A Fighting Choice

Plot

Kellin Taylor, a sixteen-year-old with epilepsy, has gone five months without a seizure and now visits the nation's most praised doctor. His twice-weekly appointments with Dr. Tobin have caused him to neglect his schoolwork. His parents are disappointed, especially since they were thrilled months earlier when Kellin could enroll in a regular high school for the first time. To improve his grades, he is assigned a student tutor, Susie Fratelli, and he immediately falls in love with her.

Despite his shyness, Susie takes a liking to him and invites him to jog with her the next morning. These new adjustments trigger another epileptic seizure that night. The next day, Susie is initially upset that he did not show up for jogging, until Kellin reluctantly tells her about his epilepsy. She is not scared off, as he suspected, and they grow even closer.

Dr. Tobin worries about Kellin's seizure, realizing the drugs no longer have any effect on him. He tells Kellin's father Thad that an experimental brain surgery could be the only solution, but Thad fears its dangers and opposes it. Kellin finds out about the possibility through a letter and gets mad at his parents for not informing him. Unlike his parents, Kellin is interested in the operation and continues proceedings without their support.

He considers suing his parents for independence, which would let him decide for himself to have the operation. When Thad and Meg find out they are being sued, they contact an expert who informs them that although the operation could stop the seizure, other seizures could make a way. Kellin's attorney Virginia Hagan advises him to move out of the house during the trial. The trial and its press attention tear up the family, prompting Kellin to listen to Virginia and move in with her, even though he feels guilty that all this affects his little brother Harvey.

The case causes Thad to be transferred from work, and Harvey feels ignored by his parents. Kellin starts having second thoughts about surgery and has his first epileptic seizure in front of Susie. At trial, Virginia calls Eli Rhodes, a former epileptic patient who underwent surgery successfully. Kellin is inspired by his story and now wants to continue the operation.

During the final stages of trial, he becomes intimate with Susie for the first time. Judge Rosenstiel decides to give consent to the operation.

Even though Thad and Meg are disappointed with the outcome, they give up their personal war with their son and decide to support him during surgery. The surgery proves difficult and lasts five hours, but a successful outcome results. Kellin awakes, surrounded by his family and girlfriend.