The story begins by following a hairdresser named Vimbai, who works at the best salon in town (Mrs. Khumalo's). Around the town, she is known to have an attitude and do what she wants, which often results in people not liking her very much. This comes to an abrupt halt when there is a new hairdresser in the salon, named Dumisani, who is incredibly talented. He makes Vimbai look rather poorly for her entitled attitude. However, he is a kind man, and despite his incredible success, he still is very nice to Vimbai. He soon becomes manager, and in a gesture of goodwill, she invites him to live with her. She is rather cash-poor and could use the financial support, despite wanting to be careful of Dumisani's intentions.
They strike up a close friendship that doesn't become physical, and Vimbai is fine with that. After a time, he takes Vimbai to a family wedding, and she is shocked at the degree to which she is welcomed. She finds out that Dumisani was estranged from his family due to his sexuality, and they consider Vimbai a "remedy" to his "condition." They welcome him back, thinking he is straight again.
However, she does not understand the concept of gay or straight until she reads his diary and finds out that Dumisani is attracted to men. She reacts badly and is rather bigoted towards him. This is revealed to be because she has reluctantly fallen in love with him. The book ends with Vimbai coming to terms with Dumisani and his sexuality, and finding a way to coexist with him as he figures out how to live as a gay man in a bigoted society.
