Life's not going well for 16-year-old Henry "Hen" Birnbaum. First, his girlfriend dumps him. Then, she kicks him out of her band. And then, a year after she mysteriously vanished, Hen's older sister suddenly shows up. Which should, of course, be a happy occasion, except for the fact that Sarah won't say a word about where she's been or why she left. Maybe he shouldn't be, but Hen's angry at her, angry at his parents for not being angry with her, and really just kind of angry with all the lemons life's been pelting him with lately. At least he has Emma Wood, neurotic though his BFF may be.

Since Hen's got nothing else to do with his time (unless you count watching Behind the Music reruns with Emma), he turns his attention to solving the mystery of Sarah's disappearance. He's pretty sure all the answers lie with Sarah's college friend, Gabriel Stern. The 22-year-old bass player's hiding out in the East Village, keeping a low profile until whatever trouble he and Sarah stirred up blows over. Even when Hen agrees to take music lessons from Gabriel to help the fugitive "get his life back on track" (30), Gabriel refuses to talk. At least Hen's bass is improving, maybe even enough to win back his spot in the band. And in his ex-girlfriend's heart.