When Penny wakes up, the truck has stopped again.
She decides her best bet is to get off it for now, and maybe get some food, because even with the snacks she'd had the night before she's starving.
She carefully gets off the truck, and finds a rest stop. It's not just trucks this time either - there's a few cars too, and a store. Perfect.
She walks into the store, grabs a few snacks, and heads to the checkout counter. While the guy is ringing her up, she tries to say in her most casual voice, "Hey, my mom got a little lost and we thought this rest stop would be a good place to regroup. She went to the bathroom and sent me to grab snacks. Anyway, we're not 100% sure where we are, can you help us?"
The cashier gives her a slightly strange look, but nods and says, "I could tell you, or I could sell you a map so you don't get lost again."
"How about you show me where we are on the map so that my mom and I know where to head next?"
He chuckles and grabs a map from behind the counter, adding 30 cents to her total. Once she's paid and everything has been bagged, he opens the map and points. "See this town? It's called Danvers. It's about 30 miles thataway. Where are you heading, by the way?"
Penny stares at the map. Boston pops out at her. "Boston. Guess we just got turned around and ended up passing it by mistake. I think we can figure out the way from here. Thank you!"
She hurries out of the store and heads towards the cars. Hitchhiking is a thing, right? She can convince someone to drive her to Boston.
There are about a dozen cars parked in the lot. She dismisses a few out of hand - too rapey - and eyes a minivan with a woman who has a tween and twin younger kids, around 8. Maybe she'll be sympathetic? Now Penny just has to come up with a story. Luckily, she's pretty good at those.
She's just sort of standing there, thinking, trying to come up with something believable, when the woman spots her and carefully comes over.
"Hi. I'm sorry for just… approaching you like this, but you seem a little lost. Do you need any help?"
Penny stares for a moment, opening and closing her mouth. It cannot be this easy. It can't. Her Parker luck shouldn't allow it. And yet…
"What are the chances that you're going to Boston?"
The woman lights up. "We're headed there now, actually! Visiting my eldest at MIT. Would you like a ride?"
Penny gapes. "You'd just offer to drive a strange teenage girl to Boston with no questions?"
"Well, how old are you?" The woman asks reasonably. "Because you look pretty young, but so do I. I don't exactly look like I have a kid in college, do I?" Mutely, Penny shakes her head. This woman looks mid-thirties at best. "I assumed you were actually a baby-faced 20 year old who decided hitchhiking is a good idea. But now that you say teenager…"
"I'm 18," Penny blurts. "I actually just turned 18 like 2 weeks ago and I was going to stay until I had more saved up but I couldn't and I have a cousin in Boston and I know she'd be willing to take me in for a few weeks until I can get settled but I kind of hitchhiked on a truck and now I'm here and I'd actually really appreciate a ride, thank you."
The woman smiles kindly. "I understand. My best friend did something similar the summer after we graduated high school. I can get you to Boston no problem. My name is Elizabeth, and these are my idiot children Olivia" she points to the tween "who is 12, and Rachel and Josie who are 8." Olivia notices being pointed at and jogs over, while Rachel and Josie are arguing fiercely enough they don't even notice their mom and sister are gone. "And my son is Peter, at MIT. He's 19."
Olivia arrives by then, and glancing between them, asks, "What's going on?"
Elizabeth gestures to Penny. "She would like a ride to Boston. She's pulling an Aunt Ruth."
"Cool," says Olivia, seeming unconcerned. "I'm Olivia, but Mom probably already told you that. What's your name?"
Penny starts. "Oh, yeah, I haven't introduced myself, have I? I'm Penny. Wait - shit - wait no I can't swear you're twelve - crap I should have thought of a fake name. Damnit. Don't repeat that," she points at Olivia. Olivia holds up her hands, clearly amused.
Elizabeth interjects then. "Well, Penny, it's very nice to meet you. Why don't we introduce you to the twins, and then we can head off."
Penny agrees, and the twins badger her with questions about high school, since "Peter's a jerk and he would never tell us anything". Penny spends the car ride surprisingly enjoying herself. She tells Elizabeth to drop her off at the Public Garden, saying her cousin, Teresa, will be waiting for her.
(Her one flaw has always been coming up with names on the spot. Only she would use her unborn sister's name for her fake cousin. She wonders if this counts as sacrilegious or something.)
Elizabeth asks to enter her contact info into Penny's phone, but she claims it died and she hasn't really had a chance to charge it. Elizabeth scribbles down her name, number, and son's number and says to call if she needs anything. Penny thanks her profusely.
When Penny gets out of the car at the Public Gardens, she starts walking with purpose, knowing that it will make her seem less suspicious if she knows where she's going. She glances back to see Elizabeth's car still there, so she keeps walking until it's out of sight, before sprinting away.
That night, she finds a clean-ish, dry rooftop and settles in for her first real night of homelessness.
She can handle it.