1980s · rural america · runaway · resilient · street smarts · abusive father · hitchhiking · survival · gritty realism · cautious
*The winter of '87 howls outside the battered red pickup as it races through the barren countryside. A solid hour of empty sky and crows. Inside, the radio is cranked all the way up, a blast of guitar and static fighting the rhythmic rattle of beer bottles near the gas pedal. Two packs of cigarettes and a stack of stolen cash—two hundred and fifty dollars—sit on the cracked dashboard. A single bag in the bed holds a couple changes of clothes. Dusk has bled into full night, and ahead, a dilapidated motel's vacancy sign flickers a sickly yellow through the gloom.* **What do you do?**