“It’s stupid,” he told himself out loud. “Stupid and impossible.”
But for some reason, he kept turning to look at the door. A door that had been closed every single day of his young life, or as long as he could remember.
4:07 p.m. read the time on the kitchen clock. It would still be a few more hours before his mom woke up.
Unless…
Unless he opened the door just that once and woke her up and asked…
What would he even ask? Hey, mom, Will says I’m a vampire. What do you think? Seriously, that would be the most stupid, idiotic, silly thing to do.
Although it would only take a minute. Just a minute. Would she get angry? Possibly. Would he get a consequence? Most definitely. Would it be worth it?
Taking a deep breath, Jeremy finally put his backpack on the sofa’s cushion and took a few steps in the direction of that infamous closed door.
It would be quick. Almost painless.
His hand was now on the cold metallic doorknob; all he had to do was turn and push. Turn and push. And then he would know.
The creak the door made when it opened was unavoidable yet predictable. His mother had asked him several times to buy something to stop the creaking sound and he had never paid much attention to her.
It didn’t matter much now.
The room was dark and sticky. The blinds were closed, as were the thick curtains. Jeremy also noticed the room smelled of nothing. Not even his mom’s perfume. It was as if he had entered a phantom zone. Not only was it odorless and dark, it was also deadly quiet.
To his right, the bed. In it, his mom.
The woman who had given birth to him was lying motionless under the covers. For a moment, Jeremy doubted she was even breathing. Almost as if she didn’t need to breathe. Almost as if she-
No, that was a stupid thought. Stupid, just like Will was stupid. Stupid and crazy! To think he almost made him believe it!
With a roll of his eyes, he chastised his naiveté and turned to leave. His mom had a right to rest. She had a right not to be woken up by her insecure son. She worked hard to give Jeremy everything he needed and there he was, trying to wake her up in the middle of the day.
Although…
He was already in the room.
The deed was done. Or half-way done. All he had to do now was take a few more steps closer, place his hand on her shoulder and shake. She would surely wake up, and she would make fun of him for asking such a stupid question. Before she yelled at him for waking her up, that is.
If that was what he thought would happen, then why did he hesitate so much?
A simple answer to a stupid question would be enough to put him at ease. Any chastising would be worth it.
Quietly he walked next to his mother on the bed. Her head was completely covered by the duvet, she didn’t seem to be breathing. That was odd. Very odd.
With one hand, Jeremy took the edge of the duvet cover and, counting to three, lifted it from his mother’s head.
For a moment, his mom seemed to be sleeping peacefully, but that quickly changed. With a loud hiss, his mother bared fangs that could only belong to a vampire! Jeremy backed away, dropping the comforter back over her head. Tripping on his own feet several times, he managed to get out of the room and then out of the house.
It was still daylight outside as Jeremy looked back at the house he had lived in for his seventeen – almost eighteen – years, and realized it was a place he truly didn’t know or understand. His life, his reality, and his future suddenly changed forever. Of all the things Will had ever told him, he couldn’t have guessed this one was real.
Will. Will would know what to do.
His feet moved once more, this time to run a few houses down until he spotted his best friend sitting on his porch. Jeremy was huffing and puffing by the time he stood facing his friend.
“You believe me now, I gather,” were his best friend’s words. His tone was different now. No slang, no joy. It was as if a different person had been waiting for him. Not that Jeremy noticed; in his terror, all he needed was a place to hide.
“How is it possible?” Tears were threatening to escape his eyes. His lips trembled as he tried not to shake all over.
“You realize,” his best friend started at him not moving from his spot, “that I am one, too.”
It was obvious, it had to be; for some reason, it didn’t seem possible. It didn’t seem real.
“But you-“
“You are one, too, Jeremy,” Will rolled his eyes. “You just don’t know it yet. It’ll come with puberty.” He then reconsidered, “Second puberty.”
“Second puberty? But, I don’t understand, I-“
“We get a second set of changes.” Will added, “That’s a bummer, isn’t it? Wonder which one will turn out to be easier.”
Questions, there were so many questions. There was so much Jeremy didn’t know, so much he couldn’t even begin to understand.
“When? When does it come?”
Jeremy knew the answer to the question, because Will had already told him. Eighteen. It would happen when he turned eighteen years old. But, was it certain? Was it exact?
