Welcome to Lytton - Population 350. Home of the World Famous Gold Rush Days... and not much else. Cole Chambers is a young man who has spent his entire life picking up the pieces of his shattered family. He protects his older sister's 6 year-old son from his abusive step father. He manages the family gas station and cares for his brain-damaged mother, whose condition he feels utterly responsible for. Frustrated and trapped, Cole carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. He dreams for something, anything beyond his monotonous life. When Cole gets the opportunity to take a creative writing class at a University in the city, he sees his potential for the first time - that he can get out of small town Lytton and actually make something out of his life... but at what cost? Cole spends increasing amounts of time away from home, falling in love with Serafina, a rich girl from his writing class. Family and friends in Lytton fall apart without Cole's careful guidance. Unable to escape the guilt of leaving his family to fend for themselves, Cole returns to help them out, only to have Serafina visit him at the most inopportune time. Her visit serves as a catalyst for a series of tragic events that alter the lives of everyone in this small town forever...