Seeds of Hate by Melissa Perea Page B

him, but I'm jumping on board," I replied.
    "So did you see anything?" Izzy asked.
    "Only the tail end of it, but I'm not sure much else happened before I turned the corner."
    I pulled out of the parking lot and headed south.
    "Make a left on Madison and head toward the bakery. Unless you want to go to your place?"
    "No. They're home," I replied. The air was stifled inside, so I opened a window. "Is it his letter? The paper you picked up?" I asked.
    Izzy looked down at the stack of shredded paper with light blue lines. "Oh, I don't know."
    "I saw Nathan rip it. He tore it into a bunch of pieces and then tossed them into the air over Javier."
    "Did Javi do anything?" he asked.
    "No, he just stood there. His back was to him and I could tell he was breathing hard. But he didn't react."
    Izzy's knee bounced up and down. He looked at me and then past me out the window. "Wonder what set him off..."
    "Oh," I said, clenching the steering wheel and swallowing my own spit. "That was me," I replied.
    "You?"
    "Well, when I saw him walk by, a piece of the paper was sticking out of the back of his shirt right along his collar. I don't even know why, but I reached out and grabbed it. It just felt wrong for it to be there."
    "You touched his neck?" Izzy asked.
    "Yeah, my fingers grazed it. And then ... well ... he just started running."
    "He doesn't like to be touched," Izzy replied.
    "I noticed." I made another left and headed down the bakery's street. "What's wrong with him?" I asked.
    "Many things. And at the same time, nothing."
    We sat in silence. I didn't know what to say or what questions were safe. My thumbs strummed the steering wheel and I made bubbles out of the spit in my mouth. I should've minded my own business that first day of school.
    A slow whistle exited Izzy's lips. He was looking out the window and smiling. The whistle turned into a song and he began to bob his head. His carefree acceptance of the day relaxed me.
    "Izzy," I began. "Is he okay?" I tapped the temple of my head with my finger while I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye.
    "Of course he's okay. He's just tired. Spent. Overwhelmed." He continued whistling.
    "With Nathan?"
    He stopped and thought for a moment. "Nate's a part of it, but he's not all of it. Javier's life is complicated. He carries a lot with him and it weighs him down."
    "Do you know where he lives?" I asked.
    "Why?" Izzy's voice was curious, but lined with protective restraint.
    "I think I should apologize. I feel like it's my fault." It actually was my fault, but I had a feeling Izzy believed there was more to it.
    He cracked his knuckles and played with the pieces of paper that sat in his lap. "I don't know," he replied. "I'm not sure that would be okay."
    It seemed like nothing with Javier was okay.
    "Why does he do it, anyway?" I asked.
    He dropped the paper and looked at me. "What?"
    I looked back at him before returning my eyes to the road. "Toss his shoes like that up on a telephone wire. I've seen him walking around school barefoot before. It's ... odd."
    Izzy snorted. "You should ask him."
    "Like he'll tell me," I replied.
    Izzy started whistling again. "You never know," he said.
    I pulled over as we arrived at the bakery. The store lights were off and no one was inside.
    "It looks closed."
    "It is. That's why we're here." Izzy opened the door and got out. Then stuck his head inside the open window. "We can piece together the letter and see what he told Nathan."
    I followed, rolling up the windows and locking the door. "How come you're so curious? I thought Javier would've told you."
    Izzy smiled. "Javi is selective in what he tells me. Especially in regards to Nathan. He worries."
    "Nathan didn't even read it though." We reached the outside of the bakery and Izzy took out a large set of keys. "Why would he respond like that?"
    He began to unlock the four different deadbolts. "It's not the first time Javier has had to write an apology to Nathan," he said. "I'm fairly certain