The Monster President
Chapter 1 - My Monster
When I was little, I believed in Monsters. You know, the ones that hide beneath your bed, or in between the cracks in the wardrobe doors, or that wait and watch you in the cold darkness.
What’s more, I still remember my very first ever monster encounter as if it were yesterday.
It all began one autumnal night, where the cold air lent up against the warmth of my bedroom, misting up the windows. Our house had surrendered to the night, and darkness painted itself against every nook and cranny. So dark I could barely make out the wardrobe and chest of drawers at the end of the bed.
My parents had long fallen asleep, and I too had tucked myself up. I lay in amongst the warmth and safety of the bedcovers ready for sleep, but something from the darkness kept my body from settling. Perhaps it was a doubt that nagged at my eyelids, or the occasional creak from the cold depths of the house. All I can tell you is that I couldn’t sleep because something didn’t feel right.
Almost out of nowhere, a little prickle of fear crept slowly down my neck and along my arms and legs until every hair on my body stood up on end. It was then that I felt myself being watched from somewhere in the darkened corner of my room.
“But I was alone in my room, wasn’t I?” Thoughts of what it could be raced through my head. “Why would anything be in my room? What if it’s a wild animal, or even worse, a Ghost or a Monster? What if it’s hungry and it wants to eat me?”
I didn’t dare breathe, anything not to give the game away. Carefully, I opened my eyes just a little so whatever was looking at me from the darkness wouldn’t know I was looking back. My eyes scanned up and down, and then across being wary not to move my head. For what felt like an eternity I stared into the darkness at the corner of the room.
“You’re imaging things. If anything were there, surely it would have moved by now”, I told myself.
Then, just as I was about to settle back, I heard what I could only imagine were its claws tapping on the wooden floor. Rap, tap, tap.
My heart skipped a beat “Those are claws!” I though to myself. “Ghosts don’t tap. It’s either a wild animal, or..” but before I could think, I heard the heavy breathing of a Monster.
I lay there unable to move, my body consumed with terror. What could I do? I needed my parents, more than ever before. If I called out, they might not hear and then the Monster would get me. If I ran, the Monster might catch me. But if could just get to my Parents room, I’d be safe.
A low rumbling growl echoed around the room and deep through my chest. My eyes opened wide with fear and I stared at the corner of the room. There in the darkness, two little black eyes, darker than the darkest shadow stared straight back at me. If I didn’t move now, I knew it would get me.
Without a second thought, I leapt from my bed and ran, just as fast as my legs would carry me. The Monster growled after me, hot on my heels as I dashed along the dark landing. I barely made it to the safety of my parents’ room, where on my arrival, I slammed the door shut behind me.
My Mom and Dad awoke instantly. The lights switched on and I did my best to explain about the Monster and how it had chased me from my room and how it looked at me with its black eyes.
I told them not to go and investigate, but they both went to look. Then after a little while, they returned.
My dad said it could have been a Spider at my window, or maybe just a bad dream. He held my hand and took me around my room and showed me there were no Monsters. I showed him to the corner where the Monster had been, and he pointed to my school bag that lay on the floor in the corner of the room. But I knew the Monster wasn’t the bag, or was it?
For the rest of the night, I slept with my parents in their bed, but come the morning, my Dad sat me down and told me there was nothing to fear. “It’s all in your imagination Max.”, he said. “One day, you’ll be brave enough to realise there are no such thing as Monsters.”. Mom chimed in “Your Dad is right Max. We’ll just make sure your school bag is put away tonight, and everything will be fine.”
At the time, I was sure I knew they were wrong. As nice and loving as my parents were, they never believed me when I told them of my Monster. On the following night, when I ran to their room and the bedside light switched on, my Dad would groan and my Mom would say "He's just got an over active imagination. He'll soon grow out of it".
But little did I know, that was just the beginning of my Monster troubles. Apart from the little black eyes, I never actually saw my monster, but I knew it was there. Waiting. Watching me from the dark. Waiting to put the fear in me. Waiting for me to run from my bed, along the hall and to the safety of my parents’ room.
I hid beneath the bedsheets, waiting and watching in the darkness. Hoping beyond hope that the Monster had forgotten all about me, wishing I would just fall asleep, into the safety of dreams.
But for a time, night after night, it would come for me.
That was until the day we got Fluffy the kitten.
