This is the tale of two brothers: Nicu and Danuts. The boys come from a poor family riddled with alcoholism and unemployment. Their mother was beaten up by their father and was left with no other choice but to abandon her two boys. In order to survive, the boys started to leave their shack in search of food. Nicu, who is five years older than his brother, discovered that he could make money cleaning car windows. He could be found daily with a bottle of water and a squeegee in hand at “The Dandelion,” a major intersection in Galati . With Nicu working hard to bring home some money, Danuts was left at home to fend for himself.

Danuts, who was only eight years old, made friends with an older boy who lived in their poor neighborhood. The boys developed a scheme to make some fast money. They had found a warehouse that stored diesel fuel. The plan was to sneak into the warehouse and steal it. Together the boys tore a hole in the thatch wall and snuck in. They proceeded to carry off the goods. Though the stench of diesel was thick, they did not realize that it had leaked all over the floor. Somehow – and to this day no one knows how – the fuel caught fire. Danuts' friend collapsed due to smoke inhalation, but a neighbor, who noticed the fire, acted quickly and pulled him out. The boy only suffered burns on his back and legs. But Danuts was not so fortunate. Because he was frightened, he ran to the corner of the warehouse. There the little boy sat crying until the flames consumed him.

Nicu was at the intersection washing windows when he heard the news. In an unjust milieu where death is continuously present, Nicu could do nothing but weep.

But Nicu's tale did not end with his brother's. In 1999, he was taken into a partner organization's children's home. He started going to school again. He also was hired to work with the milk cows on a farm. But all the changes in his life do not help Nicu forget what happened to Danuts. Though he seldom speaks of it, he struggles with guilt, believing that he could have saved his brother if only he had been home.

This burden of guilt is too great for a 15 year old to bear. Who can convince Nicu of his innocence? Who can help him recover from his catastrophic past? The answers do not come easily.

The death of Nicu's brother was certainly not Nicu's fault. It was the fault of negligent parents, of a complacent people and of a corrupt society that allows its children to grow up on the streets. The tragic death of Danuts and the guilt-ridden life of Nicu make us ask the question: how many more must die before we start to care for our children?