Taming the Star Runner by S. E. Hinton

was.
    â€œTravis doesn’t have a beard,” Christopher said.
    He did recognize her right away. Fairly tall, forty at least, wearing a bright red cowboyish dress, dark blue boots, carrying a dark blue briefcase-looking bag. Ms. Carmichael had long, wild, wiry black hair, pulled back at one side with a piece of turquoise, and large black eyes. She was the most glamorous person Travis had ever seen. This was style!
    As she looked around the crowd he stepped out and waved at her.
    â€œTravis?” She put out her hand, and after a second he shook it.
    â€œYeah,” he said, then he could have bitten his tongue off.
That
word again.
    â€œNell Carmichael.”
    â€œThis is my uncle,” Travis added.
    â€œKen Harris.” Ken shook her hand too. “And this is Christopher.”
    Christopher said, “I have to pee.”
    â€œOh, dear,” said Ms. Carmichael. “I do too. Let’s go find a john.”
    Travis wished he could die, quickly and painlessly, right then and there, but Ken laughed and they walked down the hall together.
    In the john he combed his hair carefully, for the hundredth time that day. Maybe he should have worn his olive-green long-john shirt. Maybe black was too … old? Tough?
    â€œDo I look okay?” he asked Ken, who was trying to hold the water on, and trying to hold Christopher up to wash his hands, at the same time.
    â€œYou look fine.”
    Travis was dying to know what Ken thought of Ms. Carmichael, but they trooped back out to wait for her in silence.
    Ken and Christopher left them at the restaurant entrance, much to the relief of Travis, who was expecting Chris to announce he wanted to do poo, too.
    But after they were gone, he felt tongue-tied. He didn’t know any small talk, and was scared he’d have to do some before they got to talking about the book.
    â€œYour uncle is a very attractive man.”
    Travis shrugged. Ken probably did look good for as old as he was, but he didn’t have any clothes style. Suits to work, jeans on weekends. Today he’d put on his corduroy blazer, and he was nothing to be ashamed of.
    Travis looked at the menu, relieved to see hamburgers, wishing he could order a bourbon instead of a Coke. He’d probably end up knocking the damn Coke over…
    â€œAnd Christopher is a darling. Do you visit them often?”
    â€œNaw, this is the first time.” He didn’t know how to explain
that
, so he shut up again. The waiter came and took their order.
    â€œSo,” he said. “You gonna buy the book?”
    Ms. Carmichael looked slightly startled at his directness, and he squirmed a little. There was probably some complicated bunch of rules to business lunches, and he didn’t know them. But he’d stick with what he
did
know, and he wasn’t going to sit here and chat about Ken, Chris, and the nice weather we’re having.
    After a moment she said, “Travis, who do you think would like to read your book?”
    â€œTeenagers. Kids like me.” He was sure they would because
he’d
read it and loved it.
    â€œI agree. We have an extensive young-adult line, books we market directly to young people.”
    â€œYeah, I know.” Travis paused while the waiter set his hamburger in front of him. “That’s why I sent it to you guys.”
    â€œOh, so you’re aware of marketing?”
    Travis wasn’t sure what that meant, so he didn’t say anything. He’d just thought if you had a book about teenagers, you’d try a publisher who did books about teenagers. They sat in silence a minute while she poked at her salad and he put ketchup on his burger.
    â€œDo you hang out in bookstores a lot? Do your friends?”
    â€œWell, I do, but most of my friends don’t.”
    â€œHow do they get introduced to books?”
    â€œI don’t know—school, I guess. We have to do book reports. The library. Sometimes if we see a movie and