Leo had amassed quite the collection of insects both rare and common alike, from as far reaching as he could get on the island without getting himself into trouble and nothing gave him more sense of delight than studying them. He kept his collection in the old shack that used to be his father’s storage space for farming tools, before he abandoned it in favour of a bigger more spacious one.
With a bit of upkeep and a few modifications of mostly his own doing, including the occasional help of his grandfather, Leo was able to convert the little shack into the perfect little insect paradise, something he took great pride in.
Leo wasn’t the most popular child in his school and his disdain towards school was hardly secretive, often getting himself into trouble, but his little insectopia was his escape, a place where he could truly be himself. When he wasn’t in his shack tending to them, he was out hunting for more to add to his collection.
His grandfather was his hero, understanding him and his love of insects better than anyone else possibly could. Not only did his grandfather enable his passion, but grandpa was at times his only real human company. His father spent a great deal of time on the farm tending to animals and crops, his mother then spent her time selling the fruits of the labour, establishing connections with buyers - markets and wholesalers alike - and keeping the family business afloat, so naturally with both their hands full, giving him constant attention was always lowest priority, until of course his grades fell or trouble caught up with him.
Both his mother and father worked tremendously hard to give him the kind of lifestyle they weren't able to have, but as vicious cycles went, it meant he was often left to his own devices, occasionally helping his mother and father, but not nearly involved in their daily routines enough to alleviate the loneliness.
Often they would scorn his grandpa for encouraging his behaviour, when in fact his grandpa was the one thing standing between him and utter loneliness. No one was really to blame, everything was as a result of something and those somethings were inevitable.
If there was any one thing that could be attributed to his suffering and equally theirs as a result, it was poverty alone. Both his mother and father had grown up poor, scraping the barrels to get by, so their joint effort to construct a better life for themselves and their son couldn't be faulted. He was here today because of their sacrifices and hard working ethic.
Perched in his hideaway and talking to his little friends, Leo propped his head up on his hands and tapped at the glass tanks of his proud collection of assassin bugs.
“No sabes lo afortunado que eres”, he mumbled, “Sin preocupaciones, sin estrés, y lo mejor de todo, sin escuela”.
His mother interrupted his alone time to request something from Levittown to the east, a journey he frequented by bike, but she had requested he go with his father on this particular occasion, which could only mean a horrible trip by tractor. Needless to say, he wasn’t exactly brimming with enthusiasm.
His father seemed chirpy however, maybe it was just the rare quality time he was able to have with his son or some other special occasion, but it was of no concern to Leo.
“Vamos, hijo, no te sientas mal. Es un hermoso día, esto será divertido. Nosotros inclusive podemos buscar más insectos luego, ¿qué tal suena eso?” His father beamed, trying to appeal to his better nature with the promise of bug hunting afterwards. Leo shrugged dismissively.
“Te prometo que será divertido. Vamos”. He lifted Leo up and placed him up onto the tractor, before hopping on behind him. With the sun shining down on them and a very gentle breeze caressing their faces, they pulled out of the farm and hit the road.
“Podemos tomar la ruta panorámica, no tenemos prisa”, his father said, suggesting the scenic route.
Despite Leo’s initial reluctance, the journey itself was rather enjoyable. Putting aside the unpleasant smoke the old tractor pumped out and the uncomfortable seating, it was actually kind of nice being on the road with his father. Honestly, he couldn't recall the last time they did anything remotely fun together and whilst unconventional though it was to constitute this errand run as anything close to fun, he couldn't have asked for more. When quality time with his father was a hard thing to come by, every spare moment with him was worth the slog it might have taken to make it a possibility.
“¿Papi, crees que no soy malo?” Leo asked. The question of whether his father thought he was a bad son came from a state of insecurity, an insecurity he had always had somewhat, but his father was quick to shoot down the question, stating that if all it took to be regarded as a bad person was to be a little naughty in school, nearly everyone in the world would be branded with that title.
“Somos buenas personas, solo que a veces tomamos malas decisiones. Tú siempre serás mi hijo, el hijo de un hombre que también era un chico travieso”.
Hearing his father’s words of reassurance, Leo felt a little better. Maybe he didn’t have to resent everything and everyone around him all the time, it couldn’t hurt to be a little friendlier to people… especially his father.
They suddenly screeched to a halt as his father slammed on the breaks, jerking them both forward. It was probably a good thing then that the tractor was so slow, because any harder and they would have surely flown over the front.
“¿Estás loca? ¡Sal del camino! ¡Podrías haber muerto!” His father shouted towards a hooded woman on the road. She was holding her waist and upon further inspection, it was apparent that
