Nelson, 23, takes a rare road trip with his father, Manuel, to his rural hometown. Since Manuel has immigrated to the City, he rarely comes back except for funerals. Upon their arrival, Nelson sees why; almost everything is abandoned, decrepit, and is filled with an overwhelming sense of despair. Though everyone is happy to see Manuel, he is quickly tired of repeating the same stories of old times, which he barely remembers, and shouldering the weight of the prize child that has left his hometown behind.

His father badgers nelson throughout the trip on why he has yet to leave the capital city for the U.S. like his elder brother. He is afraid that he has raised his son poorly and will never leave Mexico, doomed to possess the same fate as those he left behind.

When Nelson and his father head to the bar after an exhausting day greeting and meeting everyone, they run into a group of his father's old classmates. When they ask what Nelson is doing, he decides to have a bit of fun with his acting skills and pretend that he is the son who has moved to California just to see what it might feel like to be the prized child like his brother. In doing so, he feels the envy, pride, and anger that those who remain behind feel towards those who have left them. Perhaps the town would have faired better if Manuel had stayed, even if it wasn't best for Manuel.