Janet Westermark’s husband returns from an expedition to Mars only to find that he now perceives time three minutes ahead of everyone else. As he adjusts to life back on Earth, Janet and her husband’s behaviorist contemplate the implications of his condition on both their family and the universe as a whole. Without any ability to communicate normally, their relationship grows strained and Janet soon finds herself attempting to defy the future her husband lives in. However, this decision has drastic consequences when her interference nearly kills him, and she is forced to accept that their reality has permanently changed.