You can steer as well as
that girl in the green coat."
He pointed to a little freckle-faced girl who came down the hill on a
shabby old sled and steered it neatly out of the way of every sled she
met.
"No, I couldn't do that," said Ruth. "But I'll coast with you, Sunny.
I can hang on to you."
Sunny Boy had meant to coast down the hill a few times by himself, for
he had not had a sled last year and he was not sure he knew how to
steer. But, of course, if Ruth had made up her mind to coast with him
on his sled, Sunny Boy felt that there was nothing to do but take her.
"I'll go first! Watch me!" cried Nelson, scrambling up the hill ahead
of them. He plumped himself on his sled, pushed with one foot, and
away he flew down the hill.
"That looks just as easy," said Sunny Boy to himself.
He had to wait a minute to find a place for his sled in the row of
coasters lined up at the top of the hill. Then he sat down and took
the rope and Ruth sat down behind him and grasped the belt of his coat.
"Here, I'll start you," offered a boy, who came up behind them.
"Wait a--" began Sunny Boy. He meant to say, "Wait a minute," but the
boy gave him a tremendous push and the sled slid over the hill and
began to go down.
"Ow!" shrieked Ruth, closing her eyes and opening her mouth very wide.
"Ow! Stop Sunny Boy! Ow! Ow!"
Sunny Boy couldn't stop. But he was steering nicely and they would
probably have had a fine coast if Ruth had not grown more frightened
and thrown her arms around his neck.
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