teenagers booking hotel room; credit card; extreme weather by Lake Eerie
time/place: Ohio, USA, 2010, winter/spring
googled: hotel+teenagers, hotel+age policy, credit card+auxiliary, ohio+geography
situation: two sixteen year olds, one male, one female, (they're not boyfriend and girlfriend, but they're both straight with UST all over the place) are on what was meant to be a one-day trip, but some kind of extreme weather/natural disaster means that it would be dangerous to drive home, and they're stuck for the night. Since it's not a good idea to sleep in the car, they decide to get a hotel room. Problem is, all my research says that you can't get a hotel room if you're under 18, and need a credit card. However, the girl's an adored only child of rather liberal parents (they trust her to stay home alone frequently) who know about the trip and who she's with.
1) is it possible that she could have credit card for emergencies, if her parents asked for it from the company? Would it have her father's name on it, or hers?
2) If it was her father's name, could she use it to pay for the hotel room at all, or would the clerk need to call her father to check that it was okay? (either could work, but I need to know if I have to write the phone conversation)
3) even with the credit card, could they still check into a hotel, given that they are both 16? (I could give the boy a fake ID, if really necessary, but it wouldn't match the name on the credit card) On the other hand, the natural disaster's drastic enough that warnings have gone out on the radio, and these two aren't the only ones checking in unexpectedly, so it isn't an obvious booty call. Would they need to find a dive that accepts cash, or could they manage a 2- or 3-star place? (I can make the town small enough to only have one hotel, if necessary)
4) this is supposed to take place in a small town on the banks of the Ohio border of Lake Eerie. Would a really bad storm be enough to keep my characters in the town overnight? Is any other kind of extreme weather likely, or do I need to invent some kind of disaster on the main way out of town?
googled: hotel+teenagers, hotel+age policy, credit card+auxiliary, ohio+geography
situation: two sixteen year olds, one male, one female, (they're not boyfriend and girlfriend, but they're both straight with UST all over the place) are on what was meant to be a one-day trip, but some kind of extreme weather/natural disaster means that it would be dangerous to drive home, and they're stuck for the night. Since it's not a good idea to sleep in the car, they decide to get a hotel room. Problem is, all my research says that you can't get a hotel room if you're under 18, and need a credit card. However, the girl's an adored only child of rather liberal parents (they trust her to stay home alone frequently) who know about the trip and who she's with.
1) is it possible that she could have credit card for emergencies, if her parents asked for it from the company? Would it have her father's name on it, or hers?
2) If it was her father's name, could she use it to pay for the hotel room at all, or would the clerk need to call her father to check that it was okay? (either could work, but I need to know if I have to write the phone conversation)
3) even with the credit card, could they still check into a hotel, given that they are both 16? (I could give the boy a fake ID, if really necessary, but it wouldn't match the name on the credit card) On the other hand, the natural disaster's drastic enough that warnings have gone out on the radio, and these two aren't the only ones checking in unexpectedly, so it isn't an obvious booty call. Would they need to find a dive that accepts cash, or could they manage a 2- or 3-star place? (I can make the town small enough to only have one hotel, if necessary)
4) this is supposed to take place in a small town on the banks of the Ohio border of Lake Eerie. Would a really bad storm be enough to keep my characters in the town overnight? Is any other kind of extreme weather likely, or do I need to invent some kind of disaster on the main way out of town?