Seeking to flee his unhappy home life and the bullying he receives at school, 12-year-old Sean takes to the streets, where he soon meets serial runaway Molly.

Sean and Molly continue their search for Molly's old home. They use a badger tunnel to cross a motorway but it starts to rain and the tunnel fills up with water, trapping Sean.

Runaways Sean and Molly befriend an eccentric old man who offers them a lift on his narrowboat, but the mood soon turns hostile when Molly insults him.