I used to be afraid

In the middle of the night

I would search every shadow

Check the closet

And then look again

Make sure that

There were no monsters

But then

One night

After

That night

I woke up

Started to check

Saw a great big shadow

Started to scream

It was Al

He turned his head

Said something comforting

I smiled sleepily

Turned back over

Went back to sleep

Al will keep the monsters away