Part 1.

It had been weeks since Carmen had runaway.  She'd discovered a sad truth.  People, even grown-ups, especially grown-ups, don't want to get into other people's business.  Carmen attended school, knowing an education was her way out.  She kept a lower profile now and hoped the teachers didn't question the non-attendance of her Uncle at parent conferences.  Or the fact that she had basically been wearing the same clothes for nearly a month now.

Carmen showered at the local gym.  Which had a community focus and a surprisingly open door policy.  She picked up change where she could for the laundromat.  

She had a light jacket, a less-and-less white t-shirt, jeans (in decent condition), a pair of black shorts, a singlet or two (which could double as tank tops in a pinch), socks, underwear and her good shoes.

She did her homework, borrowed books from the library.  In fact, she relied on the library almost as much as she relied on the gym.  At night, Carmen slept in the tent, off the road.

She salvaged a chilly bin and a camping chair she found abandoned in a nearby trailer park.  

She made a firepit with stones.  Precious money went to matches, a lighter and occasionally sausages to roast on a stick over the flames.

Other food sources included the vending machine at the gym.  It dispensed ham and cheese sandwiches which, while lacking in freshness and flavour, at least filled a hole in Carmen's empty stomach.

Carmen lived this way.  Constantly on the move.  Concerned about strangers.  Fearful of her Uncle sending the authorities to find her.  She'd left a note implying that if he pursued her, Carmen would make sure the police knew exactly what he had done and wanted to do...
It would have to be enough.

And as the weeks went by, it seemed there was no Amber Alert, no manhunt.  This was both good and bad, causing Carmen to feel both relieved and abandoned.  And still Carmen would alternate between the park, the library and the solitude of her campsite -in order to attract less notice.

Sometimes other kids from the school hung out in the park.  Carmen would run into Sofia, a rich girl with blonde hair who liked to gossip and (luckily) didn't have much time for Carmen most days.  Or, Luna, who was becoming a friend and had too much going on in her own big family to worry about Carmen's lack of one.

Then there was Johnny.  Johnny was exactly the kind of boy Sofia did not approve of.  Frequently scruffy.  Often barefoot.  Johnny carried around with him an air of "good enough" or maybe "just enough".  A lot of days, Johnny didn't make it to school.

Carmen liked him despite all that.  Maybe her own circumstances made her sympathetic.  Maybe Johnny was one of the only boys who didn't look away almost immediately, once they noticed it was her in her messy ponytail and same old jeans.  Maybe Johnny had the nicest smile Carmen had seen.

School was big on self-directed learning and inquiry.  Especially for the seniors.  Progress was proved through projects.  So, Carmen would be found at the library reading up on electrics, or even basic robotics.  Then assembling some kitset that had been provided to her, supplemented with bits she'd been able to recycle.

Often the whole thing had to be packed up and taken back to the campsite for completion.  Carmen dreamed of the day, not too far off, when she would graduate high school and be able to spend her time more productively.  Not to mention comfortably.