Content Warning: This section of the guide contains a description of death and a traumatic work accident.

The first to narrate a chapter is Topher. Like the other narrators, Topher is 12 years old and a sixth-grade student at Fox Ridge Elementary School in an unnamed city. Topher is physically average and is somewhat above average in his grades. He is unique in that he perpetually imagines himself as part of a fantasy story, perhaps about superheroes, secret agents, or innocents fleeing zombies. When possible, he draws others into his instant role plays, especially his long-time best friend Steve.

Topher is a gifted artist. Other students enjoy looking at the figures he draws in his sketchbook, often recognizing themselves. He has a quick wit and is unsparing in taunting those he does not care for, such as Steve’s older sister Christina. Reality sometimes breaks into Topher’s fantasies, as when he imagines himself as a superhero jumping over a fallen trashcan, only to fall and twist his ankle so he can barely walk. This represents Topher’s coming-of-age, as fantasy and reality clash at his transition from childhood to adolescence.

Topher’s family is intact, though they maintain extremely busy schedules so that he, his parents, and his little sister are seldom together.