A young Spanish painter flees from the demands of his bourgeois family to Paris, where he finds himself facing nothingness. He has no job, no money, and doesn't know where to go when he meets Michel, a worker in his mid-fifties, whose vitality fascinates and attracts him. They fall in love, and Michel takes him in, into his apartment, his bed, his life. At first, they are simply happy and enjoy their time together, the nightly strolls through the bars, and the weekend outings in the bright Paris, the cinemas, the exhibitions, the parks. But eventually, the canvases stacked in the corner of the shabby backyard room remind the young man that he has other ambitions. The age, education, and class differences also become apparent, and love cannot overcome these differences, especially when it is as possessive as Michel's.