Carol Bucklen, an unusually bright middle school student, lives with her brother and sister in Manchester, Alabama, her parents having been killed in a collision with a drunk driver. Her older brother, Bobby, works at Manchester University to support his siblings.
Carol befriended Bart Allen shortly after he came to Manchester, though she initially had serious problems with him. He always seemed to be running off to do crazy things in what seemed to her to be bids for attention. And whenever he did something stupid, his excuse was even more inane. As they became friends, she kept trying to convince him he didn't need to be a glory-hound, not realizing (at this point) that both his risk-taking and lame excuses were part of his secret superhero identity.
The turning point in Bart and Carol's friendship came when Bobby was framed for stealing an artifact on display at the university. Carol found it in her brother's briefcase, and, believing the worst, ran off with it to keep her brother from being found out and taken from her and her sister. Bart found Carol and helped her rediscover her faith and trust in her brother. The case was resolved, her brother exonerated, and from then on the two of them were the best of friends.
Carol was also the only one of Bart's circle of friends who figured out his dual identity, something that even Preston, the other member of the trio, never figured out. Carol and Bart shared secrets, plans, even an accidental first kiss (followed immediately by hysterical laughter).
Eventually, Carol and Bart began to realize they felt more than friendship for each other. Just as their relationship was entering a new phase, Carol was snatched away.
