Ulises arrives in Dénia, a coastal town near Valencia, to teach literature. He rents a room at a local hostel and immediately falls in love with Martina, the landlord's daughter as he sees her hanging up her clothes on the clothesline. A local businessman by the name of Sierra is also in love with her but she resists his advances. Martina invites Ulises to see the Son de Mar, a yacht on which a film had been made years before, when she was 13 years old. Her dream is to purchase it when she becomes rich. They soon become friends and Ulises recites the Aeneid for her, and she is enthralled by the story of Dido and Aeneas. The quote she is most infatuated with is: From the depths of the calm sea, two serpents surface. Above the waves their crista and chest emerge, the rest of their bodies under the surface. One of them holds me and suffocates me with the double ring of her love. And I try to escape from the knot her body makes. Enchanted by his romantic quotations, amidst the scenery surrounding Valencia, she falls in love with Ulises and gets pregnant. They marry and have a son, Abel. One day Sierra invites the couple to a party, at which Ulises feels attracted to a woman in a red dress. The next day, he goes out on his boat to catch a tuna for Martina. During a storm, his boat is found, but he disappears. Presumed dead, a funeral service is held for him.