I. Little
In Liberty City, Miami at the height of the crack epidemic, Afro-Cuban drug dealer Juan finds Chiron, a withdrawn child who goes by the nickname "Little", hiding from a group of bullies in a crackhouse. Juan lets Chiron spend the night with him and his girlfriend Teresa before returning Chiron to his mother Paula. Chiron continues to spend time with Juan, who begins to teach him the basics of life, from which he believes Chiron can benefit.
One night, Juan encounters Paula smoking crack with one of his customers. Juan berates her for being addicted and for neglecting her son, but she rebukes him for selling crack to her in the first place; all the while, they argue over Chiron's upbringing. She implies that she knows why Chiron gets tormented by his peers, alluding to "the way he walks" before going home and taking out her frustration on Chiron.
The next day, Chiron admits to Juan and Teresa that he hates his mother and asks what a "faggot" is. Juan tells him it is "a word used to make gay people feel bad." He tells Chiron there is nothing wrong with being gay and that he should not allow others to mock him. Chiron then asks Juan whether he sells drugs and whether his mother does drugs. After Juan remorsefully answers yes to both questions, Chiron leaves as Juan hangs his head in shame.
II. Chiron
Now a teenager, Chiron balances avoiding school bully, Terrel and spending time with Teresa, who has lived alone since Juan's death. Paula, who has turned to prostitution due to her worsening addiction, forces Chiron to give her the money he receives from Teresa. Chiron's childhood friend Kevin tells him about a detention he received for being caught having sex with a girl in a school stairwell. Chiron later dreams about Kevin and the girl having sex in Teresa's backyard, waking with a start. One night, Kevin visits Chiron at the beach near his house. While smoking a blunt together, the two discuss their ambitions and the nickname Kevin gave Chiron when they were children. They kiss, and Kevin gives Chiron a handjob.
The next morning, Terrel manipulates Kevin into participating in a hazing ritual. Kevin reluctantly punches Chiron until he cannot stand, watching as Terrel and other boys savagely attack him. When the principal urges him to reveal his attackers' identities, Chiron refuses, saying that reporting them will not solve anything. The next day, an enraged Chiron walks into class and smashes a chair over Terrel's head before being restrained by classmates and a teacher. Chiron is arrested and leaves the school in a police cruiser while Kevin watches.
III. Black
A year and decade later, now going by the nickname "Black", an adult Chiron deals drugs in Atlanta. He receives frequent calls from Paula, who asks him to visit her at the drug treatment center where she is living. One morning, Kevin calls and invites him to see him should he ever come to Miami. While visiting Paula, Chiron breaks his silence. His mother apologizes for not loving him when he needed it most and tells him she loves him even if he does not love her back. The two tearfully reconcile before Paula lets Chiron go.
Chiron travels to Miami and visits Kevin at his workplace, a diner. When his attempts to probe Chiron about his life result in silence, Kevin tells him he has had a child with an ex-girlfriend and, although the relationship ended, he is fulfilled by his role as a father. Chiron reciprocates by talking about his unexpected drug dealing and asks Kevin why he called. Kevin plays "Hello Stranger" by Barbara Lewis on the jukebox, the song that made him think of Chiron.
After Kevin serves his friend Chiron dinner, the two of them go to his apartment. Kevin tells Chiron that, although his life did not turn out as he had hoped, he is happy, resulting in Chiron breaking down and admitting that he has not been intimate with anybody since their encounter years ago. As Kevin comforts him, Chiron remembers himself as Little, standing on a beach in the moonlight.
