FISHBOWL follows Natalie Song (17) as she returns home with her childhood friend, Joanne Cheng (18), to celebrate Chinese New Year at the Cheng household. Navigating festivities that were once inviting but now seem tinged with a foreign animosity, Natalie finds herself trapped between the burgeoning attraction she feels for Joanne and the unnerving attention placed upon them by both their families. Behind coded pleasantries and the gifting of an innocent goldfish as unwitting accomplice, Joanne's ever-perceptive mother, Deborah, blackmails Natalie into ending her flirtation with Joanne. Natalie drives back to school the next morning, contemplating Deborah's unspoken ultimatum.