One summer, Giulia and Cristina meet as children. The pragmatic and rational Giulia is quickly captivated by Cristi, who seems fragile and hardly speaks. The younger girl awakens feelings in her that she never knew she possessed. She is all the more horrified when a strange boy, Mattia, captures Cristi's attention. Equally jealous and desperate, she watches the growing closeness between the two. The relationship with Cristi remains a balancing act. Even as a young woman, Cristi repeatedly disappears from Giulia's life—and remains silent. Giulia has long known that her friend feels a stronger connection to Mattia. Not wanting to lose her completely, she allows Cristi to make a lonely and fatal decision in a perilous situation. Only years later, when they all reunite in their childhood home, does Giulia realize her mistake.