Tart

In 1984, Cat Storm navigates the social pecking order at an elite Manhattan prep school. Her mother is strict and distant, her father is absent, and her younger brother is a hypochondriac, setting a tense home life. Cat's world begins to orbit around the school's social scene and the expectations that come with it.

Delilah Milford is expelled for drug possession and Cat begins to look for a new ally. She befriends Grace Bailey, an English exchange student who introduces her to a different social circle. The two form a bridge to the popular crowd, shaking Cat's previously insulated world.

Grace helps Cat break into Peg's high-brow party circuit, where the crowd trades gossip, alcohol, and cocaine. Kenny, a party member, supplies the drugs to the attendees. Delilah's absence looms as the dynamics of status and risk intensify.

William Sellers, a childhood friend from a dance class, steps in to defend Cat during unsettling gossip about her, attracting her attention. Cat begins to develop feelings for him due to his sensitivity and attentiveness. Their growing closeness becomes a counterpoint to the turmoil around her.

Whispers of jewelry theft run through the apartments, and news arrives that Delilah's father has been arrested for kidnapping. The crowd's judgment shifts toward Delilah and her circle, reflecting the volatile social atmosphere around Cat. The revelation adds personal danger to the glamour.

Cat and William skip school for a walk in the park, where he opens up about his addiction and rough life at home. His honesty deepens Cat's perception of him, encouraging her to trust him despite the surrounding chaos. This moment cements the complexity of their bond.

Cat tells her mother that William has asked her out to Peg's upcoming Christmas party, signaling a shift in her loyalties and the risk this relationship represents. Ms. Storm responds with disapproval, emphasizing her concern about William's delinquent influence. Cat's home life grows tenser as she rehearses the encounter.

At Peg's Christmas party, Delilah crashes the bathroom, defecates in the ice bucket, and leaves in a rage. William pressures Cat into taking drugs, and overwhelmed by home life, Cat drinks too much, blacks out, and ends up having sex with William. In that moment, Cat confesses that her last name is a pseudonym and that her father is Jewish.

The following day Cat returns to her worried mother, who accuses her of borrowing an expensive pair of earrings. Cat storms out, while glimpsing William's impoverished, abusive household through a chance encounter. The home-life contrast intensifies her sense of isolation.

Cat's investigation leads to a jolt: an expensive watch falls from William's hoodie, revealing him as the jewelry thief. She also glimpses his cruel, troubled life and realizes she may have misread him. The revelation leaves Cat isolated from her friends, who begin to gossip about the pair.

Cat tries to tell Grace about William's theft, but Grace shuns her for her choices. Eloise then reveals that William told everyone about Cat and Grace's kiss and about Grace's Jewish lineage. The rumor mill makes Cat a pariah at school, and she struggles to stay connected to Delilah.

Still avoiding her mother, Cat falls asleep in the lobby of Delilah's building and is woken by Eloise, who invites her to The Hamptons. Cat tags along to meet Delilah at a countryside party, hoping to reconcile and find her friend again. They journey toward a new setting where Delilah's fate will unfold.

At a beach party in the countryside, Delilah witnesses Kenny pocketing jewelry and spots William with a male drug dealer, signaling the dangerous web surrounding them. The night spirals as Delilah tries to navigate the emerging betrayal and danger. The discovery foreshadows the tragedy to come.

A confrontation in the woods erupts when William chases Delilah after the party. In a panic, he pushes her, she hits her head on a rock, and Delilah dies as he beats her in a final, devastating moment. His attempt to cover up leads to his arrest.

Delilah's body is found the next morning, and William is swiftly arrested as reporters question the students about Delilah's life and her recklessness. In the aftermath, Cat reconciles with her mother, realizing that her family is there for her even when friends fail. The tragedy becomes a catalyst for Cat to seek stability at home.