Claudia is "an official pre-teen" still reeling from her parents' divorce. Her father is getting re-married, she has a science fair project coming due, and she is in the physical and emotional throes of puberty. Finding refuge in the basement of her school, Alcudia discovers the pain at the center of her brimming child 's heart. Some important adults in Claudia 's life -her grandfather, her father 's new girlfriend and the school custodian -shed light on her situation.