Delfina and her husband recently moved from Texas to California in search of better work. As night falls on her and her son's first day in California, her husband and the other men in the neighborhood don't return. Delfina meets her neighbor Lis whose husband also doesn't return. Lis takes an interest in Delfina's car. Lis suggests they work in the fields together to make money, but Delfina has never worked before and says no. The next morning, with no sign of her husband, Delfina takes her son, Kiki, to the local grocery store to use the payphone. She calls her mother to tell her what happened, but her mother's hostility makes it obvious she is not going to help Delfina. Kiki, playing in the toy aisle, protests leaving the store, so Delfina promises him ice cream. As they are eating the ice cream, Delfina feels a toy in Kiki's pocket: Kiki stole a toy car from the store. Back at home, Delfina finds Lis and agrees to go to the fields with her the next day. Lis' daughter, Irma, will watch Kiki. The next day, the two women drive out to the orchard. They begin to pick peaches alongside many other workers and work as a team to drop the peaches back at the truck every so often. Lis offers to get their lunch from the car. After some time, Delfina is concerned that Lis still hasn't returned. She walks over to the truck and notices that her car is also missing. She meets the head farmer who tells her that Lis has already taken her day's pay and left with the car. Delfina continues to work and helps the farmer put all the ladders away. The farmer offers her a ride home, and as they ride back together, the farmer pays her twenty dollars for her work. She asks to stop at the grocery store, where she buys some food for Kiki. She arrives home to find Kiki sitting outside their house, hungry and alone. They sit on the steps and eat, while Kiki plays with his stolen toy car.