Wealthy Gregg and his wife, English teacher Julie, were happy parents until their little boy Robby was stolen while she took a bath. Their lives have taken off again, but they keep hoping and feeling guilty. Fifteen years later, when Julie is pregnant again, the high school principal appeals to her educational idealism to take under her wing Jesse, a boy who is gifted as a mechanic and artist, but can barely be convinced to keep in school by his single devoted and devout mother Esperanza, who is sick and such a bad provider he has to steal. They alternate between getting on and clashing; Jesse even breaks in to steal a ring from Julie for his girlfriend Nilda.