Blood of Mary

IT'S already late at night but Theresa is still awake. Can’t sleep, she decided to look at the records of all children who have been in their custody since the orphanage started operating. Though she's happy that they were able to re-home about five thousand children over the past ten years, she's sad to know that there were that many children that have been abandoned by their parents in that short period of time. Well, technically, most kids in the past were not abandoned. They were just unfortunate and had no choice but to be with them after their parents were killed by vampires. But lately, though the cases of families being attacked by vampires have diminished, it’s heartbreaking that there are still a lot of kids being sent to the orphanage. In fact, she still has around five hundred kids in her custody. Honestly, it has been a while since they stop accepting kids in the orphanage. If there are babies that are left at the gate, she sends them to other shelters that can still handle more children. Even if she wanted to take all of them, they can no longer provide for more. They only rely on donations. And lately, they're accumulating lesser than the orphanage's expenses. She always believes that God will provide for those in need. But at that moment, she can't help but cry thinking how she could budget their money for the entire week, and where to get more funds for the coming weeks. Theresa was in tears when she got startled hearing the gate bell. She looked at the wall clock and was surprised to see the time. It's already midnight. Who could it be? She wore her habit before she went out of her room. The gate bell has gone quiet but she's still worried. Though she has helpers, it's already late and none of them might have checked it. It's raining heavily, and whoever is in there must be soaked in the rain. What if a baby is left there alone? "Jesus Christ!" She scream the moment she opens the main door and saw a woman in all black holding a baby. The orphanage is surrounded by tall iron fences. Knowing the danger associated with darkness, she always personally checks the gate every night to make sure that it’s locked. So how did this woman get to the front door? “W-who are you? And how did you get here?” She's trying to look at the woman's face but apart from it being already dark, she's wearing a black veil that makes it harder for her to see her face clearly. "Her name is Czelvie Grace Asombrado. One day, I'll come back to get her. Make sure that she's in this place till then." Theresa wanted to speak and ask the woman some questions but it was as if something is stopping her from doing that. When the woman handed her the baby, it was as if someone is also controlling her body to move and take the baby. After the woman placed a black bag beside her, she walk towards the gate. Theresa was filled with fear when she didn't see the woman open the gate. She just disappeared! That's only when she was able to move freely. She took the bag and went inside in a hurry. Her heart is beating so fast. Did she just meet a vampire? A vampire's existence is not a secret to the world. In fact, there was a point in their lives when they feared them so much. But that was before the leaders of the world and the Vampire King had an agreement. From what she knows, Vampires are no longer allowed to roam around human territories. But with what she witnessed a while ago, it seems like she has just met one. "Mother Superior? What are you doing here? And who is that baby?" asked Shiela, her assistant in the orphanage. "I thought I was just dreaming when I heard the gate bell ring,” she took a peek at the baby’s face. “Oh my God. She’s so pretty, Mother Superior. How could they leave such a beautiful angel?" That's only when she got the chance to look at the baby. And as Shiela said, the baby is so beautiful. By her appearance, she can tell that she’s not a pure Filipina. She had brown hair and beautiful blue eyes. Her skin is also pale. But surprisingly, her guardian speaks the language too well for a foreigner. She suddenly remembered her speculation about the woman who left the baby. If this baby is also a vampire, her eyes should be red. But she looks just like a normal baby. Could it be that what she saw a while ago was just her imagination? Her speculation subsided after Shiela came back from checking the gate. It wasn’t locked. That’s probably the reason why the woman was able to come inside. Maybe what she saw was just an effect of the heavy rain. Her eyesight isn’t that good after all. She looked at the baby again. As much as she wants to fulfill this baby’s mother’s request, the orphanage is no longer capable of handling one more child. She needs to hand her the next day to a different shelter. "Oh my God, Mother Superior. These are a lot of money!" She looked at Shiela who took a peek at the bag she brought in. And when she looked at it, to her surprise, it was indeed full of money. She did the sign of the cross. “Jesus Christ!” Did that woman leave this much money so they can take good care of her baby? If they're this well-off, why did she have to leave the baby in their custody? “Maybe it was God’s plan to send this little angel to us. What do you think, Mother Theresa?” She looked back at the baby in her arms. She feels bad for the child. But honestly, somehow, she thought the same. Maybe Shiela was really right. God planned to send this baby to the orphanage. Because of her, they now have more than enough to feed all the children for the coming days. If she heard the woman right, she talked about taking the baby back one day. Until she comes back, she'll make sure to take care of her child. “Thank you for coming into our lives, little angel.” EIGHT YEARS AFTER. "What's your name, little girl?" asked a beautiful woman who visited the orphanage that day. Czelvie smiled brightly at her. "My name is Czelvie Grace Asombrado. I'm eight years old but I already know how to fix my bed, and am potty-trained. I know how to wash dishes too. And Mother Theresa said that I'm a smart kid,” she said with her most lively and cheerful voice. The woman smiled at her even wider. "Really? If Mother Theresa said that, you must be really intelligent. And you are very pretty, too.” She found out that the woman's name is Mrs. Ysabel Chua and she came to the orphanage to adopt. And seeing how she's so fond of her, Czelvie has a feeling that this time, she'll finally be chosen. But like those people who seemed to like her before, Mrs. Chua adopted another kid. She adopted Abby, a kid who's just her age. "Czelvie? Shiela said you don't like to eat. Are you not feeling well?" Mother Theresa asked when she entered her room. She felt it when Mother Theresa sat on her bed but she remain hiding under her blanket. Crying. "Am I likable, Mother Theresa?" "Of course, you are." "Then why does nobody want to adopt me?" "That's not true. It's just that, this isn't your time yet. Don't you want to be with me anymore?" That's only when she removed her blanket and looked at Mother Theresa. "I love being with you, Mother Theresa." "Then aren't you happy that we can still be together a little bit longer? Come here," Mother Theresa tap her lap. She wipe her tears and sat on Mother Theresa's lap. It’s not like she doesn't love Mother Theresa and everyone in the orphanage. She considers all children there as her siblings, and mother Theresa as her mother. It’s just that, because there are too many of them in the orphanage, there are a lot of times that she wanted some attention. She thought that if she gets adopted, she no longer needs to compete with anyone just to be noticed. Suddenly, she felt bad for feeling that way. “I’m sorry, Mother Theresa.” Mother Theresa gave her a tight hug. "Don't be sad, okay? Everything has the right time. It may not be now but one day, someone will come here to take you,” she then placed her face between her palms and smiled at her. “For now, let's just enjoy the time that we can still be together, okay?” She nods. "I love you, Mother Theresa." "I love you too, Czelvie Grace.” THERESA was already expecting that Czelvie would feel that way. She's always everyone’s favorite but at the end of the day, no one takes her home. But the reality is, Czelvie just don't know how much she tries hard to make everyone understand that they can’t take her. "Mother Superior, I hope you don't mind me asking. I'm just wondering why you always stop Czelvie from getting adopted," Shiela asked after she return to her office. "I know that since she came, we were so blessed. But personally, I still believe that she deserves to have a family who can focus on her." Though that night was a bit creepy, Czelvie's arrival brought luck to the orphanage. Since she came, they've been receiving a lot of help to support the kids from anonymous sources. "I understand your point, Shiela. I too wanted the same for Czelvie. I just think that this isn't the time yet." Despite all the blessings, of course, she wishes for a better life for Czelvie. She also feels bad whenever she prevents Czelvie from getting adopted. But even if it has been eight years already, she still holds to that woman's words that one day, she will come back to get Czelvie. But another eight years have gone by and she still hasn't gone back.