Rodolfo et Petrita vivent chacun dans des quartiers séparés dans un Madrid délabré, tout en cherchant à avoir un petit appartement . Malheureusement, leurs bas salaires les empêchent d'en acquérir un. Bientôt, les collègues de Rodolfo lui demandent de se marier avec l'ancienne et frêle Doña Martina, qui est le principal locataire de l'appartement qu'il occupe. Selon la loi espagnole sur le contrôle des loyers, il pourrait hériter du bail de son conjoint. Ainsi commencent ses appréhensions et Petrita.
Toni is a seventeen year old young man who comes to Madrid from a little village in search of work. A friend from the same village of Toni puts him in touch with Charo, "La Corea", a mature woman dedicated to facilitating contacts and boys to American men at the military base of Torrejón.
Eduardo, a man about to get married to his lifelong sweetheart, begins having second thoughts about the step he is going to take. His future wife is not one-of-a-kind and, among the wedding guests, there are several women he would not mind spending the rest of his days with. So, while the ceremony carries on, he fantasizes about the lifestyle he could experience with some of them.
Four young men are cited in a kiosk during a rainy afternoon. One has to study and the other three go to the cinema, although they are not allowed to entry because their young age. The group consists of Andrés, who works as bellboy in a hotel and dreams of becoming a bullfighter; Chispa, who follows the orders of an old grumpy man; Carlos, a student; and Negro, a shy boy. All they want is to have fun; but reality forces them to confront the problems of the adult world.