Thirteen-year-old Tessa faces more than the usual tribulations of adolescence. When bad times hit, she and her mother Christine find themselves living on the streets. The injustice of poverty is emphasized through the contrast with Tessa's schoolmates, the children of very wealthy parents. The only way to fit in is by lying amidst the gorgeous and expensive trappings of their Santa Barbara community. A portrait of cruel contradictions as seen through the eyes of a young teenage girl as they desperately save for first, last and deposit so they can have a home again.