Stefan and Tanya arrive in a miners' settlement. They register as a married couple at the hostel, but Tanya admits to the house managers that Stefan has a wife but has started divorce procedure. The two have fled from the scandal. Stefan starts work at the mine and she waits for him in the hostel with little to do. Her mother arrives. Unable to swallow the humiliation of having been rejected by Tanya's family, Stefan gets drunk. When he comes back, he starts a row and has to be restrained. Stefan takes offense, leaves the mine, parts with Tanya, and becomes a waiter in the pub. Soon he obtains a divorce. He wants to take Tanya back to his native town. She refuses to give up her new friends and the steady job she has found. Stefan sets out alone. At the very last moment, he jumps from the bus...