Running Behind

by Sylvia Taekema

  “You know,” Spencer said quietly, “you can run faster if you use your arms.”

  The Ravens runner laughed. “There’s three guys up there,” he huffed. “One of them’s on my team. I won’t catch them. But that’s okay. I don’t need to.” He paused to catch his breath but did not lower his arms. “I just need to stay ahead of you two. That way we won’t be beat by a couple of sissies.”

  Three guys? They were that close? Jake tried to get a view of the trail up ahead. It looked like it widened a little. Hope, mixed with the frustration he felt toward the Raven, made him forget how much his lungs hurt and his ankles ached. Somehow they needed to get past this guy. When the trail opened up they’d be ready.

  Very soon the trail did get wider, too wide for the bully to block them by holding his arms out. He began to swerve from side to side to prevent them from getting by. Jake was growing angry. He wished Coach Dave would pop up along the path right now. He forced himself right up on Spencer’s heels. “There’s only one way to beat this guy,” he panted in a low voice so the black-shirted runner couldn’t hear.

  “What’s that?”

  “Together. We both go at once. He can’t block both sides at the same time.”

  Spencer nodded. “Ready?”

  “When you are.”

  Spencer took a deep breath. “Now.”

  They both raced up behind the Raven. When he swerved left, Jake snuck by on his right. He watched over his shoulder to see Spencer come through. Reflex made the bully swing to the right, and Spencer sped up to surge past on the left. But he didn’t quite make it. The Raven drove back to the left, grabbed the back of Spencer’s jersey and hauled him down. Jake skidded to a stop. The bully shoved him hard as he pushed his way past.

  “You can’t do that!” Jake shouted.

  “Do what?” the Raven called back.

  Jake watched helplessly as the black shirt disappeared around a turn in the trail. He ran to Spencer. He had scraped both hands on the gravel and clocked his chin on a rock in the path.

  “Spencer! Are you okay?”

  “Jake, what are you doing? You were past him. Get out of here. Get going. We’re almost at the finish.”

  “I can’t leave you here.”

  “I’m fine. I’m coming. I just need a second. I’ll be right behind you. Trust me.”

  “I’m not leaving. We have to do something. That guy can’t just—”

  “Jake, you really want to do something? Go catch that guy. I will be right behind you. I promise.” Jake heard a noise in the woods. Runners? He wished with all his heart it was Dave. He tried to peer through the trees. Was that a flash of orange?

  “Jake! This is a race!” Spencer was on his feet now. Blood was dripping from the cut on his chin. He wiped it with his glove. He looked at Jake and nodded. “Go.”

  Jake went. Anger made his throat feel tight and balled his hands up into fists. But it was only partly rage at what the bully had done that helped propel him down that path. It was what Spencer had said that gave Jake the real fuel for a fight to the finish. This was a race. Time to lay it all down. Time to just run.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The trail leveled out and the trees began to thin. At every turn Jake hoped to catch a glimpse of the Ravens runner, but so far he hadn’t seen a soul. He didn’t hear anyone behind him either. Was Spencer all right? It made Jake’s chest ache to think of Spencer not flying across that finish line the way only he could. It just wasn’t fair.

  Jake tried hard to focus. He watched for rocks or roots that might trip him up. Part of him was afraid Spencer wasn’t coming up from behind. Another part of him was afraid the boy in black was hiding somewhere, waiting to jump out at him when he least expected it. Jake forced himself to concentrate on running, counting in his head so that he stuck to a regular, punishing pace.

  When Jake did hear footsteps crunching on the gravel behind him, fear crawled up his spine like a snake in his shirt. He debated whether he should speed up and try to outrun the bigger boy or turn and face him. He didn’t know if he had it in him to go any faster. Jake closed his eyes, then opened them just enough to peer quickly over his shoulder. What he saw made his knees go soft. Spencer! He almost drowned in a wave of relief.

  Spencer pulled up to him.

  “You okay?” Jake asked.

  Spencer nodded. “There’s only one way to do this.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Together.”

