Anders, a naïve Swedish businessman, arrives in Detroit with the intention of exploring the city and meeting American women. He takes a taxi to the park and meets Lauren, a dark-skinned woman whose race Anders is too inexperienced to discern. Lauren belongs to the Church of the Millennium. She tells him that she, like other members of the faith, does not make big plans for the future. In her apartment, the couple make love. Anders feels a strange euphoric, addiction-like attraction to Lauren, but she insists that he shouldn't fall in love. After she leaves for work, Anders meets Lauren's grandmother, who tells him that Lauren will never marry.
Later that day, the couple meets for dinner, but Lauren steps out halfway through and never comes back. Desperate to find her, Anders goes to the Church of the Millennium, located in the rundown part of town. He is assaulted and robbed. Waking up in the hospital, Anders realizes he cannot stay in America any longer. On the way out, he passes the nursery, where a nurse shows him a sleeping baby. The child's skin tone reminds him of Lauren's.