When Reece—strange, blue-haired, and fire-obsessed—moves in next door, Keith is worried, largely because Annie, Keith's three-year-old sister, really likes him. Funny boy, she calls him. Reece is clearly trouble, but Keith feels sorry for him, so he doesn't make him go away or tell his dad what's going on—not even when Reece burns Annie's doll, Raggy, beyond recognition. Keith knows he should ignore Reece, but he's like smoke, pervading every aspect of Keith's life, until one night he wakes up choking on it.