We Were Young Once

The story starts 12 years earlier when a carefree six-year-old, Tracy, is given a book of 50 principles by her father that is to make her the "finest human being in the world". Among the principles are "never lie, not even white lies" and ominously "live for the moment to die bravely".

Tracy grows up abiding by those principles without fail. But she also grows to be an extremely attractive female, with a pair of eyes that are uniquely faintly orange.

When it comes to tattoos, Tracy's generation no longer is into skin tattoos but instead into skilfully woven shirt tattoos. And this generation of teenagers invoke retro images, such as those of James Dean and Marilyn Monroe, as "their sources of being". Tracy's shirt tattoos are portraits of her father and 1920s silent-film star, Clara Bow.

When her father dies and she separates from her mother, Tracy moves in with her aunt and enrols in a school for the forsaken. The school is ruled with an "iron fist" by the Gang of Seven, girls no less than five feet 10 inches tall and stockily built, who keep an eye on Tracy to see if she is a threat to their "natural order of things".

Tracy makes friends with Deneela, Tabatha and Samantha. Tabatha falls in love with Tracy, while Deneela exploits Tracy's looks to gain access to a higher lifestyle they otherwise couldn't afford.

Nearly every night, the four 18-year-old girls reward themselves by visiting Sydney's number one tourist complex, Darling Harbour.

Though poverty-stricken, they have fun due to Deneela's skill in exploiting Tracy to gain entry to posh restaurants and to make money by offering Tracy to the public for kisses.

Tracy shows unusual care for the beggars along Darling Harbour's main walkway. Tabatha discovers Tracy's father's book, has it photocopied, and, upon reading it, comes to the realisation Tracy is the book — she lives its 50 principles.

One afternoon at school, Tracy is ambushed by the Gang of Seven. On the verge of being beaten with knuckle dusters, the leader becomes conflicted, not knowing why. But to save face in front of her gang, she feigns boredom and leaves Tracy alone.

Also, things take a turn when Tracy first sees George at the school. George has saved her life from an attacker, but immediately left her without as much as giving an explanation, his name or asking for hers. Whereas most are in awe of Tracy's beauty, George is immune to it. In response, she goes awry: the one person in the world she would love to be attracted to her, isn't. Tabatha brings them together when she meets with George and finds he cares for her but as he is searching for the killers of his parents — and because he sees himself as a "train wreck about to happen" — he doesn't want Tracy "on board".

Tracy and George have somewhat drunken fun together and it appears he is giving up on revenge to seek Tracy's love instead, until one of his parents' killers confronts him, with Tracy alongside. A fierce struggle ensues and Tracy is shot and killed saving George's life.

Nine years later, Tabatha introduces her six-year-old daughter to Tracy's grave site, whereupon she burns the book of principles so that it doesn't fall into her daughter's hands and risk she may meet the same heroic fate Tracy has.

However, her daughter finds the photocopies of the book, which Tabatha has forgotten about. The six-year-old finds reading the photocopies enthralling.