THE NEW WORLD: Bela Molnar («Willie»), originally Hungarian, has lived in New York for the past ten years. Eva Molnar, his sixteen-year-old cousin, is just arriving in the U.S. to begin a new life and is forced to stay with Willie before travelling to Cleveland. During this period Willie’s preconceptions of Eva slowly change, and it is only as she is leaving New York that Willie is able to see her in her true light: a «black sheep» of the family, similar to himself. ONE YEAR LATER: Willie and his best friend, Eddie, are caught cheating in a poker game. On a whim, they decide to take their «winnings», borrow a car, and visit Eva who is now living with the stern and stubborn Aunt Lotte in the harsh mid-western winter.

After several days, Willie and Eddie want to leave again. PARADISE: Willie and Eddie decide to «kidnap» Eva and take her to Miami for a vacation in «Paradise». Once in Florida, the three stay in a run-down motel by the sea. From here on, things begin to fall apart: Willie and Eddie lose almost all their money at the dog races, Willie begins to treat Eva badly again, and everything seems to go wrong. Confusion builds as Eva considers returning to Europe, Willie and Eddie win their money back, and Willie attempts to get Eva off a plane departing for Budapest.