When does Caleb take the lead on their trade? Do his actions resemble those of any other characters?

In the section, when Caleb and Bobby Gene tell Styx they will no longer be able to spend time together, Styx “took a step back” (225). Caleb defines that reaction, saying he had heard people saying someone was “taken aback,” but had never really known what it meant until that moment, seeing Styx's reaction. This is one of many signs that Caleb is maturing. He is learning things on his own, without other people explaining them to him.

The candy cigarettes continue to be a symbol of Styx's effort to be cool without spending the money or damaging his health with real cigarettes. Caleb now understands Styx's fascination with the candy, and he begins to use them the same way. When he decides they are going to go with Styx to go through with the deal, he asks for a candy cigarette. When the three boys are standing on a street corner, working up the courage to make that deal, they each have one. Caleb describes them as “fake-smoking like the baddest of the baddies” (232). Styx takes the scenario so far as to drop the end of the candy on the ground, then step on it with the toe of his shoe, as if extinguishing the flame. Some adult readers may disapprove of the use of the candy in this way, feeling that it sends the message that smoking is actually cool. That message is diminished – at least somewhat – by the fact that Styx said that smoking is bad for a person's health.

There is an important image seen in the final scene as Styx and Caleb convince Mr. Davis to make the trade. Caleb has been watching Styx convince people to do things, and he tries to use some of Styx's methods when he is talking to Mr. Davis. He touches Mr. Davis, but feels that he is not going to get Mr. Davis to agree. Then, Styx reaches out and touches Caleb, and Caleb says he feels that their combined touch is what convinces Mr. Davis.