The sun shines over an open garage in Burkina Faso’s capital, where Bintou is lacquering a car door. She is attending a feminist-initiated education centre for women who have been ostracised by society. The centre aims to strengthen these women’s independence by teaching them a profession traditionally reserved for men – that of the car mechanic. Bintou isn’t sure this is the vocation for her, but she has a four-year-old daughter and the school is a way to secure income. In the shade outside, Chantalle waits her turn. A good student, she is proud of her future profession, but the disappearance of her mother triggers recurrent panic attacks and the school is now her only refuge. During their last year at school, Bintou and Chantalle and their friends become increasingly complex and mysterious, drawing us deeper into the large and small choices that will shape their lives.