Jesse, a 16-year-old aspiring model, does her first shoot with photographer Dean. She meets makeup artist Ruby and shares that she recently relocated to Los Angeles from her small hometown in Georgia after the passing of her parents. Ruby then introduces Sarah and Gigi, two older models who are curious about her physical appearance and her purported previous sexual experiences.

Jesse gets signed by modeling agency owner Roberta Hoffman, who instructs her to pose as a 19-year-old and refers her to a test session with renowned photographer Jack McCarther. Hearing that youthful Jesse's photoshoot was a success makes Gigi and Sarah envious. Sarah is present as Jesse attends a casting call for clothing designer Robert Sarno. Sarah receives little attention from Sarno, but Jesse captures his focus. Devastated Sarah queries, “How does it feel to be the person everyone looks up to?” When Jesse says, "It's everything," Sarah lunges in her direction and accidentally breaks Jesse's hand on the glass. Sarah sucks the blood from her hand. Jesse returns to her motel, where she collapses and experiences abstract hallucinations.

Sarno selects Jesse to wrap up the fashion presentation, which irks Gigi. Jesse experiences self-reflections and strange triangle shapes as she closes the show. After the show, Gigi and Jesse discuss cosmetic surgery at Sarno's fashion show. A noticeably altered Jesse heads to a pub with Dean, where Sarno disparages and contrasts Gigi's surgically improved appearance with Jesse's inborn beauty. Jesse, who is now adopting a narcissistic character, resists Dean's attempts to depart after finding the talk to be uncomfortable.

Lecherous motel owner Hank forces Jesse to sexually swallow a knife in her nightmare. Someone fumbling with her door latches awakens her. While the intruder enters the adjacent room and assaults the thirteen-year-old female resident, she hurriedly locks the door and is left to watch. She contacts Ruby in her fear and asks her to send Jesse to her house. 

When Ruby makes sexual advances toward Jesse, Jesse rejects her and admits that she is a virgin. Ruby then goes to work at a mortuary as a cosmetologist, where she enjoys herself with a female corpse.

When Ruby gets home, Jesse is now openly narcissistic. When Jesse runs into Sarah, Gigi, and Ruby, they chase her and make her fall into a large, empty pool. Then, armed with knives, the women approach. They all take a bath in Jesse's blood after they have butchered and eaten chunks of her body. It is made clear that Ruby has mysterious tattoos. She then lies in Jesse's unmarked grave while still undressed. 

The following day, Sarah and Gigi go to one of Jack's photo shoots featuring Annie, a different model. Suddenly taken with Sarah, Jack dismisses Annie. Gigi becomes suddenly ill during the shoot and flees from the location. Sarah observes as Gigi throws up one of Jesse's eyes. She shouts, "I need to get her out of me," with sorrow as she stabs herself in the chest with scissors. Sarah returns to the shoot after eating the eyeball that was regurgitated after watching Gigi pass away.