monster

“There’s a monster under your bed,” Solomon says.

“No there’s not,” I say back. “You’re just trying to scare me.”

“No I’m not. I’m serious.”

My half-brother lies in the hallway outside my sister and I’s room. I left the door open. Not because I was scared or anything. Just in case, you know.

I had my nightlight on. Hopefully the fluorescent blue stars will distract me. 

My sister was already asleep. She isn’t fazed by these things. I’m not either, I just have the night light on just in case.

“He’s gonna kill you,” Solomon keeps talking.

I wish he would go back to his mom’s house already. He doesn’t even live here. He’s always trying to scare me late at night. Find a better hobby, dude.

“You’re lying,” I say in what I think is an unbothered tone but probably failing miserably. “Go away.”

I turn my body away from him toward my window and pretend to sleep, hoping he could see that I’m brave. I don’t care that there might be a monster under my bed. I’m asleep.

“He’s gonna get you,” his voice is lower, as if he’s whispering.

I wish Solomon would stop talking.

Eventually, I hear the shuffle of footsteps get smaller and smaller.

Finally, peace and quiet.

But now it’s too quiet.

And in the quiet, I start hearing every little thing. 

How the air conditioner loudly turns on every 20 minutes or so.

How the house creaks every now and then because it’s so old. 

How the clock ticks every second.

These sounds make me even more aware that the monster could move underneath me at any moment. What if the monster is making the house creak? What if the monster is turning on the air conditioner every few minutes to keep me on my toes?

My eyes are wide open.

What if he isn’t lying?

What if Chucky is under my bed with his butcher knife?

What if The Grudge is under there waiting to snap my neck in half?

What if Jason is under my bed ready to saw my body in half?

I wish Solomon never showed me those scary movies.

I stare at the blue stars on my ceiling, praying they would speak and tell me everything’s okay. That there’s not a monster under my bed. That my half-brother is a liar. 

They say nothing.

I stare and stare and stare. I stare until all I see is blue. 

My whole ceiling is blue now. 

I can’t unsee blue. I can’t even look away because everywhere I look, it’s blue. Even when I blink, I see blue. Are the stars saying something now? What are you trying to tell me, stars? That as long as I look up at you, as long as I keep my eyes on you, as long as I focus on the blue, I’ll be safe. Will I really be safe? Or will I just be distracted. And tired. 

I don’t think I can ever look at blue the same way ever again.

As soon as I get used to seeing the blue, it starts to vanish. Another color starts to come in, like red or orange or something. For a second, I feel like I’m going blind. Then I feel the warmth of the sun on my cheeks. It’s morning time. At first I’m startled. I’ve seen blue for so long I began to think that was all there is. But now there’s sun. And I can see now. Everything isn’t blue anymore. I can really see now. 

The sun kisses my face and reminds me that I made it to another day. The monster never got me. 

I sit up and look around. My sister is still asleep. I turn to my nightstand between my sister and I’s beds and see the alarm clock. 

6:00 am. 

Wow. I am exhausted.

I look under the bed, (you know just in case) and I see half-eaten sugar packets and dirty clothes.

Gross, but not a monster.

So Solomon was lying. I knew it!

I stretch myself out of bed, sort of dazed. I walk into the hallway and see Solomon is gone. I knock on the guest room door and there’s no answer. I open the door and see the room is empty. He must have gone back to his mom’s house. He usually leaves Sunday mornings. 

I saunter back into my room and bury myself underneath my comforter.

At least now I can sleep peacefully without him talking about a stupid monster.

Maybe he was the monster.