A Monster's Love

It’s never been easy for me to make friends. With my Mom searching for success and my Dad begrudgingly going with the plan, there’s never been time to settle down and try to make connections. My status at school was the weird artist loner who sat by herself and drew in her tattered red sketchbook. And to add insult to injury, Mom’s road to success was blocked by two obstacles: Not enough money and Dad’s inability to find a stable job. Since both parental units were busy trying to survive, they had little time to worry about me. There were no friends to turn to, no one to comfort me. I just sat in my room while my hollowed out heart searched for love and friendship in the unsympathetic sheets of my bed.

The only solace I had was my art and the stories spreading around town. Many of the kids were speaking of a shadow monster living in the nearby woods. Though nobody had truly seen it, the descriptions were always the same: a shadowy mass with red eyes, giant fangs and sharp claws. I had always ignored these tales, but always wondered what it would be like to have a monster as a friend. Someone who would completely understand me and rid me of all of the loneliness and solitude plaguing the toxic cesspool that was my life. Unbeknownst to me, I was going to find out what that life was like very, very soon.

On this particular day, I was drawing in my room while my parents had decided to dig up their usual argument about money again. My heart sank as the loud talking began to increase in volume. I hope there won't be any broken cups or dishes when I go downstairs.

“If you didn’t keep spending our money on booze and jewelry, we could afford the rent on this place!” I heard my Dad scoff after Mom yelled at him.

“Maybe if you made more money, we wouldn’t be having this talk.”

“Don’t you dare blame this on me! I’m the only one working in this house, while you sit on your ass all day! If you hadn’t noticed, we have a daughter who needs to eat and live in a house in order to survive!”

“Hey, finding a new job is hard in an area you don’t know! And the fact that you loved us to this Podunk town in the middle of nowhere doesn't make it any better!” As the yelling continued, I decided to head out for the day. I packed up my supplies, quietly went down the stairs and snuck into the kitchen. After sneaking a bag full of peach slices under my arm, I slipped out of the kitchen door and walked my way down to the forest behind my house.

I don’t know how long I sat underneath the forest's glen. All I knew was that when I looked up, the sun was almost halfway down the sky. In the soft light I looked down at the drawing in my sketchbook. There were drawings of flowers, leaves, a thorny bush and a gorgeous red bird which had perched on a nearby tree. I ate another peach slice and sighed. Time to go back home and face my parents. But as I packed for the walk back, a large shadow crested over me. I shivered as hot breath tickled the back of my neck.

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” I thought to myself, “Just walk slowly and don’t look behind you.” I stepped forward and winced as a branch snapped underneath my shoe. Whatever it was behind me snarled and the shadow got even bigger. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a large dark shape crawling in front of me. Big red eyes, large white fangs, long claws on lean arms and legs and a skinny scaled body. All of the famed shadow monster’s glory was in front of me, staring down at my awestruck face.

I could do nothing but stand as the creature crawled closer. More breath tickled my skin as the creature crawled forward to smell me. As the thing sniffed, I began to appreciate the monster’s beauty. The black scales on its body gleamed brightly in the waning light, the claws made a pleasant tapping sound against the rocks behind me. And when the creature looked at me again, the red eyes looked a lot more curious rather than fearsome. I saw the eyes looking at my dress pocket where my peach slices were hidden. 

“Oh, are you hungry?” I asked. The creature’s nostrils flared as I revealed the peaches. I pulled out a slice and tossed it in my mouth. “They’re pretty good. Would you like one?” The creature inched closer as I slowly reached my hand forward with the peach. It sniffed the fruit, nudging it with its nose as it judged whether or not to eat it. Soon the creature gently scooped the fruit into its mouth. I gave a small smile as the creature licked peach juice off its mouth.

“Thanks…” The creature hissed.

“Oh my god you talk, that’s...actually really cool.” I laid the rest of the peaches at the creature’s feet, taking a few for myself. “Hope you enjoy them, I gotta go.” In an instant, the creature leapt in front of me, its eyes wide with more innocent curiosity.

“Come back soon?” It asked.

“Yeah, I’ll come back soon. I promise!” I waved and ran into the trees, smiling as I heard the sounds of chewing in the background. 

Over the next few weeks, the shadow creature and I became fast friends. I visited him in the early evenings, walking through the trees with the help of the sunlight and a lantern when I walked back.And with each interaction, I could feel my heart begin to fill with happiness. But at the time, all I could think about was how nice it was to have a mysterious friend to go to after my parents' arguing got worse and worse. When Dad yelled at Mom for burning dinner one night, I taught the monster how to play fetch. When Mom cried after seeing texts from another lady on Dad’s phone, I drew lots of pictures of the monster and I. And when Mom snuck a man in the house when Dad wasn’t home, the monster and I ate a jar of preserved peaches while I read my favorite books by a small fire. As I finished another chapter, I felt something tapping against my arms. I looked down at the monster nose himself on my lap and closed his big red eyes. A small rumbling sound emitted from his scaly neck.

“Friend…Friend read book good...” He hissed softly. As I gently patted his scaly head, I realized he was purring. My astonished face morphed into a smile as he made himself comfortable.

“Aw thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed it.” Silence fell for a few seconds before I finally realized what he had said. “Wait, what? Did you say “friend”?” The monster raised his head from my lap and gave me a lopsided grin.

