“She points at two big steps on the back of her bike. "You have training... somethings? What are they?""Feet platforms. My dad made them for my cousin to use. Step on.""But I don't have a cool helmet with a lightning bolt.""Your head is hard enough.""Funny." I steady myself without touching her."To the train yard," she says and pushes on the pedals. We don't move."Anytime," I tell her. 'You know. While we're still young and beautiful."She pushes hard again. "You weight a ton.""You need me to drive?""I need momentum, that's all. Get off.""You're very charming, but you must hear that all the time.""Get off," she says. "I'll ride, and you run after me and jump on the bike.""Do many guys ask you out twice?""Only the ones with balls.”

“To the train yard,' she says and pushes on the pedals. We don't move. `Anytime,' I tell her. `You know. While we're still young and beautiful.' She pushes hard again. `You weigh a tonne.' `You need me to drive?' `I need momentum, that's all. Get off.'`You're very charming, but you must hear that all the time.' `Get off,' she says.`I'll ride and you run after me and jump on the bike.' `Do many guys ask you out twice?' `Only the ones with balls.”

“I can't tell Beth about me being Shadow. She'd get uptight about me doing something she thinks is dangerous."That's not why you won't tell her. You won't tell her because what's on that wall is what's going on in there." He tapped my head.”

“I can't believe you're still mad at me," Ed says."You grabbed my arse.""You broke my nose.""You broke his nose?" Jazz asks. "You grabbed her arse?""It was two years ago-""Two years, four months, and eight days," I tell him."-and I was fifteen, and I slipped and she broke my nose.""Wait a minute. How do you slip onto someone's arse?"Jazz asks."I meant slipped up. I slipped up and she broke my nose.""You're lucky that's all I broke," I say."You're lucky I didn't call the police."Leo, Dylan, and Daisy slid into the booth. "Did you guys know that Lucy broke Ed's nose? Jazz asks.Ed closes his eyes silently and bangs his head on the wall.”

“What's up with you?" "I'm grounded," I say, just to say something real. "I told Mum to fuck off." He whistles. "Why'd you tell her that? Any other 'off' leaves room for parole. 'Sod off,' 'shove off'—even 'sock off' is still pretty satisfying." "You've told your dad to sock off?" "Once. He said, 'What the fuck is "sock off"? Be a man and tell me to fuck off.'" "So did you tell him?" "No. Because that was the trap. There's never time out for good behavior with 'fuck off.”

“So I saw Beth today. She asked me how you were doing. Sounded like she wants you back.""We were over months ago.""You mind if I ask her out, then?""You mind if I spray a piece on the side of your gran's house?”

“You've been looking like this for months." Leo does something strange with his face."I don't look like that.""Yeah. You do.""I'll look like that if Daisy dumps me, and she'll dump me if she thinks I lied," Dylan says."You threw eggs at her head. Odds are she's dumping you anyway." I turn to Leo. "We decided. We said that we weren't telling anyone. We said it was art for art's sake. We said the more people knew, the more chance the cop's pick us up. We said it was you and me, no crew.""Are you sure I didn't say it was to score girls?”