Selah and The Spades 2020

Selah Summers is a senior at the prestigious Haldwell Boarding School in Pennsylvania, where she leads a drug-dealing faction known as the Spades. In a stark contrast to the school’s other four factions—the Sea, the Skins, the Bobbies, and the Prefects—the Spades have yet to nominate a successor for Selah as she approaches graduation.

As the authoritative figure of the Spades, Selah has orchestrated a highly efficient operation alongside her loyal ally, Maxxie. However, everything changes with the arrival of a new student, Paloma. Upon capturing Selah in action during Spirit Squad practice, Paloma’s keen insight and impressive skills catch Selah’s eye. Selah quickly assigns Paloma to photograph her rival Bobby—the leader of the Bobbies—cheating on her boyfriend with Two Tom, the Prefects’ leader, thrusting Paloma into the tumultuous dynamics of the factions. Selah sees a reflection of herself in Paloma and decides to mentor her as the future head of the Spades.

Things take a dark turn when Tarit, from the Sea faction, warns Selah of a potential traitor within her group. Meanwhile, a confrontational call from Selah’s mother demands her return home, where she is reproached for ignoring a college acceptance letter. Her mother recounts the cautionary tale of The Scorpion and the Frog, hinting at her awareness of Selah’s darker inclinations that may need to be curbed.

Back at Haldwell, Bobby confronts Selah regarding a botched drug order. As Selah investigates, she discovers that Maxxie was negligent, allowing the rat to pilfer the Spades’ ledger. In a fit of rage, Selah interrogates the traitor and coerces Paloma to mete out punishment.

The school’s Headmaster declares the cancellation of the prom due to rampant misconduct. In an emergency meeting filled with tension, Selah and Bobby engage in heated accusations until Paloma proposes an alternative: a secret prom off-campus. The factions, momentarily setting aside their differences, agree to collaborate on this underground celebration.

In a private moment, Bobby warns Paloma of Selah’s dark past involving her previous protégé, Teela. Bobby reveals that Selah drugged Teela, leading to a car accident and her subsequent expulsion. When Paloma questions Selah about Teela, she is met with evasion and silence.

As the night of the underground prom unfolds, Selah slyly slips pills into a bottle of alcohol and presents it to Paloma, who subsequently succumbs to nausea and becomes unresponsive. Alarmed, Selah seeks Maxxie for advice on the pills, leading both of them to worry when they realize Paloma is missing. They find her disoriented in the woods, and in a dramatic turn of events, she nearly falls from a cliff’s edge. With urgency, Selah and Maxxie pull her to safety, adding another layer to the complicated web of loyalty and betrayal that defines their lives at Haldwell.