Hedges

We were still in second summer, the second wave of hot humid weather that emerges right before halloween. A summer energy still prevails, the days are still long, the weather is still hot, children still roam the sidewalks wearing sandals and short sleeve t shirts. The elotero and paleteros still hawk the corners outside of school at 2:45 when school got out, and kids pour out of the old moss-green double doors at the front of the school to crowd around the snack stands, pulling the dollars lining their school uniforms to buy after school snacks from the old men who had been fixtures on the sidewalk for generations of children before them.

Inside, The children were seated around the table in the library, the doldrums of winter had yet to sap them of their energy. Abraham and Tabita, brother and sister, chewed candy while surreptitiously holding the wrappers in their hands under the tables so the teacher couldn’t see it. The teacher, trained by years of experience as both a mother and a teacher noticed the shape of candy forming little bulges in the sides of their cheeks. “Do you have candy in your mouth? What are the rules?” “Sr. Morales lets us have candy in his class! Just not gum.” “Is it gum or candy?” Tábita opens her mouth wide to reveal the bright blue candy that temporarily dyed her tongue blue.

Tábita speaks rapidly, as if it were her last breath to speak on. Abraham is quiet, his wild curly hair often seems to express more than his mouth says.

“Estás limpiando casas todavía?”

“No ahorita pero si no empieza a trabajar mi papá me voy a poner a trabajar para cuidar a mi mamá”

“Qué pasó con su trabajo?”

“No sé, lo qué pasó es que vive en el salon con su novia y no paga renta y fuma mota todo el tiempo... No me importa si muera mi papá lo que si me importa es mi mamá. Si Abraham no está yo cuido a mi mamá; está malita.”

”Me voy a morir“ Abraham said with an air of frivolity.

“Por qué dices eso?”

“Me corté el dedo mientras cortar pepinos porque lo hago así de rapidez!” He started pretending to chop with his hands on the table.

”Yo sí me voy a morir, Porque salgo en la calle y me van a tirar”

She paused and added “No me puedo quedar en la casa todo el tiempo. Nos tiraron balazos a mi y a Abraham. Tenía playera roja puesto y los gangueros pensaron que era uno de ellos.”

"are you still cleaning houses?"

"no not right now but if my dad doesn't start working i'm going to work so i can take care of my mom"

"what happened to his job?"

"i dunno, what happened is that he lives in the living room with his girlfriend and he doesn't pay rent and smokes weed all the time. i don't care if my dad dies but i do care about my mom. if abraham isn't there, i take care of her, she's sick."

"i'm gonna die" Abraham said with an air of frivolity."

"why do you say that?"

"i cut my finger when i was cutting cucumbers cause i do it fast like this!" He started pretending to chop with his hands on the table.

"i will die, because i go outside and they're going to shoot me"

She paused and added "I can't stay in the house all the time. They shot bullets toward me and Abraham. He had a red tshirt on and the gangabngers thought he was one of them."