Telly Paretta (Julianne Moore) grieves the loss of her son, Sam (Christopher Kovaleski), who died 14 months prior in a plane crash. She holds regular vigils in his undisturbed bedroom, visits his grave, and meets with a support group for parents who lost their children to accidents, though her husband, Jim (Anthony Edwards), wants to move on. Returning from work one afternoon, Telly finds Sam's room completely empty of his things and redecorated with new furniture. Furious, she confronts Jim for trying to forget, but her husband Jim shocks her with a counteraccusation: he tells her that she's delusional and that they have never had a son. Hurt, Telly begins reaching out to friends and acquaintances to confirm Sam's existence; however, her friend Eliot (Jessica Hecht) doesn't appear to believe in Sam's existence despite her closeness to him. Looking for concrete evidence, she visits Dr. Munce (Gary Sinise), her OB/GYN; he confirms that she was pregnant, but that she miscarried and "Sam" is her delusional fantasy about how her life would have been different if he had lived. He recommends that she be sent to a hospital, but she runs away.