We meet a Vietnamese woman named Tuyen who identifies as queer. She is the daughter of refugees, and she has a brother, Quy, who was left behind when they were separated during their escape from Vietnam. So, now Tuyen lives with her other brother, Binh, and her parents. She is an artist by trade, and as an adult, she vehemently opposes Binh's decision to contact their missing brother.
Tuyen and Binh experience chronic, complicated conflicts with one another, and in the meantime, Tuyen realizes that her feelings for her friend Carla are becoming romantic. She has become deeply enamored by Carla, but Carla is not interested in Tuyen that way. She is straight, but loves Tuyen as a dear friend—even a best friend. Carla's experience as a black woman is similar to Tuyen's challenging life as the daughter of immigrants. Jamal, Carla's little brother, is constantly in trouble with the law.
We meet Oku, a black poet who is in school for his Masters in English Literature, but he drops out. Though he adopted his father's obsession with good jazz, Oku doesn't get along with his father. He likes this girl, Jackie, who owns a boutique. She's already in a relationship though with her German boyfriend, Reiner.
We learn in snapshots what became of Quy. He was separated and relocated to a different refugee camp. As an orphaned child he joins a gang, but leaves the gang to pursue religious enlightenment, from the grips of his life of crime. Eventually, he escapes to Canada, and Binh does successful find him. Tuyen is skeptical of Quy, because of his long, complicated history. Quy waits to surprise his family, but before he gets the chance, young, troublesome Jamal beats him, leaving him for dead, stealing their family car.
