Hélène, an anesthetist working in Biarritz, is driving home one night and nearly hits a pedestrian, Gilles Tisserand.

The two go for a coffee and end up spending that night at a diner so that she can file a report, but Gilles has fallen in love with her by the next morning.

Unfulfilled and aimless, Gilles has recently come back from a trip to New York, bringing with him a friend he met there, Bernard.

An unemployed aspiring musician and would-be ladies' man whose only real occupation is to enjoy the moment and spend time with his steady girlfriend, Colette, a cheerful post office clerk.

The two friends live for free at the Hotel de la Gare, run by Gilles’ mother and his younger sister, Elise.

Hélène has inherited La Salamandre, a large abandoned house outside of town, where the architect was planning to live.

The house is still in disrepair, but after taking Gilles there he insists she leave the beachfront apartment and move to La Salamandre.

Moving to La Salamandre proves a bad idea; the place is cold and far from town, and living there only complicates the relationship.

Téchiné allowed his actors to improvise during shooting, and this lends the scenes spontaneity and a natural sense of awkwardness.