 Inglewood, an L.A. burb, is the Wood, home to a largely Black middle class, where Mike, Slim, and Roland have been best friends since junior high. It s three hours before Roland is to marry, and he has very cold feet. Mike and Slim must sober him up and help him decide if he wants to go through with the wedding. In flashbacks, they recall key moments of their friendship, the rites of passage of boys to men. Mike is the principal narrator, arriving in the Wood from North Carolina, nervous and shy. In addition to male friendship and wedding-day jitters, the story explores Mike s long-term connection to Alicia, his lovely and together first sweetheart.