Jake’s life takes a sharp turn when his father is arrested and sent to jail, leaving him to inherit a drug business he never asked for. Reluctant at first, he watches as his friend and roommate Alfie plots to push the operation to new heights, chasing power and security in a struggling estate. On a walk home after a deal, Jake discovers Jade, a young girl, on a roof and coaxing her down before promising to steer her away from trouble. He then departs to meet his girlfriend, Kim, only to encounter Jade again, this time with her alcoholic father. When Jake objects to the man’s aggression, Jade’s father sucker-punches him and Jade runs off. The threat to kill if he interferes again hangs in the air.
Back at his council estate, Jade waits at the entrance and he invites her inside. After they watch television, he takes her home and finds her father unconscious; he tries to wake him, and though the father recovers, a rage-fueled attack erupts. In the scuffle, Jade’s father slips and dies from a head injury. Panicking, Jake hides the death from Jade and brings her back to his apartment, where she sleeps, while he collapses on the couch and misses a date with Kim.
When Alfie, Kim, and Kim’s friend Leanne arrive, Jake attempts to explain what happened but is interrupted. Alfie and Leanne drift to his room for sex, and Jake apologizes to Kim, only to be interrupted again by Jade. He tells Kim he’s caring for a relative’s child, and she leaves, unsettled. In the morning, Alfie is furious to discover Jade staying with them and insists she leave to avoid social services. Jake promises to get rid of her, but is drawn into Alfie’s new plan with Flowers, a dangerous figure Jake’s father warned him to avoid.
Jake takes Jade with him as he conducts deals. Despite his orders, she follows him to Flowers’ shop. When Jake tries to back out of Alfie’s arrangement, Flowers threatens Jade. They flee, and Flowers warns that Margate is small and there’s nowhere to hide. Jake goes back to Jade’s house to fetch her favorite toy, only to run into Mary, Jade’s social worker. He tells her he is Jade’s cousin and babysitting for her father, a claim she half-believes. Jade eagerly plays along, claiming Jake is a much better guardian than her abusive father, and they spend a day at the beach, enjoying her favourite activities.
Later, Jake brings Jade to meet Leanne, Kim, and Alfie. Leanne and Kim are happy to see Jade again, but Alfie remains hostile. Alfie reveals ecstasy pills are candy and offers one to Jade, who, despite everyone’s attempts to intervene, takes it. Kim and Jake rush Jade to the hospital. While Jake steps out to call his father for guidance, Flowers seizes the opportunity, abducting him at gunpoint and driving out of town. Alfie, furious, denounces Jake’s plan and laments that Flowers seems like the only way to get ahead.
Flowers soon shows a chilling interest in Jade and invites Jake to join him, but Jake refuses and escapes. Flowers arrives at the hospital first and, after convincing Kim that he is Jade’s father, leaves with Jade. Mary meets with Jake and agrees to hear his side of the story. At the hospital, Jake insists on confronting Flowers alone, giving himself ten minutes to return or call the police. At Flowers’ shop, a brutal confrontation ensues; Flowers’ father, revealing a more complex man behind the brutality, shoots Flowers and then commits suicide. When the police arrive, Jake is arrested amid Jade’s protests, a grim end to a day filled with peril, loyalty, and the desperate bid for control.