  Legs churning, arms pumping, they flew down the path side by side. One hundred yards ahead Jake could see the flags marking the turn into the clearing and the tape stretching along the field to the finish. He saw something else as well. The Ravens runner wasn’t far from the turn.

  Jake’s leg muscles were straining, stretching, screaming. Blood was pounding in his ears as he thundered around the turn beside Spencer. The huge breaths of cold air he pulled in did little to cool the fire in his chest. They were closing in on the black shirt ahead of them, but the finish line was in sight. People along the tape were yelling, clapping their mittened hands. Dig. Dig. Run. Jake’s vision started to blur, but there was no stopping now. The three runners barreled toward the orange pylons that marked the finish. In a flurry of pumping fists and feet they flew across it. The Raven, Spencer and then Jake, barely a step behind.

  Simon was at the line. He high-fived Spencer and Jake so hard he nearly knocked them to the ground. Dave was there too, his eyes as big as medals. “That was unbelievable. I can’t believe that finish. Full tilt. You guys okay?”

  Jake couldn’t speak. He was pointing ahead of him and scanning the crowd for the Raven.

  “Where is he?” asked Spencer, breathing heavily.

  Yes, thought Jake, nodding. The runner in black. They needed to tell Dave what had happened. But he still couldn’t speak. He couldn’t get enough air. His knees wanted to fold. He closed his eyes. He needed to sit down.

  “Is my dad here?”

  Of course. That was who Spencer was looking for.

  Dave grinned. “Your fans are right over here. I’ll show you.” Spencer followed Dave. Jake stumbled after them.

  “Spencer!” a voice called from the crowd.

  Spencer ran. How could he still run? “Dad. You’re here!”

  “You bet. Front-row seats. Not bad, eh?”

  “You’re okay?”

  “We’ve been having a fine time. You weren’t worried, were you?”

  “No…I’m…it’s good to see you.”

  Spencer’s dad grabbed him in a bear hug. “It’s good to see you too. That was amazing.”

  Jake squeezed his way through the crowd and stood panting, hands on his knees. His dad caught him in a headlock and messed up his hair. “Jake! That was some race.”

  “Incredible,” said Mr. Solomon. “Fifth and sixth. In a provincial race. It’s a good thing I saw it with my own eyes or I might not believe it.” He grinned. “You must have been running full out the whole time.”

  “Ah, we had a bit of a rough start.”

  “Oh?”

  “And some trouble partway through.”

  “Well, you sure put in a great finish.”

  “It’s not over yet,” shouted Simon. “Here comes Sam.”

  A runner in a purple jersey crossed the line. Then one in white. Behind them, Sam was battling it out with three others, one in orange, one in black, one in red. “All the way, Sam,” they yelled. “Go, Diamonds!”

  Orange was ahead. Then red. Then silver. They pounded down along the tape. Ten yards to go. Five. Two. Orange was first, but what happened after that was a blur. “Pretty sure Sam was next. Almost positive. That would make him top ten,” crowed Simon. “Top ten! I thought he was nuts when he said he’d shoot for top ten! Man, this is exciting. You guys are leaving them in the Diamonds dust.” He scooped up a bottle of water and ran to find Sam.

  Jake’s dad put a hand on his son’s shoulder. “You okay?”

  “Getting there.” Jake’s voic
e was shaky. His knees were shaky. “It was quite a run.”

  “I’ll bet. Take it easy then. Who are we looking for now?”

  “Shawn.” He scanned the field. “And Tony.” They watched runners come in singly or in groups of two or three. No sign of the remaining Diamonds yet.

  Mr. Solomon was telling Spencer all about the dads’ trip up to Barry’s Bay. He was grinning, and his eyes were bright.

  “So it was a good trip then? Even with the snow and everything?” Spencer asked.

  “It was excellent. We stopped before the snow got too bad. Just took our time. I’m glad you could come up with your team and focus completely on the race. You did so well, Spence. I’m glad.”

  Spencer looked out at the course. He shook his head. His hand was resting on the back of his dad’s wheelchair. He turned to look at Jake’s dad. “Thanks for making the trip up here, Mr. Jarvis.”

  “My pleasure. I wouldn’t miss this for anything. Beats cleaning out the garage. About time we saw some more silver shirts coming home, you think?”

