The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School

Cesar reveals to Yami that he and Jamal have been together for a year and that Jamal gave him a promise ring with a jaguar symbol that he can’t wear openly. Yami agrees to continue pretending to be Jamal’s girlfriend to protect her brother’s secret. When Jamal comes to dinner, Maria interrogates him about being Catholic and going to church but ultimately approves of him when he consistently addresses her as “Mrs. Flores” and uses good manners. After dinner, Cesar suggests that Yami and Jamal go on a fake date to make their relationship more convincing.

The next day, Jamal picks up Yami for lunch. In the car, he plays spoken-word poetry by Saul Williams, and at the diner, they discuss their families while noticing that Cesar and Maria have followed them to the diner and are not-so-secretly spying on them. Jamal shares that his family doesn’t accept his personality, which they view as “unmasculine.” He plans to come out to them soon despite his fears. As they pretend to be a couple for Yami’s mother’s benefit, Yami contemplates what a real relationship would be like. She thinks about wanting to hold a girl’s hand, talk on the phone until falling asleep, and kiss someone she’s actually attracted to. Yami concludes that she and Cesar don’t have the privilege of being themselves like Bo does with her accepting parents.

In art class, Ms. Felix assigns the students to pair up and draw portraits of each other. When both Bo and Hunter ask to be Yami’s partner, Yami awkwardly claims that she doesn’t know how to draw white people. Bo winks at Yami and becomes her partner, while Hunter pairs with David. As they draw, Yami struggles to maintain composure while studying Bo’s features. Though Yami finishes her portrait of Bo quickly, Bo takes her time and refuses to let Yami see her drawing, suggesting that she might display it at the March art show. Their session is interrupted by a public homecoming proposal, prompting a discussion about whether such displays are sweet or embarrassing. Bo believes that they’re romantic if you know the person will say yes, while Yami thinks that they put too much pressure on both parties.

At lunch, Amber helps Bo look for a girlfriend on a dating app, showing Yami a girl named Jamie with blue hair. The conversation shifts to speculating about closeted students at Slayton, making Yami uncomfortable. Jenna approaches their table and gives the impression that she is about to ask Bo to homecoming. When Bo responds with joyful surprise, Jenna reveals that the whole thing was only a cruel joke orchestrated by Karen, leaving Bo humiliated as everyone laughs. Yami stands up for Bo, who leaves the cafeteria before hearing the nasty comments. Yami and Amber follow Bo to her car, and the three ditch school for a horror movie. During the film, Bo holds both Yami’s and Amber’s hands, which prompts Yami to reflect on how her former friend Bianca made her feel predatory for normal friendly contact after learning that Yami was gay. The next day, Bo hides in the art room during lunch. She explains that she stopped playing sports after coming out because other girls thought she was always looking at them inappropriately. Yami responds with “In lak’ech,” the same phrase she uses with her brother. She tells Bo that it means “I understand you.”

The homecoming game approaches, and Yami’s mother insists on attending to see Cesar play football, leading Yami to wonder how he will prevent her from discovering his ongoing lie about being on the team. Yami dresses carefully in a red off-the-shoulder romper and one of her mother’s handmade necklaces. At the game, they sit at the back of the bleachers to minimize their view of the field. Bo and Amber join them, and they’re introduced to Yami’s mother and Jamal, whom Yami awkwardly calls her boyfriend. On the field, David wears Cesar’s number and pretends to be him, waving to Yami’s mother from the field while the real Cesar hides in the locker room during the game.

After Slayton wins, Hunter enthusiastically hugs Yami, causing her to make an awkward squealing noise. The football team orchestrates a homecoming proposal for David to ask Amber, who excitedly accepts. Yami realizes that this means she and Bo will be ditching the dance alone together, making her nervous. Instead of attending homecoming, Yami and Bo watch bad horror movies at Bo’s house. Yami tries to convince Bo to come to the afterparty with her, and during their conversation, they have a moment of intense eye contact that Yami misinterprets. She abruptly blurts out, “I’m straight,” offending Bo, who says that not every lesbian has a crush on her and reveals that she has a girlfriend named Jamie. Yami leaves Bo’s house feeling like she’s ruined their friendship.

Despite her earlier reluctance, Yami attends the homecoming afterparty at Hunter’s house, hoping to forget her fight with Bo. She decides to fully commit to her “straight” lie by flirting with Hunter. As music pulses through the large house, Hunter gives Yami a shot of vodka and teaches her how to take it, awkwardly pinching her nose for her. Yami decides to pretend to be interested in Hunter in order to convince her classmates that she is straight. Though she lets Hunter put his hands on her hips while dancing, Yami quickly grows bored. When Hunter offers to show her around his house, they end up in his bedroom, where she nervously declares that she’s not going to have sex with him. Hunter, taken aback, presents the spy comic book he wanted to show her and confesses that he’s never had sex. After an awkward hug, Hunter kisses her, prompting Yami to blurt out, “I’m gay!” He apologizes for misreading the situation and promises not to tell anyone.

As the party continues, Yami drinks more and dances with Emily, who grinds against her to make Hunter jealous. When the police arrive, Yami and Cesar hide behind bushes while other partygoers continue as normal after being asked to turn down the music. This leniency on the part of the police reminds Yami of a previous party in her neighborhood; the police were violent, and her friend Junior’s mother was deported. When Yami tries to leave, a guy makes a racist “la migra” joke about her and Cesar running from the police. Yami punches him in the face, knocking him unconscious. Too drunk to drive, she waits in her car and impulsively texts her father, “I love you […] I’m gay” (154). She then leaves Bo a rambling voicemail confessing her feelings and her sexuality. She immediately regrets it and attempts to send damage-control texts.

Bo calls Yami, who is still drunk in her car at three o’clock in the morning. Yami experiences memory gaps as Bo picks her up and takes her to her house, where Yami vomits while Bo holds her hair back. In her inebriated state, Yami searches for Bo’s portrait of her and asks Bo to cuddle with her, though Bo only provides an extra blanket. The next morning, Yami wakes up with a severe hangover in Bo’s guest room, where Bo has thoughtfully left water and Advil. When Yami asks if Bo is still mad at her, Bo confirms that she was but has gotten over it. Bo begins to play Yami’s drunken voicemail, causing Yami to chase her around the room, shouting to drown out the message. Yami manages to tackle Bo and delete the message before the confession of feelings plays.

At breakfast, Bo’s parents express approval that Yami called Bo for a ride instead of driving drunk. They even give Yami their phone number in case she ever needs help when she’s uncomfortable calling her own parents. After Bo drives Yami back to her car, Yami repeatedly tries to reach her father, worried about her coming-out text but also partly hoping to talk with him about it. She sends another text asking him not to tell her mother. That evening, Jamal arrives at their house with a cut lip and swollen face, having been kicked out by his stepfather after coming out. When Yami’s mother asks him what happened, he tells her everything except the part about coming out. She unexpectedly offers to let Jamal stay with them for a few days, assigning him to sleep in Cesar’s room to keep him and Yami separate, unwittingly allowing the real couple to be together.