A young couple searches for the cure for the girl's terminal cancer.

Cayley is still recovering from her father's sudden death when she begins attending a new school. Lonely and depressed, she has sex on the first and only date with classmate Ian Hall. After Ian gives her the cold shoulder, she succumbs to his friend's advances. Soon the school is abuzz with rumors about Cayley. With help from a guidance counselor, Cayley begins to change her behavior, but one night Ian approaches her expecting sex. When she rejects him, he rapes her. Now, Cayley's reputation is a roadblock to proving Ian's guilt.

A small group of friends experience relationships which grow and stumble, involving everything from straight, gay, lesbian, and bisexual relationships. The speed with which these relationships last leads to the Goldfish memory effect, the belief that a Goldfish only has a 3 second memory is a metaphor for the transient nature of the characters relationships.