  “Should be soon,” said Jake.

  Spencer grinned suddenly. “Good thing we cleared out all the spiderwebs from across that trail, hey, Jake? Before Shawn came through?”

  His dad looked up at him. “Spiderwebs? What—hey, that’s quite a scuff you’ve got on your chin. Do you need something for that? What happened? Does it hurt?”

  Spencer touched his chin carefully with his fingers. “I think the blood is pretty well dried up. Long story.” He glanced over at Jake. “We’ll tell you about it later. Here comes Shawn.”

  “Which one?”

  “The tall one. With all the hair.”

  “Shawn! Bring it on! Dig, dude, dig!”

  “Hot dog! I bet he’s going to finish mid-forties,” said Jake’s dad as Shawn loped across the finish line. “You guys are on fire.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  The crowd kept cheering, looking for more runners battling down the home stretch. Jake moved in beside Spencer. “We’ve got to tell Coach about what happened out there.”

  Spencer shrugged.

  “That Ravens runner did something dirty. We can’t let him get away with it.”

  “I know, but it’s only you and me who know what happened. We’re both on the same team. He’ll deny it and say I tripped on a root or something and we made up a story. Who’s going to believe us?”

  Jake thought for a moment. “But it’s not fair.”

  “No, it isn’t. But I know what happened, and you know what happened. We almost got him.” Spencer looked at Jake. Then he looked down. “Hey, what’s this?” He pulled a pizza box from a pocket behind the seat of his dad’s wheelchair. “You guys went to Perry’s?”

  “Last night,” said Jake’s dad. “Delicious. You guys should try it.”

  “I forgot that box was still in there,” said Spencer’s dad. “We ate the leftovers for breakfast.”

  “You don’t let me eat pizza for breakfast.”

  “Special occasion.”

  “This is just what we need,” said Jake. “Tell me when you see Tony make the turn.”

  Another orange runner came in. Then white and navy blue.

  “Come on, Tony,” murmured Jake. “Top fifty. It must be getting close.”

  Simon, Sam, Shawn and Dave all moved in behind them at the tape. Jake and Spencer high-fived their teammates and introduced their dads.

  “You okay?” asked Jake.

  “A little wobbly,” said Shawn. “I came in number forty-three. Had all the burners firing at max. And I only bumped my head on a branch once.”

  Jake noticed the red mark on his teammate’s forehead and winced.

  “I guess Sam was in a real big hurry,” Shawn continued. “Someone must have told him one of the prizes was a trip to the Space Station. And I hear you two laid down some solid scores. Easy peasy, just like you said, hey, Jake?”

  Jake looked over at Spencer. Easy peasy didn’t quite describe it.

  “Hope Tony makes it in soon. He’s the anchor.”

  They all looked back out at the field.

  “What’s that?” asked Shawn, pointing to the box in Jake’s hands.

  “Secret weapon,” Jake said with a grin. He showed them the Perry’s logo.

  “Beauty.”

  They waited. For a long while there was no one. Then the crowd erupted once more. A red runner came in. Then green. Yellow and purple made the turn together and made a run for the finish.

  “There,” yelled Simon, pointing.

  A runner in a burgundy jersey had just made the turn. Tony was right on his heels. He stumbled a little taking the corner. He was breathing hard, and he looked spent. It was forty yards to the line.

  “Oh boy,” said Coach Dave, sucking in his breath

  “To-ny! To-ny!” his teammates chanted.

  Jake waved the Perry’s Pizza box high above his head. “Come on, Tony. Come on.”

  Tony looked up. A big smile split his face, followed by a look of sheer determination. His forehead wrinkled, and his eyes narrowed. Arms pumping, feet pounding, he began to charge ahead, faster, faster, until he stormed across the line inches ahead of the other runner.

  “Pizza power!” The boys untangled themselves from the crowd and went to find Tony.

  “Be right back,” Spencer called to his dad.

  “Take your time.”

  They swarmed Tony where he was standing, breathing hard. “I was one spot short of top fifty. One short. But it doesn’t matter because I’ve got pizza!” He grabbed the box from Jake. His eyes went wide. “Empty?”

  Coach Dave jogged up and laughed. “You’ll get your pizza, Tony. Don’t you worry. You deserve a dozen! A lifetime supply! You guys did a great job out there. I can’t believe how you all did. I want to hear all about it, but first you need to do a bit of a cooldown. Tony, you take a walk around. Get some water. You other guys take a slow jog and then grab a snack and find some warmer clothes to put on.” He grinned. “That was some race.”

  “I’m so hungry!” said Tony as the team walked back to the tent after the cooldown. “Where’s that big box of granola bars?”

  They found Simon sitting in the door of the tent. “Finally!” he said. “I think all the runners are in. Are the results posted yet?”

  “I don’t know. Let’s go check,” said Jake, pulling on his jacket.

  The boys grabbed their snacks and made their way down to the picnic shelter. The area around the results board was crowded.

  Shawn stood on his toes and craned his neck. “I see your name, Spencer. Number four! And Jake, you’re fifth. That’s all I can see so far.”

  “Wait. That can’t be right,” said Spencer.

  Jake looked around. “Where’s Coach Dave?”

  Chapter Seventeen

  The Diamonds heard a shout behind them. Coach Dave was walking quickly toward them. His smile was so wide he looked like he was about to split in two.

  “Coach, the results—they made a mistake,” said Jake.

  “No mistake.” He shook his head. “I’ve just had an update on the placings.” Dave took a deep breath. “Two runners were disqualified from the race, which is too bad. One of them took a wrong turn near the beginning. They found him, but he didn’t finish. But that has nothing to do with your results.” He took another deep breath. “The other runner was disqualified for unsportsmanlike behavior. One of the course monitors witnessed a runner from the Ravens tripping another runner and reported it.”

  Jake held his breath. Someone had seen Spencer go down?

  “That’s the kind of thing you don’t really expect to see at this level of competition. But because that runner was disqualified, everyone who came in after him moves up by one place.”

  “All of us?” asked Spencer, looking over at Jake. “So we are fourth and fifth.”

  “I’m ninth?” asked Sam.

  “Oh, man,” said Shawn, “Three Diamonds in the top ten! That is so amazing. But a littl
e bit brutal too. Just out of the medals. Just. So close, dudes.”

  “Well, that’s not actually true.” The coach could hardly contain himself.

  “What?” Everyone said the word at the same time.

  “It looks like all of you will be picking up some hardware before we leave.”

  “Hold on. You said there were medals for the top three finishers,” said Jake.

  “Yes, the top three individuals. And the top three teams. The Diamonds came in…are you ready for this?” Coach Dave did a weird little happy dance.“First!”

  “What?” the boys all said again.

  “First!”

  “But how?” asked Spencer. “We heard that some guy in green was way, way ahead, like in another time zone.”

  “Yeah, wasn’t he something? Such a great runner. He’ll get the first-place individual medal. But after counting up the points based on how each of you finished, the gold team medal goes to you guys.”

  The boys stared at each other. Then Shawn began to whoop. Sam raised his hands in the air like a prizefighter. Simon flung his arms around Spencer and Jake’s shoulders, and the three of them began to jump up and down. Tony just stood and stared.

  “Tony,” said Shawn. “You okay?”

  “I think he’s in shock,” said Sam.

  Tony shook his head. He looked over at Coach Dave. “I just managed to make my way to the front and see the board. I saw Shawn’s name at forty-two and mine a few names below it. Everyone moving up by one means I broke top fifty!”

  Everyone mobbed Tony. Then the whole team went down in a heap. “Go, Diamonds!”

  Jake’s dad arrived, pushing Spencer’s dad in his wheelchair over the bumpy ground.

  “Dad!” Spencer and Jake both yelled at once.

  “We know—we heard. Well done!”

  After about a hundred high fives, they noticed a man in an orange safety vest standing nearby. He was smiling. “Excuse me for interrupting your celebration, but I wanted to come and congratulate you too. Nice work, Diamonds! First place!” He turned to Spencer. “How are you doing? I saw that other runner knock you down.”