"Mahalia Harris wants. She wants a big Sweet Sixteen, like he best friend, Naomi. She wants the super-cute new girl, Siobhan, to like her back. She wants a break from worrying -- about money, snide remarks from white classmates, pitying looks from church ladies... all of it. Then inspiration strikes: It's too late for a Sweet Sixteen, but what if she had a coming out party? A singing, dancing, rainbow-cake-eating celebration of queerness on her own terms. The idea lights a fire in her, and soon Mahalia is scrimping and saving, taking on extra hours at her afterschool job, trying on dresses, and awkwardly flirting with Siobhan, all in preparation for the coming out of her dreams. But it's not long before she's buried in a mountain of bills, unfinished schoolwork, and enough drama to make her English lit teacher bluch. With all that responsibility on her shoulders, Mahalia wonders if her party will be over before it's even begun.