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A troubled inner-city teen finds her life turning increasingly volatile after learning a devastating secret about her mother, and making a new friend who challenges her view of the world. Monique Matters (Terri Abney) is a 14 year old girl who answers to the nickname "Money". Her mother Pamela (Aunjanue Ellis) is hardly a role model, and try as she might Money still feels like an outcast at the Catholic school she attends. To cope with the confusion of adolescence and dysfunction, Money writes poetry. But she doesn't dare share her writing with anyone else. Meanwhile, Pamela attempts to force religion on Money, who begins to share her frustrations and fears with a local girl but finds their relationship becoming unexpectedly complicated. When Pamela reveals that she is dying of HIV, Money realizes that she must act fast if she is ever to learn the truth about her real father.