On a Sunday toward the end of winter, as the church bells toll, a penniless young man named Heo Wuk (Shin Seong-il) goes to meet his beloved Ji-yeon (Jeon Ji-yeon). She is pregnant with his child, but he has no financial means to raise a family. He turns to his friends in order to get money for Ji-yeon's abortion, but they all reject him. Desperate, he steals money from one of them and runs away. The doctor tells him that Ji-yeon is sick and recommends an immediate abortion. After Ji-yeon goes into the operating room, Wuk leaves the hospital and heads to a bar. He meets a woman at a saloon and the two of them wander from one watering hole to the next. Inebriated, Heo makes love to the woman at a construction site, but comes to his senses when the sound of bells strikes his ears. He rushes to the hospital, only to learn that Ji-yeon has died on the operating table. He goes to her father to convey the tragic news, but is turned away at the door. He is caught by the friend whom he stole from and is beaten. His face covered in blood, Wuk runs through the darkened streets, remembering the happy moments he shared with Ji-yeon.