This is romantic comedy, set in 1984, of a neurotic young man, Everett S. Porter, who is recently divorced and living in an old walk up building in New York City. He falls in love (from afar) with a beautiful Hispanic woman named April who lives in the building across the alleyway; for all appearances, she is involved in an abusive relationship with her boyfriend, Hector, who goes by the name of Mexican.

He meets a beautiful black woman, Janet, an aspiring writer who lives in the next building. As they become closer and more involved, he realizes that he really loves and seriously lusts after April. One night he intervenes when her boyfriend, Mexican, is supposedly beating her up. He is terrified that the man will come after him and has a severe panic attack.

April is grateful for his efforts and gradually breaks up with her boyfriend and becomes involved with Everett. She reveals to him that her relationship with Mexican was not really abusive, that they played roles to turn each other on.

Strangely, a turn of events brings Everett and Mexican together. They form a friendship and Mexican becomes involved with Janet. Unhappily Everett discovers that April has major drug problems as well as sexual abusive fantasies that he cannot satisfy. They break up. Janet has her first book published and she and Everett drift back together as do Mexican and April.