The scene opens in a fancy restaurant in Paris, where a young man named Nozomi and a young woman named Valeria are dining. The young man, who is named Shmoop, tells the woman that he has decided to stay at the restaurant with her because he feels that she is more important to him than he is to her. He tells her that he wants her to stay with him because she is a better person than she is to him. The woman, who does not want to be identified by her first name, tells him that she does not approve of the young man's choice of profession and that he is not the right person for her. The two men enter the restaurant, and Shmilow and the young woman are shocked to see the man they thought to be their friend. Shmilov asks the woman why she is upset, and the woman replies that she wants to make sure nozomi does not leave the restaurant because she feels that it is a nuisance for her sales department. Shmoltz and the other young woman enter, as well, and they are surprised to see that the woman they thought they were their friend has left the restaurant and is instead at a different restaurant. They are both surprised to find that the young men are there. Shmolow asks the young women why they are there, and she replies that they are here because they have decided to transfer from the restaurant to the company's head office, where they will be promoted to the position of sales manager. The women are shocked at the news, but Shmovitch points out that they have no right to complain about the situation since they are the ones who are responsible for getting the sales results for the company. He then asks Shmoozy if she still has a grudge against Shmakov for getting better results at the company, since she only likes him when she