You should see lots of relevance between the title of Octavia E. Butler’s short story and the story itself.

What is Butler's story about? It's about a race of aliens who protect a group of humans that the aforementioned aliens are able to impregnate. The humans are called Terrans and the aliens are named Tlic.

The theme of pregnancy relates to the title. It tells us that we are concerned with procreation, childbearing, and the continuation of a species. Blood is often used as a way to denote familiar relationships as well as race. We might note how the relationship between Terrans and Tlics reflects common ideas about families. How do the Tilcs protect the Terrans? How do they also use the Terrans to continue their race?

We might also think of "bloodchild" in the context of Gan. Gan, too, is a child. Technically, he’s a teen, yet it would not be wildly inaccurate to call him a child. He is about to have the children of T’Gatoi, the alien he's been paired off with.

Does Gan want to have her babies? Is he excited? We'd go with no. After witnessing what happened to Bram Lomas, Gan gets scared and runs off. We might say that Gan does not want to be a "bloodchild." He does not want his blood or body to mingle with T’Gatoi's eggs.

In the stories of other males, we see how those who gave birth are often sacrificed. The lives in their bodies are more important than their own lives. It's interesting how "blood" can refer to death. Death, and the threat of death, pervade Butler's novella.

Lastly, it’s interesting how blood can conjure up a kind of intimacy. Perhaps it’s the close, intimate bond that Gan feels toward T’Gatoi that helps him overcome his fears about carrying T’Gatoi’s eggs.