“One more game," somebody behind her said, and somebody else said, "But who's going to be It?”

“But Mary-Lynnette was thinking. Of course she'd like to find somebody who would accept her completely, who would share everything with her.”

“Listen to me," he said, and to her dismay he stepped closer. "When I first met you," he said, "I had no idea you were one of us. How could I? But I knew that you were different than that phony friend of yours. Not just another pretty girl, but somebody special.”

“If somebody had said last week that I'd be in... involved... with a human, I'd have knocked his head off. I mean, after howls of derisive laughter. But.”

“He turned the haggered, haunted face on her and said, "I want you to stop it.""Whatever you're doing....to try to make me like Pilar, it has to stop. Because it's not fair to her. She's upset right now because I'm acting crazy. But I don't want to be with her. It's you I love. And if you want to get rid of me, then tell me, but don't try to foist me off on somebody else.”

“Okay," Caroline said. She didn't sound as frightened as everybody else. That was the advantage to having no imagination, Bonnie thought. You couldn't picture the terrible things that were going to happen to you.”

“Looks like Faye's doing a little extracurricular activity," a voice behind her murmured, and Cassie turned gratefully. Nick nodded at the guy who was occupying the seat there, and the guy scrambled up and left. Cassie hardly noticed the occurrence, it was so common. The kids from Crowhaven Road indicated what they wanted, and the outsiders gave it to them. Always. It was the way things worked.Nick sat in the vacated chair and took out a pack of cigarettes. He opened it,shook one forward. Then he noticed Cassie.Cassie was staring at him with her eyebrows lifted, her best Diana expression on. Disapproval radiating from her like heat waves."Ah," Nick said. He glanced at the cigarettes, then at her again. He tapped the protruding cigarette back into place and tucked the pack in his pocket."Bad habit," he said.”