With a grunt of disgust Willie turned and ran. As the weakness of sex and the helplessness of young ladyhood had not yet had time to settle down upon her, Margery promptly ran after him. She was as good a runner as he was any day, so he was mightily mistaken if he thought he was going to get away by running. After a few moments he seemed to realize this, for he drew up, panting, and, with a change of tactics, turned a smiling face to Margery.
"Do you want to spend your nickel, Margery?"
Did she want to spend her nickel? What a question! Did he suppose she wanted to punch a hole in it and hang it around her neck?
"Of course I want to spend my nickel! And I want to spend it myself, too. I don't want no one else to spend it for me."
Willie lounged up to the window of a bakery shop.
"Jiminy, those cakes do look good!" He turned to her blandly. "Say, Margery, do you want me to buy some cakes?"
"No, I don't want you to buy some cakes! All I want is my nickel."
Willie sighed, and went back to the cakes. The longer he looked the hungrier he became. He sighed again.
"I just guess I'll have to buy some cakes—that's all there is about it. You can wait out here for me, Margery."
But Margery did not care to wait for him outside. Bakery shops sometimes have back doors that let out on little alleys. So Margery said: