that a series of unsolved burglaries has been targeting the neighborhood.

Paul visits the Tomas Cruz Groves and Nursery for the science project and is introduced to Luis Cruz.

Paul returns to the Cruz groves uninvited and confesses to Tino that he reported the carnival vandals to authorities.

During a car errand, Mom mentions that Erik has a key to the family storage unit, striking Paul as suspicious.

Paul stays overnight at the Cruz groves, helping the family fight a hard freeze threatening to destroy the tangerine trees.

Antoine Thomas confesses his eligibility fraud to journalist Mr. Donnelly and announces he will report to the sheriff.

This pool captures the secondary events that shape Paul's experience in Tangerine County, from the ever-present muck fire to the tragedy of Mike Costello's death that reshapes the whole community. Paul finds small victories — earning the nickname Mars at soccer tryouts, scoring a goal while playing fullback — while navigating the social dynamics of his new teammates. His visits to the Tomas Cruz Groves deepen his appreciation for the authentic life he finds in Tangerine, even as he makes a costly mistake by admitting to Tino that he reported the carnival vandals. Back in Lake Windsor, signs of trouble accumulate: unreported burglaries, a suspicious storage-unit key, and a Homeowners' Association that keeps making things worse. The pool ends with Antoine Thomas deciding to come clean about his eligibility fraud, an act of honesty that triggers the novel's final reckoning.

The supporting moments and secondary beats that shape Paul's world.

Paul has a flashback of Erik chasing him with a baseball bat from a speeding car; his parents dismiss it.

Paul befriends Joey Costello while playing pickup soccer in the Lake Windsor Downs neighborhood.

Paul tells school officials that Tangerine Middle students vandalized the Wonders of the World carnival exhibit.

Paul and Joey pull classmates out of the mud during the sinkhole collapse, acting heroically.

Paul endures Victor Guzman's trash talk and deliberate cheating at his first War Eagles practice without backing down.

The War Eagles face jeering hostile spectators at their first away game and respond with a fierce war chant.

Paul convinces Joey to transfer to Tangerine Middle School with him to escape the memories of Mike Costello's death.

Luis Cruz explains the tangerine grafting process to Paul and reveals details of his new Golden Dawn hybrid variety.

Paul has a flashback of Erik sneaking up on his blind side to frighten him in the Houston garage.

Paul realizes during the championship game that Shandra Thomas and quarterback Antoine Thomas are siblings, explaining her avoidance of publicity.

Paul strips the sod from his backyard to reach the bare earth beneath and weeps into the soil for Luis Cruz.

Erik and Arthur chase Paul to the vandalized wall after Senior Awards Night and Paul tells Arthur he saw him kill Luis.

Erik and Arthur's neighborhood burglaries are exposed when Mom finds stolen items in the family storage unit.

Paul corroborates Antoine's testimony to the police and tells them Erik ordered Arthur to strike Luis with the blackjack.

Dad drives Paul past tangerine groves to his first day at St. Anthony's, the scent of citrus filling the car.

This pool traces Paul's internal journey through the moments of discovery and decision that push him toward courage and self-knowledge. From an early flashback of Erik's violence to small acts of bravery — pulling classmates from sinkhole mud, standing firm during hazing — Paul gradually sheds his identity as prey. His friendship with the Cruz family deepens as Luis shares his passion for the tangerine groves, giving Paul a model of honest, fearless living. As Luis's death weighs on him, Paul reaches a breaking point: he digs through the suburban sod to mourn, then acts decisively at the awards ceremony to protect his friends. When Erik accidentally names Castor during the confrontation at the wall, Paul's memory unlocks and he is finally able to corroborate the truth to police and expose the family's buried crimes. The pool closes as Paul's father drives him through the tangerine groves to a new school, signaling a genuine new beginning for the Fisher family.