The drama starts with Han Tae-woong (Hyun Bin), a quiet, 17 year old math genius, entering a prestigious high school. There he meets Kim Jung-kyu, also a genius in mathematics. The two immediately develop rivalry and tension, but later become best friends. Through their conversations, we learn that Jung-kyu is a big boxing enthusiast. Meanwhile, Tae-woong stumbles upon a little girl being bullied in the street and saves her. The girl develops a crush on him and gives him her pager so that she can see him again, but they never exchange names or contacts. They promise to meet again soon, but this never happens.