The Monster Under the Bed

A girl has to figure out what to do with a monster under her bed.

It's time for you to go to bed.  It has been a big day and you have been very busy.  You have played outside.  You were at the playground in the park.  You were on the swing set and monkey bars.  You ran around the baseball diamond.  You saw your best friend.  You rode your bike around the block.  When you came home, you played in the front yard.  You had dinner and you watched your favorite TV program.  Now it is time to go to bed.  You have to get some sleep tonight because you have a big day planned for tomorrow. 

 

You brush your teeth and say goodnight to your family.  Then you run upstairs.  You say goodnight to all your toy animals on the shelf.  There are bunnies and cats and dogs.  There is one unicorn and two horses and a lion and an elephant.  There are two fish, a killer whale and a shark.  You say goodnight to the ballerina dancer in the music box on the dresser.  Then you give your teddy bear a big hug and jump into bed. 

 

You lay there for a minute and then you hear something.  At first it sounds like scratching.  Then you hear something moving.  You can hear breathing.  It sounds like it is close.  It's under the bed.  Then something sneezes.  You look over the side of the bed and there is something hairy sticking out.  You only see it for a second before it moves all the way under the bed.  You hold real still and something big and hairy pokes out from under the bed.  It is a big face.  Two big brown eyes are looking at you.

 

It's a monster.  It says, "Excuse me."  You say, "Bless you."  It says, "It's a little  dusty under here.  I was going to clean tomorrow."  You ask, "Why are you under the bed?"  It says, "I'm moving in.  I want to live here under this bed now.  This looks like a very nice room.  I'll be bringing my things tomorrow."  It smiles a big toothy grin at you.  You smile back and decide to help.

 

You ask if it likes to read stories.  It says yes so you get out some of your favorite books and read with the monster.  You have books about kings and brave knights and fairy princesses.  You have some books about swashbuckling pirates and adventurers.  There are books about cowboys and Indians. You have books about railroads built across the old west. You even have a book about spaceships.

 

Then you get all your stuffed animals down from the shelf.  You line them up  according to size and type and show them to the monster.  You tell when you got all of your stuffed animals and what their names are.  You tell some of the stories that you made up about them.  These are stories about the things they do and the games they play.  Some of the animals have gone on long trips and had big adventures and were gone a long time.

 

You take the music box down from the dresser and set it on the floor so the monster can see it.  It's a very nice one that your parents gave you for Christmas.  It can play 2 songs.  You wind it up and both of you listen to the songs.  You wind it up again and then you dance to the music.  First you do the dance you learned in your ballet class.  Then you do the dance you made up all on your own.  When the music stops, you take a very big bow.  The monster claps his hands and says it was very nice. 

 

You get your board games and set them up.  You  have games that have big stacks of play money.  There are games where you spin a wheel and some where you roll dice.  You have card games.  You and the monster play chess and checkers. 

 

You show the monster your jewelry box.  It has all of your favorite things in it.  These are the things that you have saved because they have good memories.  There is a key chain with a little tape measure on the end.  It belonged to your Grandma.  There is a seagull feather that you found in the back yard.  There is a pocket magnifying glass that your dad gave you for your birthday.  There is a seashell you found on your vacation to the coast.  There is an arrowhead you found on a campout in the mountains.  There is a big rubber band you found walking home from school.  There is a small glass jar with different colored aquarium gravel in it.  The monster says all these things are real nice. 

 

Soon you feel tired, and you remember that you still have a lot of things to do tomorrow.  You tell the monster your plans.  The monster says that sounds real exciting, so you say goodnight to the monster and jump into bed and go to sleep.  The next day, you do all the things you wanted to do, but now you think of all the things you can do with a monster under the bed, until you find there is another monster in the closet.

Author's Note

This is my first try. People I know told me to put it on line so everyone can see it. Tell me what you think.

Reviews

[Wayne Rockmore]

Wow, this is only the second time I've ever seen a story written in 2nd person after Jay McInerney's novel Bright Lights, Big City. It offers such a strange personal, yet somewhat detached, perspective on the events - deadpan and kind of funny too. I loved it! Terrific story! This is one of the better ones I've read on writer's cafe so far.

[Hawkmoth]

I'm in love with this! Repetition gives it a certain rythmic quality, and makes the story easy to follow. I like the way you allowed a portrait of the child to emerge solely through a description of her surroundings and possessions and her friendly relationship with the monster. Overall, a very enjoyable- and well written- read!