Breathe

Charlie is a teenage high school student whose parents are breaking up, creating an emotionally unstable backdrop for her life. The split adds pressure to her relationships at school and at home.

At school, Charlie is tasked with taking care of Sarah, a new girl from Nigeria who now lives with her aunt. The two quickly grow close as Charlie becomes her main point of contact.

For All Saints' Day, Sarah explains her mother cannot visit, so Charlie invites her to spend time with Charlie's mother and her friends. The holiday exposure brings Sarah into Charlie's social circle.

During a vacation, Sarah's attitude shifts when Charlie introduces her as a classmate rather than a friend. She alternates between warmth and coldness, unsettling Charlie.

Back at school, Sarah's inconsistent stories raise Charlie's suspicions. She begins to wonder what Sarah is hiding behind the surface smiles.

Charlie follows Sarah after school to uncover the truth and discovers she lives in a rough part of town with an alcoholic mother. The hidden home life intensifies Charlie's concern.

At a New Year's party, Charlie tells Sarah she has seen her mother, asserting that Sarah isn't really mean. Sarah responds by threatening to kill Charlie if she tells anyone.

One day, Sarah casually threatens to tell Charlie's friends about her abusive father, while Charlie warns that she could reveal Sarah's mother. In retaliation, Sarah graffiti's 'Charlie is a whore' all over the school.

Sarah shows up at Charlie's house crying about her mother's abuse, and Charlie forgives her, insisting she is only upset when they're apart. The fragile reconciliation is short-lived, as old tensions simmer below the surface.

The next day Sarah ignores Charlie again and gives a necklace Charlie's mom gave her away to another girl. Enraged, Charlie lashes out by attacking the girl.

At the end of the school year, Sarah comes to collect her things. They sit on Charlie's bed while Sarah taunts Charlie about being an abuser playing a victim and reveals plans to move to Paris with another friend.

Charlie cracks under the pressure and pushes Sarah; she hits her head on a drawer. Sarah climbs back up, laughs, and Charlie, overwhelmed, suffocates her with a pillow.

When Charlie's mother returns home, Charlie apologizes and says 'She is upstairs' before having a panic attack. Her mother goes upstairs and screams upon finding Sarah's body.

Charlie manages to slow her breathing and looks directly into the camera before the scene cuts to black. The film ends on a haunting, unresolved note.