On page 288, Malcolm says "lately all I am doing is trying to outrun one thing or another after a point it starts to feel like the easy way is easy."

Malcolm is referring to life on the street.... getting into trouble and trying to find his way back out. Eventually, he feels as if maybe nothing is worth trying for, that it's easier to do the wrong thing than the right thing. This foreshadows his his arrest, conviction, and time in jail.