In the mid 1980's, in Madrid, the Torres brothers are both in love with Virginia (María Valverde), their best friend and neighbor, a young idealist who aspires to become a famous journalist. The eldest, Juan (Antonio Velázquez) is a noble and temperamental young man who dreams of making a living as a professional boxer, but his impulsive nature often gets him in trouble. The younger brother, Alberto (Álvaro Cervantes), is an intelligent and seductive young man with unbridled ambition who is willing to do whatever it takes to reach the pinnacle of power. 

An unexpected turn of events separates the brothers, and Juan (Antonio Velázquez) is forced to flee the place where he grew up and move to Vigo, where he lives estranged from his family and develops a strong social conscience that leads him to embark upon a career as a labor organizer. All the while, Juan also seeks the love and affection he is missing now that he is far away from the two most important people in his life: his brother and Virginia (María Valverde). At the same time, after his brilliant academic performance at university, Alberto (Álvaro Cervantes) joins an exclusive circle in which money and power are everything. Although, at first, Alberto feels like a silent observer in this exclusive milieu, his ambition soon leads him to rub elbows with highly influential people and he becomes a successful entrepreneur with links to the public works construction industry. Despite his marriage to Pilar (Aura Garrido)--the daughter of a prominent banker--, Alberto is still in love with Virginia (María Valverde).  

After enrolling in the School of Journalism, Virginia (María Valverde) comes into contact with the cultural elite of the 80's and Madrid’s "Movida" cultural movement. She begins her career as a journalist working in a modest magazine; but, thanks to her ambition, by the 1990’s she has become an intrepid war correspondent. As far as her personal life, Virginia is a single mother and the multiple sacrifices she is forced to make as a woman leave their mark, and yet these sacrifices are necessary if she is to realize her dream of becoming a world-famous journalist.  The one thing Virginia can never forget is the strong bond that ties her to her two best friends: Juan (Antonio Velázquez) and Alberto (Álvaro Cervantes).