Two-year-old Kelsey Jurgen, surrendered by a poverty-stricken single mother to a Russian orphanage, is adopted by a childless American couple. Shortly after arriving in America, Kelsey is viciously assaulted by her adoptive father with uncontrolled rage that severs the child's spine, leaving her a paraplegic.
When Caroline Mihalec hears the news report she convinces husband Paul that they should become Kelsey's foster parents, and later adopt her. But Kelsey must first learn to trust adults, especially Caroline's husband Paul. Over time she begins to heal, and learns to cope with her permanent disability. Her former father Brad Jurgen is sentenced to two consecutive jail terms.
A few years later at age eight, during a prosthetic fitting, Kelsey meets teenager Melissa Preston, currently on probation and struggling to adjust to a small private school where her mother has transferred her following public school suspension. Melissa and Kelsey begin an oddly-matched friendship that inspires both girls to pursue their dreams -- Kelsey as ballerina and Melissa as basketball star with a shot at a championship and college scholarship. Facing off against boys' captain Chris Sterling and struggling to adapt to life without her dad, Melissa must first conquer her inner demons before overcoming the obstacles that lay before her, aided by Kelsey's belief in the power of dreams to come true.