 Patty Vare has a secret she is hiding. And after the police come to her door asking her questions, she tries to leave the area on her horse. But she falls off her horse and is knocked unconscious. She is later found by John Baker and two other boys that go to the nearby prep school. John and Patty develop a relationship, and in this relationship John finds a way to leave his verbally abusive father and the school that he hates.