When retired English teacher Deirdre Dunstable suffers a stroke, her world implodes. Once feisty and independent, she finds herself trapped and vulnerable in an aged-care facility. 
Deirdre finally manages to convince one of the carers to help her leave. A young Tamil asylum seeker, Selva has escaped from a regime far more brutal than that of the care home.
Terrified at the prospect of being returned to the care facility, and fearing that she may be resuscitated against her will, Deirdre and Selva try to navigate the last stages of her life and the beginning of a new life for him.
 
Sharing past traumas, they come to understand that ‘It is only in the shelter of each other that the people live’.