The Messenger

After his father's suicide, young Jack discovers he can see and talk to souls who haven't yet gone into the light. The ability arrives suddenly and isolates him from his family as he struggles to understand these visitors. The event marks the beginning of a lifelong burden that shapes his life.

As Jack grows older, the restless spirits begin to ask him to become their Messenger, delivering their final words to the living. He finds himself at funerals and in public spaces, where his honest messages often spark anger, confusion, or pain. The burden becomes a recurring, unwanted part of his days.

He tells himself he isn’t acting from generosity but to rid himself of the hauntings, though the relief never lasts until the task is completed. The people he tries to help rarely thank him, and the consequences damage his reputation. The hauntings distort his sense of safety and belonging.

Flashbacks reveal that Jack spent years in psychiatric clinics and hospitals, and he has been skimping on his prescribed medication. The combination of drinking and instability fuels the chaos in his life. These memories underline why his gifts feel uncontrollable.

A present-day soul, Mark the reporter, explains he was murdered in a staged suicide and asks Jack to reach out to his widow Sarah to say goodbye. He also reveals that the baby growing inside Sarah isn’t his. The revelation drags Jack deeper into a dangerous emotional trap.

Jack delivers the goodbye message to Sarah, hoping to ease the tension between the living and the dead. Her distress grows, and the situation leads to police involvement and questions about Jack’s credibility. The encounter proves how dangerous and destabilizing his gift can be.

Jack is taken to a psychiatrist where he must recount his life; through therapy he learns his father might not have killed himself because of his mother, but that his own bitterness colored his memory. The session marks a turning point as Jack begins to confront the truth. The psychiatrist remains skeptical about the supernatural aspect of his powers.

Right after he accepts help, Mark returns and urges Jack to assist Sarah, who is overdosing. Jack initially resists but is overwhelmed and finally begs everyone to send help. The moment tightens the bond between Jack’s trauma, his power, and the lives at stake.

Sarah is saved by emergency responders, and Jack is sedated and taken away. The harrowing incident reinforces the seriousness of his abilities and the costs of acting on them. The line between help and harm remains thin for Jack.

The psychiatrist remains skeptical, but the constable and Jack's sister Emma begin to believe in his powers. Emma brings him a crystallized bug globe, a memento of their father, which becomes a symbol of acceptance and a sign that Jack may not be alone in this burden.

With growing support, Jack starts to move on from his father’s death, crying and accepting help. The sense of isolation that defined him begins to lift as family and friends stand with him. He starts to see a possible path toward healing.

Meanwhile, Jack's nephew Billy also sees lost souls and reveals he is haunted by the ghost of a boy who drowned in his family's swimming pool. The pattern of haunting widens the family’s awareness of the unseen world. This motif sets up a larger, unresolved mystery.

The story ends with Billy reappearing alongside the ghost, while Emma discovers a newspaper clipping detailing the death of a boy in her swimming pool. The clue ties the supernatural events to a real tragedy connected to the family. The ending leaves the implications of Jack's gift lingering in the air.