On one of the construction sites of Irkutsk, two girls work in a grocery store - Valya and Larisa. Valya is a cashier, she is twenty-five years old. This is a cheerful girl who thinks little about her behavior and lifestyle, for which she earned the nickname Valka-cheap. Her friend Viktor Boytsov, the same age as Vali, introduces her to Sergei Seregin. Seregin is a master machinist on a walking excavator. Victor is his first assistant, an electrician.
Victor promises Vale to go to the cinema, and then to dance, but since the boss, Stepan Egorovich Serdyuk, gives him the task of fixing the excavator, Victor asks Sergey to go with Vale instead. After the movie, Valya and Sergey are sitting on a park bench and talking. Valya says that she wants to be like Carmen - since such a wonderful opera was written about her, that means she cannot be a negative hero. Sergei tells Vale that he was already married. To Valin, the question of the reason for the divorce answers that, apparently, “they did not need each other's help. Not real, then there was love. ” Valya says that she would really like for true love to exist, because one thing is scary.
While they are talking, two guys come up to the bench and begin to insult Valya. Sergey hits one of them in the face. Valya asks Sergey for forgiveness and runs away. The action is transferred to the shore of the Angara. Larisa and Valya drink beer and talk. Valya tells her friend that she received a letter from an unknown person. It was written there that a person lives not in vain and not in vain. From his work, everything should get better. Happiness cannot be experienced alone. Comes Victor. Larisa leaves them alone. Valya tells him that she was going to get married - if only for him. He in response says that it would be funny, they are so good.
Dorm room for girls. Vali's birthday. She invites Victor and Sergey. However, she doesn’t speak to Sergey about why the guests are going to meet with her. Victor is glad that Sergey will be. He "did not smile" to spend the evening in the company of two girls. Sergey advises Victor to marry Val. He replies that he is reluctant to bind himself.
At the table, Valya reads aloud letters from the unknown, including where the unknown asks her to marry him. Valya says that he’d better marry Victor, but he backs away from her. Then Sergey admits that he wrote letters and that he would never have said this if Victor had not retreated from Vali. Valya kicks Victor out. He promises to remember this.
Victor begins to drink, skip work. He asks Sergey to leave Valya, but Sergey loves her and Victor refuses.
At a wedding with Vali and Sergei Laris, he meets Serdyukov. Victor gives Valeya a little ring as a keepsake and runs away.
Time passes. Vali and Sergey had twins - Fedor and Helen. Sergei advises Vale to go to study, and then work. He believes that for happiness a person needs his work to be at least a little better than himself.
Thirtieth of July. A very hot day. Sergey takes a towel and goes to the Angara to plunge. On the way to the river, he meets a boy and a girl who join him: the children go fishing.
Meanwhile, Victor comes to Vale. He still can not forget her and is very suffering. Valya loves Sergey. Suddenly their friend Rodik comes and talks about the fact that Sergey drowned. The boy and girl who fished turned over on a raft. Sergey saved them at the cost of his life.
After the death of Sergey, his whole team decides to work for him, and give the money to Valentina. Against one Victor. He believes that this should humiliate Valya. Valya, however, accepts the money. Then Victor accuses her of dependency. He loves Valya and wants her to preserve human dignity. He tells her the same thing that Sergey once said: that she should go to study and work. Calls her to change them. Valya agrees. It seems that a new feeling for Victor is emerging in her, although she is in no hurry to admit it. Sergey’s voice wishes Viktor a happy journey in life.
