It's Summer 1980 , and best friends Joe Koerner( Soren Fulton ) , Eugene "Tiger" Pierce Jr.( Matt Borish ) and Chris Corwin ( Sam Semenza ) are spending their summer as all 12 year old boys do ... having the time of the lives and trying to stay out of trouble .

Before long , however, Joe and Tiger find themselves in the wrong hands of the law , caught for sneaking free rides at a carnival , and are escorted home to their parents .

The next day, Joe's parents have a huge argument over whether or not to let Joe go to baseball camp with Tiger, with Joe's father warning him to stay away from Tiger . Joe argues that Tiger is his best friend , and always will be , but his parents are strangely insistent that keeping away from Tiger would be best for Joe . Running out of the room, deeply upset , Joe overhears his parents arguing that Joe has to go to baseball camp because "he can’t stay ... with what’s going on."

At their local movie drive-in hangout, Tiger, Joe and Chris guess as to why Joe's parents are sending him away. For fun, Tiger cuffs Chris with handcuffs that Tiger stole from his father. When Chris tells them he overheard his mom talking on the phone to Martha, Joe and Tiger tickle him until he confesses: Joe's parents are going on a trip, but he doesn't know where.

While at Baseball Camp, Joe realizes that his mom received a certified letter a few weeks earlier and that it must be related to where his parents are going. Deeply concerned about why Joe's parents are going on this mysterious trip , Joe, Tiger and Chris decide to leave camp and ride their bikes home to learn where Joe's parents have gone. It is a decision that would forever change their lives , and force them to come to terms with what true friendship really means .