After 14 years in prison, former IRA member Danny is returning to the neighborhood where his first love, Maggie, has managed to survive by marrying, and then raising a son by Danny’s best friend. Ill at ease in the outside world, Danny is imploding from 14 years of seclusion. Cultural taboos and unwritten rules militate against Maggie and Danny. Friends, family and IRA members watch their every move, observing their forbidden glances.

But in the boxing ring, Danny is home. There, the rules provide a structure that the chaotic streets of Belfast cannot, and therefore offer him a way to communicate with dignity and, in the process, rebuild his life. In the midst of turmoil, as Margie realizes she has never stopped caring for Danny, they begin to steal brief moments together — exchanging a look, a word, a touch. In a world where violence is a way of life, the most dangerous thing they can do is fall in love.