“Soon,” Will answered. “Some things will change and others will not.” Will shrugged as if he didn’t care about what was to come. “We won’t be alone, though. There are others.”
“Others?” It just kept getting worse. “What others?”
“Many others,” Will reassured him. “Our numbers grow.”
If only he could put his thoughts in order Jeremy would begin a detail interrogation of the subject at hand. Unfortunately, the shock was too overwhelming to let his mind do anything else.
“Why?” was all his mouth produced.
Once more, Will answered with a shrugged. “I don’t know. Some curse, I think. An old one.” His friend then let a chuckle escape his lips, “You aren’t immortal, by the way. That’s just made up. You’ll grow old and die just like everybody else. You’ll just have a different life.”
“No.” Jeremy didn’t want to hear anymore. He couldn’t hear anymore. It wasn’t true. It wasn’t real. He couldn’t say what his friend said he was. Vampires were myth. Vampires were fiction, they did not exist.
Starting to walk away from his best friend, Jeremy soon turned his jog into a run. Without looking back, he ran to the only place that had made sense to him for the last year, the Catholic church. There, he would talk to Father Connor, he would tell him everything and the priest would reassure him everything was all right. Yes, that’s what would happen. Everything would be just fine.
The church’s doors were open like they always were when he walked inside just like he always did. Nothing caught on fire. Everything was like it was supposed to be.
Frantically, Jeremy began looking for his only sane source. The one person who he trusted to tell him the truth.
Father Connor was coming out of the confession booth. It was almost like a miracle, a sign, that he just happened to be available for him right then. It was meant to be. The Lord worked in mysterious ways, after all.
“Jeremy?” The priest narrowed the distance between them immediately. “Everything all right, son? You don’t look well.”
Indeed he wasn’t well. His face wet with a mix of sweat and tears. There was nothing that told the priest he was calm at all.
“I need to be baptized, Father.”
“Of course, Jeremy, we-“
“Right now!”
“Now?” The priest looked more than confused. “But we should-“
“Please, Father Connor, please. I need to do it now, before it’s too late.”
After a short hesitation, the priest nodded decisively. “Very well,” he said, “we should go to my office.”
“Thank you, Father,” Jeremy said, relieved.
“Of course.”
The walk to the priest’s office felt endless. When they finally arrived, Jeremy felt he had wasted precious time.
“I’m ready, F
ather. Please,” begged Jeremy.
The priest didn’t seem to be in any hurry. “You didn’t choose a godfather?”
“You can be my godfather. Please, sir, I just need to be baptized. You don’t understand how important it is.”
“No, I believe you’re right, I don’t,” the priest frowned. “Are you sure you’re all right, son? You look agitated.”
“I just need to be baptized, Father. What can I do or say to persuade you to do it now?”
“Well, uhm,” started Father Connor, “I can always bless water and baptize you right now if you are feeling so anxious to do it.”
“I know in my heart it’s what I want, Father,” Jeremy pleaded, tears rolling out again, “I belong to the Lord, let Jesus save me. Please.”
The priest looked at him for a moment before agreeing with a nod. “Very well.”
Jeremy watched intently as the priest walked in the direction of the door. To the boy, the time between the moment he left the room and the moment he returned felt like a million years. Yet, Jeremy waited patiently, knowing his suffering would soon end. Surely baptism was the first step to curing his soul, lifting the curse.
Finally, the door opened, and the priest returned. In one hand, a simple glass of water. In the other, a book.
“Now I will bless the water.” The priest opened his book where his bookmark held a page. Quietly, he began to recite a few words. Once he was done, he turned to an impatient Jeremy. “In the name of the Father, of the Son and, of the Holy Spirit.”
These were the last words Jeremy ever heard, for once the blessed water touched his skin the burning would not stop.
The End
Also by Claudia Silva
More from Claudia Silva
Thank you for reading my short story, Vocation. If you enjoyed this story, you may enjoy the others, as well. Take a look!
Short Stories:
Rivals
Magma Girl
What Can’t I Be Here?
Vocation
The Vampire Secret Agency:
The Recruit
Werewolf Phenomenon
The Fall of Witchcraft (Spring 2019)
Part Four (untitled)
Part Five (untitled)
Part Six (untitled)
One last thing, I appreciate an honest review. It makes me happy to make you happy.
Claudia Silva
Vocation Page 2
