Oliver Watson has never been luckier: he is a successful advertising executive, shares a marriage of eighteen years with Sarah, and has three loving kids: 17-year-old Ben, 15-year-old Melissa, and 9-year-old Sam. His perfect life suddenly falls apart when his wife Sarah announces that she wants to enter a graduate school 200 miles away from home, as she regrets that she gave up her bohemian protester's life and promising writing career to become the wife of a conservative traditionalist. A devastated Oliver tries to prevent her from going and even offers to move with her, but Sarah has made up her mind: she will enroll in college and does not want any company. The children are just as displeased when they find out about their mother's decision, for which Ben and Melissa hold their father responsible. They start acting out as a reaction, which mostly affects Ben. Instead of attending classes and getting good grades, he spends most of his time with promiscuous teenager Bobbi Carver, whom he impregnates. Meanwhile, Oliver unsuccessfully tries to save his marriage, until Sarah announces that she is seeing someone else. Meanwhile, his mother's health is worsening, and after months of being kept alive through machines, his father George decides to pull the plug. At the funeral, Sarah shows up to reveal her plans on filing for divorce. Feeling that his life has no purpose there anymore, Oliver accepts a job in Los Angeles. Melissa and Sam move with him, but Ben stays behind with Bobbi and their newly-born son Alexander. In California, Oliver falls in love with Charlotte Sampson, a successful actress in a popular TV series who dreams of a Broadway career. After a short romance, during which she also connects with the children, they become engaged. However, when she is offered a role on Broadway, Oliver fears the past will repeat itself. Rather than seeing his partner slip away due to a long distance relationship, he breaks off their engagement. Meanwhile, Bobbi has suddenly left Ben and took Alexander with her. Desperate, Ben turns to Oliver, and together they fight successfully for sole custody. Afterwards, Ben visits Charlotte, and finds out that she has rejected the Broadway role. Although she is still mad at Oliver for cutting her out of his life, she agrees on visiting him, and they reconcile in the end.
