Running with the Demon by Terry Brooks

Robert muttered under his breath. A scowl twisted his narrow lips.
    “Go on,” she told Cass, glancing at her shoes. “I’ll be along in a minute.”
    Cass kept moving as if that had been her plan all along, and the other three dutifully followed. All of them drifted on for about twenty feet and stopped. Nest held her ground as Danny Abbott approached. He was big, strong, and good-looking, and for some reason he had a thing for her. A high-school junior in the fall, he was two years older than she was and convinced he was the coolest thing in jeans. A few months ago, at a Y dance, flattered by his interest, she had made the mistake of letting him kiss her. The kiss was all she wanted, and after she experienced it, she decided she wasn’t that interested in Danny Abbott after all. But Danny couldn’t let it go. He began to talk about her to his friends, and some of the stories got back to her. Danny was saying he had gotten a lot further with her than he had. Worse, he was saying she was anxious for more. She stopped having anything to do with him, but this just seemed to fuel his interest.
    He strolled up to her with a confident smile, the big jockcoming on to the impressionable little groupie. She felt her anger build. “So what’s happening?” he asked, his voice slow and languid. “Catch anything?”
    She shook her head. “Not much. What do you want?”
    “Hey, don’t be so prickly.” He brushed at his dark hair and looked off into the distance, like he was seeing into the future and taking its measure. “I was just wondering why I hadn’t seen you around.”
    She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, forcing herself to look at him, refusing to be intimidated. “You know why, Danny.”
    He pursed his lips and nodded, as if thinking it through. “Okay, I made a mistake. I said some stuff I shouldn’t have. I’m sorry. Can we drop it now? I like you, Nest. I don’t want you pissed off at me. Hey, why don’t you stick around while I finish this game, and then we’ll go out for a burger.”
    “I’m with my friends,” she said.
    “So? I’m with mine, too. They can go their way and we can go ours, right?”
    He gave her his most dazzling smile, and it made her want to say yes in spite of herself. Stupid, stupid. She shook her head. “No, I’ve got to get home.”
    He nodded solemnly. “Okay. Maybe tomorrow night. You know what? There’s a dance here at the park Sunday. The Jaycees are putting it on. Want to go with me?”
    She shook her head a second time. “I don’t think so.”
    “Why not?” A hint of irritation crept into his voice.
    She bit her lip. “I’ll probably come with my friends.”
    He gave a disgusted sigh. “You spend a lot of time with your friends, don’t you?”
    She didn’t say anything.
    He glanced past her and shook his head. “Why do you hang out with them, anyway? I don’t get it.” He was looking right at her now, facing her down. “It seems to me you’re wasting your time.”
    Her lips tightened, but she still didn’t say anything.
    “I don’t mean to be picking on them or anything, but just think about it. They’re weird, Nest, in case you hadn’t noticed.Barbie Doll, Big Bertha, Joe Space Cadet, and Bobby the Mouth. Weird, Nest. What are you doing with them?”
    “Danny,” she said quietly.
    “Hey, I’m just trying to make a point. You’ve got a lot more going for you than they do, that’s all I’m saying. You’re one of the best runners in the state, and you’re not even in high school! You’re practically famous! Besides, you’re a cool chick. You’re nothing like them. I really don’t get it.”
    She nodded slowly. “I know you don’t. Maybe that’s the point.”
    He sighed. “Okay, whatever. Anyway, why don’t you stick around.”
    “Hey, Danny, you’re up!” someone called.
    “Yeah, in a minute!” he shouted back. He put his hands on her shoulders, resting them there casually. “C’mon, Nest. Tell me you’ll stay