After the mysterious disappearance of his father, Joventino, the cowboy José Leôncio becomes a wealthy farm owner in Pantanal. Over twenty years have passed and, bitter-hearted because of his father vanishing and the escape of his wife to Rio de Janeiro with his baby, José Leôncio has the chance to make amends with the boy, now a young man raised in the big city with very different values and habits than his own.

The story begins with the ambiguous relationship between friends Viola and Luma, who seem predestined to literally enter each other's lives. Born on the same day, in very different situations, they meet years later, united by coincidences that go beyond their birthday. From humble origins, Viola moves with her boyfriend Mavi to Angra dos Reis, where Luma lives a luxurious life and dates Rudá, who ends up meeting Viola by chance. Thus begins the duo's journey, which goes from a passion for recipes to an obsession with the same man, from the immediate connection to the point of starting to live their friend’s reality, 10 years later. A journey divided between complicity and rivalry, which includes them in a love quadrangle and is impacted by a series of circumstances, twists and surprises, such as the secret surrounding a murder.

Malhação is a Brazilian television series for the teenage audience. The soap started in 1995, and was set in a fictional Gym Club called Malhação on Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro. Through the years the location varied slightly. Although the name of the soap remains the same, it is now set in the Múltipla Escolha High School.