In the movie, David Rice is a teenager living in a small Michigan town with his abusive father, Will. School is David's escape from his troubled home life, and he has a secret crush on his classmate, Millie Harris. David gives Millie a snow globe with a miniature Eiffel Tower, which she loves. However, the school bully, Mark, throws the snow globe into the frozen Huron River. David, determined to retrieve it, falls through the ice and is dragged underwater. Instead of drowning, he suddenly finds himself in a public library.

Confused, David tries to ignore the strange event and returns home, where his father immediately starts yelling at him. David, distressed, locks himself in his room. When his father tries to break in, David vanishes from his room and reappears at the library. This experience leads David to realize that he might have a unique and supernatural ability.