In 2001, high-school student Teddy Walker drops out of school when he's unable to concentrate during a crucial test. In 2018 he works as a barbecue-grill salesman and dates a wealthy woman named Lisa, and has developed a careful financial strategy that allows him to maintain the illusion that he is better off than he actually is. But his life falls apart just as he learns that he will inherit control of the store when the current manager retires: As he proposes to Lisa in the shop, he accidentally triggers an explosion when a champagne cork pops open a gas tank; the manager runs away with the insurance from the explosion. Teddy's friend is willing to give him a job--if he can earn his GED.