A third-year Ph.D. candidate named Olive Smith is enmeshed in the complexity of contemporary relationships and scientific study within the prominent biology department of Stanford University. Olive is a pragmatic with a scientific mindset who thinks long-term romantic partnerships are just an anomaly in statistics. Anh, her closest friend, is an infatuation with romance and yearns for her own happily ever after.

Olive reluctantly agrees to assist her friend by pretending to be in a romantic relationship with Adam Carlsen, a renowned and imposing professor who is disdainful of Ph.D. students and has harsh grading standards, when Anh starts to develop feelings for Olive’s recent ex-boyfriend, Jeremy. But Adam has his own motivations for going along with this ruse; he wants to boost his reputation and get funding for his studies.

Olive and Adam are drawn to each other’s wit, intelligence, and enthusiasm for science as they begin their fictitious romance. They start dating more frequently, going to social gatherings, and even planting a passionate kiss. There is unquestionable electricity between Olive and Adam, even though at first they both reject their developing affections for one another.

Olive and Adam struggle to keep up the pretence despite their developing attraction as their fictitious relationship develops. Their relatives, friends, and coworkers confront them, doubting the sincerity of their relationship. Anh is initially overjoyed by the fictitious relationship, but when she sees Olive showing real interest in Adam, she starts to get suspicious. Adam’s classmates and coworkers don’t believe that he’s suddenly turned into a sweet and considerate partner.

Adam and Olive’s love for one another grows despite the increasing strain. They develop a strong bond that transcends the confines of their fictitious relationship as they share private moments and confide in one another about their own troubles. They discuss the nature of love and wonder if it’s something that just happens or if it may be developed over time. Olive and Adam must choose whether to live a falsehood and accept the repercussions, or to embrace their actual feelings and risk the truth about their fictitious relationship coming to light. Will they follow tradition and try for something real, or will they give in to social pressure and continue their charade?