The Queer East

Chezziel, 18 grows up in Awada, Eastern Nigeria, under the shadow of his father Lammore’s wealth and rigid traditions, dubbed The Almighty Sterling. In a conservative town where queerness is a crime, Chezziel’s softness draws Lammore’s wrath—beatings, church deliverance under Pastor Eugene, and therapy aim to “fix” him. His mother and sister Juliet offer quiet support, but Lammore’s shame peaks when Chezziel rejects childhood friend Iris’s advances, which was orchestrated by his ever-loving mother in an attempt to rekindle his desire for women. Facing relentless torment, Chezziel flees to Lagos with Juliet’s help, boarding a bus with Conny, a sharp-tongued sex worker, and Jennifer, a devout UNN student with visions.

The journey derails when bandits shoot their bus, crashing it into a valley. Kidnapped to Crocodile’s Pit—a rotting hideout—Chezziel, Conny, and Jennifer face Mallachar Jho, a ruthless gang leader, and his crew: Jaeg, Blade, Axel, Triple D, and Thunder, a captive pickpocket. Jho demands ransom contacts, killing non-compliant Boyle. Chezziel lies, claiming orphanhood as Quillon Dahlia, while Jennifer’s faith clashes with Conny’s cynicism. Jho forces Chezziel to make French ransom calls, ferrying him across a muddy river, deepening his moral crisis. Jaeg plots Jho’s death, slipping Jennifer a dagger—she must kill Jho to free them. Conny urges action over prayer, but Jennifer hesitates, torn by faith.

In Jho’s chamber, Jennifer stabs him after he shoots her, dying as Thunder shoots the guard, freeing the captives. Jaeg grabs the ransom money but dies to Thunder’s betrayal—Blade, Axel, and Triple D kill Thunder, splitting the cash. Chezziel and Conny escape through the jungle, reaching the river where an old ferryman—silenced by Jho’s past torture—helps them cross, defying his former master. In Lagos, Chezziel, scarred and resolute, secures asylum at the French Embassy, shedding his old name. As Quillon Dahlia—“a single flower born in adversity”—he gifts Conny a perfected flower sketch, parting as she seeks meaning in Jennifer’s death.

Back in Awada, Lammore’s frantic search yields no trace—police apathy and bribes fail. His wife wastes away in grief, Juliet blames herself for pushing Chezziel to Lagos, and her boyfriend Lorado vanishes. Resigned, they pray for his return, vowing acceptance if he lives. The Queer East charts his transformation from a rejected son to a survivor, set against Nigeria’s anti-queer brutality.