Father spends more time on the computer than his photography. Mother hasn’t touched her loom, instead smoking and drinking coffee—old habits of hers. She has stopped cooking and now buys frozen and instant meals. Father paces around the house, stressing about money and home repairs but then goes back to procrastinating with computer games. Erica only talks to her doll and barely answers Daniel whenever he asks questions.

One day, Daniel tries to confront Erica about talking to her doll, but she insists that Little Erica is alive—and that she listens when no one else does. Erica insists that Little Erica only talks to her. Daniel continues to get bullied at school, Mother and Father argue, and the chores go undone. The roof leaks, and the cold November air chills the house, despite Father having figured out the furnace.

Daniel explores the woods, always bringing a compass but still feeling afraid. He sometimes thinks he’s being followed and wonders about the strange figure he saw near the tree line. One evening, he ends up several miles down the road from his house and walks back as dusk approaches.