Fourteen-year-old Annie Cameron lives in suburban Chicago. On her birthday, her parents give her a laptop. When she meets Charlie in an online chat room, she establishes an instant connection with him. At first, Charlie states that he is 16 years old. Over time, as the two bond by sending phone text messages and through instant messaging, he bumps his age up to 20, then 25. Annie is taken aback at first, but comes to believe that the two of them are in love.