“Yessss… My best friend...Was alone for so long… I know the human children wish to see me...But whenever I show myself, they run away from mee…Animals are also scared of meee…” The familiar red eyes were downcast as he relieved all of his memories. “But you...You stayed with meee...Fed me peaches, played with me, made me feel less alone…'' I could feel tears prick my eyes as I continued patting my friend’s head. I had starved for attention and love for so long, I had almost forgotten what they felt like. But being surrounded by such an innocent, pure love from this sweet creature was almost overwhelming. I wiped my eyes and gave the creature a watery smile.

“Thank you so much for being my friend… And thank you for making me less alone too.” My friend purred as he wrapped his head around my back, holding me tight as the fire crackled and popped in the dark forest.

But after that day, my home life got worse and worse. The fights got louder and more aggressive. The house was filled with the sounds of yelling, bottles smashing against the floor and Mom’s frequent sobs. More men were escorted through the house when Dad was away, and Dad always came home drunk and rearing to swing at anything. My heart and my mind was absolutely ravaged by the anger, the pain and the sadness surrounding me as I tried skirting around them. I thought I could tough it out and stay the good daughter for Mom’s sake, until Dad started hitting her.

“Please...please, not in front of her…” Mom was crying on the ground, trying desperately to clean up the dishes Dad had tossed to the floor. I cowered underneath the dinner table, trying to inch away from the spilled food and the hulking mass of my father.

““No, she needs to see this! Our daughter needs to know what happens to women who can’t fuckin’ listen!” The onslaught seemed to last for hours. His hairy fists repeatedly smashed into Mom’s face, his knuckles becoming wet with her blood. I couldn’t move to save her, couldn’t move to pull Dad away and couldn’t move to run away. I just sat there while my Mom was brutalized by the beast unleashed from my dad’s body. The only indicator that it had ended was when I heard Dad’s heavy footsteps stomping out of the room and the slamming of the front door. After a few minutes, Mom crawled to me and gently grasped my shoulders.

“Sweetie, we’re going to get out of here. We’re gonna pack our things and stay somewhere else for a few days. Can you go upstairs and pack up?” I nodded and bounded up the stairs. I stuffed my backpack full of everything I could think off, furiously wiping the tears from my cheeks. I listened closely to see if Mom was heading up to my room. But from the sounds of the water running downstairs, she was probably cleaning herself. I quickly opened my bedroom window and bounded over to the trees.

“Friend… What’s wrong?” I sobbed into the warm back scales as the monster cooed comfortingly.

“My Mom… my Mom and I are leaving... My Dad hurt her and left, and she says we need to leave…” I sniffed and cried harder into his body. “I d-don’t when we’re coming back, or if we-we’re coming back at all… I just wanted to say goodbye…”

“Nnooo…” I looked up at the monster’s eyes as he looked down at me. “This is not goodbye… I shall come with you…”

“But how will you travel? I can’t just walk you out to my mom.”

“I can blend in with the shadows...The night allows me to do thisss…” In an instant, darkness swamped my monster friend. All I could see were those giant red eyes in a sea of black. “You lead the way and I shall follow…” I smiled shakily and pressed my hand into the pool of shadow.

“Thank you, thank you so much…” After I ran home, I helped Mom pack up. We rummaged in the couch cushions for spare change, haphazardly packed bags with clothes and toiletries and took whatever canned food we could find in the fridge. We stuffed Mom’s truck with our bags and drove away. I looked out of the window as Mom drove, wondering how my shadow friend was following us. The deep blue sky was already dark as Mom parked outside of a small motel. We checked into a small but clean room with two beds, a small TV, a mini fridge and a small set of cabinets. Mom dropped her bags onto the floor and sat on one of the beds.

“Here, you must be hungry since dinner was...interrupted.” Mom handed me a can of peaches with a crooked smile. “I know how much you love these.” I took the can with a smile of my own. The blankets crinkled as Mom laid down. “I’m gonna sleep, Sweetie. If you’re gonna go out, don’t stray too far okay?”

“I won’t Mom, goodnight.” I gently kissed Mom’s bruised cheek and stepped outside. The sound of the can popping open added to the sound of cars passing and crickets chirping. I looked around to see where my friend was, when I saw movement underneath Mom’s car. Two red eyes blinked from underneath the car as his shadowy body floated away from it. I smiled as the shadow settled behind me like a very friendly cape. “Glad you made it here safely.”

“Anything for a friend…” He said gently, “Mom okayyy?”

“I don’t think so, but she’s trying to hold it together…” I clutched the can of peaches, the sounds of my Mom screaming and crying still ringing in my head. “I wish I was strong enough to help her, I just feel so useless…”

“I’ll help…” My monster puffed himself up with determination. “Anyone you love I shall protect...No one will hurt my friends…” I spread my arms wide for a hug, my body shaking with grateful sobs. My monster shifted from its shadow form into its original form for the hug. As I stroked the monster’s cool scales, I focused on my heart. The sensitive organ was practically overflowing with love for my new friend. After so many months of not getting so much as a kiss on the forehead, I now had the absolute adoration and love of a supernatural creature willing to do anything to protect me. I looked up at the myriad of stars peppering the sky. Whatever revenge my dad may be cooking up will definitely have to wait. Because I had a supernatural shadow creature ready to bare his fangs to protect us, all in the name of love.