Little Bloodies

Note: Bloody in many parts - Part 10

Drops of rain started to fall in a humid April night as more and more people lined up the terminal. The mall was about to close to end the last minute hurdle of shoppers wanting to buy a thing or two. It was payday weekend.

As usual, I was at the end of the snake line waiting for my turn to get on one of those commuter vans. The Tolkien book about Numeronean wars absorbed my thoughts while I kept a watchful eye on the arrival of the blue Bloody van. He’d be back in thirty minutes. By sheer estimation, I was more likely to catch the ride with him without putting up another excuse to wait for him. Like placing another call to an officemate and discuss matters with him in the middle of his sleep while I let other commuters to go ahead. But this time, everything was just near perfect.

Two little boys caught my attention. They were chasing each other and hiding behind every post. After a minute of watching them box each other playfully, I noticed the older boy’s face bore semblance to Bloody’s - those brows, eyes, nose and even that mischievous smile. He was Little Bloody.

I saw The Wife come out of the crowd trying to silence the two rowdy boys and nail them down to the bench. She was this doting mom who wiped the kids’ sweaty faces and put towels on their backs. That particular sight washed away my excitement to see Bloody again as I stood in the middle of the tired crowd frozen on my feet. I felt guilt surface and accuse me of trying to steal away their dad. How in the universe will I be able to do such wicked thing to a family who depended so much on him? While Bloody collected women since youth, he had never abandoned his family. Not those kids, particularly that one who would someday carry his name.

These were the sons Bloody told me about. The eldest one, who wasn’t there that night, was already fifteen. I had a pleasure watching his younger kids play while I hid my face behind the book. The Wife may not be that fortunate to have promiscuous Bloody as her partner, but those kids were enough to complete her. I wasn’t really kid-friendly but I found myself wishing I was that lucky too. Maybe I would have been a better mom and perhaps a better wife, partner and friend. But they say that sometimes God give you what you deserve. Bloody got his while I tried to figure out mine.