Aside from the frequent earthquakes, not much happens in Francisca's hometown of Tocopilla on the edge of the Atacama Desert. The 19-year-old dreams of exploring the world, even if it's only to the next largest city. The only thing keeping her in Tocopilla is her little brother Diego, whose autistic traits are becoming increasingly worrying for the family. He does not speak and only expresses himself in pictures. His new teacher Fernando is very ambitious and takes a liking to Diego. He suggests to Francisca's family that the boy could benefit from extra tutoring in the form of one-on-one lessons. When Francisca meets the attractive Tato, her hopes of leaving the city seem to come true. But for Tato, this flirtation is just one of many. Francisca is disillusioned and follows her mother's advice: “You need to get back out among people, have fun and gather new ideas.” She plunges headlong into an adventure and fails to notice that her brother is getting worse. When she finally returns home, Diego has disappeared.