In a suburb populated by wealthy and
liberal parents who want a bucolic life for themselves and
their children, Wendy, Billie and Ann are seniors at the
alternative private school; they spend all their time with
fellow students John, Price and
Robert. The six have been friends since elementary school
and their friendship has become a six-person monogamous
relationship. They swap sex partners each week; their
loyalty is to the group, not to one person. The six friends
don’t want to
survive high school – they want to transcend its pettiness.
Their friendships are intense, especially between Billie and
Wendy.
After orientation, Wendy meets Sean, a new senior who moved from
Chicago; he
finds out about her “inner geek” and she quickly recognizes
a kindred spirit. Soon
their friendship becomes romantic and Wendy is torn between
her genuine
affection and desire for Sean, and her commitment and belief
in the group. Wendy
starts to test the boundaries of her vow to her friends, and
Billie realizes that she is
going to have to fight to keep her best friend; which
shouldn’t be a problem, since
each of the teens has collected a box full of mementos from
their sexual
experience. If Wendy tries to leave, Billie can destroy her
reputation and
relationship in a heartbeat.
While Wendy is trying to decide between Sean and her
friends, Wendy’s younger
brother Nathan meets Sean’s mother, Helen who is waiting a
long three weeks to
start a new job. Nathan develops a huge crush on her, and
uses his considerable
cooking skills to try and woo her.
When Billie realizes that Wendy really might leave, she
tests her – pushing Wendy
to publicly ridicule Ryan, a girl who left the group last
year along with her boyfriend,
Aaron. Sean witnesses the brutal scene, where Ryan’s past is
used against her.
Wendy is devastated that she allowed herself to be pushed
around by Billie. Then
Wendy spends another Saturday night with the group and she
is unable to “cheat”
on Sean; her hesitation is all that Billie needs to accuse
her best friend. After the
girls fight, Wendy takes out her frustration on a random
couple who keep making
out in front of her house.
Ryan, hearing that Wendy is out of the group, tries to be
friends, but Wendy
doesn’t like what Ryan has become – a subservient wet
dishrag of a girlfriend.
Sean and Wendy try to be a “normal” couple, but the group
quickly tests the
relationship: Billie puts the box of memorabilia in Sean’s
locker. Wendy claims she
isn’t scared, she knows that Sean loves her. Maybe so, but
when he sees the
photos that document a lifetime of sexual experimentation,
he is fed up and offers
an ultimatum – Wendy can burn the box, leave the group and
be a normal girl, or
they can break up. Wendy has gone from one ultimatum to
another.
When Wendy sees Billie being tortured for being alone by
other students, she
wants to comfort her friend. Billie invites Wendy back to
the group; such is the
depth of Billie’s love for her. But Wendy makes a braver,
and stronger decision –
to be alone. The girls in the story – Wendy, Ryan, Billie –
all must face the next
chapter of their lives alone, and for the first time, at
least Wendy sees the
possibilities this offers.
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