Petra and Lutz are in love with each other and have their dreams and ideas about life. Petra is 18 years old and a student at a company school. Lutz works as a fitter and hopes to be deployed on site in Cuba or the Soviet Union. But Petra surprises her boyfriend in his career plans with a message: She is expecting a child from him. However, this forces the girl to make a difficult decision that ultimately leads her to ward 23 of the hospital, where she wants to have the child aborted. Before that happens, she is confronted with the problems of other women, and discussions with the ward doctor make Petra think again about the whole situation.