A 19-year-old Vietnamese-American college dropout and recovering drug addict struggling with aimlessness and loneliness. He begins the story contemplating suicide on a bridge before becoming the caretaker for an elderly woman while working at a fast-food restaurant.

An 82-year-old Lithuanian widow and immigrant suffering from the early stages of dementia. She lives alone in a dilapidated house and saves Hai's life at the riverbank, eventually forming a tender bond with him as her live-in caretaker.

Hai’s younger cousin and coworker at the HomeMarket restaurant who has learning difficulties. He is a gentle soul who creates origami animals to cope with reality and relies on the "chosen family" of coworkers for support.

A sharp-tongued, hard-drinking coworker of Hai’s at HomeMarket who acts as a maternal figure to the younger employees. Beneath her rough exterior, she is grieving the loss of her son and struggling with the physical toll of her labor.

The resilient manager of the HomeMarket franchise where Hai works, who protects her "misfit" employees from corporate oversight. She dreams of becoming a professional wrestler to mentally escape the drudgery of her job.

A quiet grill cook at HomeMarket who works alongside Hai and serves as an integral part of the crew. He endures racism and the harsh realities of service industry work while maintaining a bond with his coworkers.

Grazina's estranged son who has become a successful scientist but remains emotionally distant from his mother. His strained relationship with Grazina highlights the generational and cultural gaps within their immigrant family.