text: Hello? Is someone there? Yes. ...Who said that? Me. You gotta be more specific, mister. The monster under your bed. You’re a monster? Correct. And what are you doing under my bed? I don’t know. I just woke up, and here I am. Weird. You’re telling me. So...are you gonna eat me? What? No. Why not? ...Do you WANT me to eat you? No. Well...I’m not that kind of monster. I’m a nice monster. Are there mean monsters? Oh yeah. Lots of them. Where do they live? Somewhere you can’t see them. Another plane of existence. An alternate dimension? Isn’t that what I just said? Oh yeah. Sorry. It’s okay. So what’s your name, mister nice monster? I doubt you could pronounce it. I could try. Just take my word for it. Fine. Well, what should I call you? I don’t care. Give me a name. Uhm...Albert? ALBERT? That’s the best you have? It’s all I could think of. Well, you’re certainly not creative. That doesn’t seem like something a nice monster would say. I’m not nice ALL the time. I can tell. Look, you can call me...Zordor. Zordor? Yes. It’s the closest to my real name. Ok. Nice to meet you, Zordor. My name’s Charlie. Nice to meet you too, Charlie. How old are you? Nine. What about you? Three-thousand. You’re joking, right? Wish I was. Wow. That’s like...forever. Yeah. So...do you live in the monster dimension? Not anymore. What do you mean? They banished me. For what? You don’t want to know. Yes, I do. Tell me. Trust me. Please? Alright, fine. I was eating the younglings. They tasted really good. You ate the baby monsters? Precisely. But I thought you weren’t gonna eat me? I won’t. Human children are far too salty for my taste. How do you know? You know how. Oh... I promise you’re safe. Okay. I trust you. Odd. What’s odd? You. Trusting me. Based solely on my word. Well, you haven’t given me a reason NOT to. I also haven’t given you a reason TO trust me. I’m just really trusting, I guess. I guess so. How long have you been banished? Not too long, actually. Only been a century or so. That’s pretty long. For you, maybe. Will they ever let you go back? I don’t think so. Have you ever tried? Yes. And they cursed me for it. Cursed you? Mhm. What’s the curse? I’m cursed to starve for the rest of my days. Can’t you just eat something? Nope. It never goes away, no matter how much I feast. That’s terrible. Mhm. It sucks. I’d probably go insane. I did too, back when it first happened. And you’re better now? For the most part. I’ve learned to live with it. Well, I’m glad you’re doing better at least. Me too, kid. Wait, I forgot to ask something important. What? What do you look like? Uhm...I have green, reptilian skin. What else? Big, scary horns too. And sharp teeth that cut through anything. That sounds really cool. Kind of. It’s not so great when I bite my tongue. Oh. That probably leaves a lot of blood. Oh, monsters don’t have blood. We have essence. Essence? Yup. It’s like...puzzle pieces of the soul. I don’t get it. I don’t think human minds can comprehend it. Aw, man. Tough luck. Want to know what I look like, Zordor? Sure, why not. So, um...I have blond, fluffy hair, blue eyes, and skin. ...and skin. Yeah. Don’t all humans have that? ...Oh yeah. Ha. You’re funny, Charlie. Thanks, Zordor. You are too. Charlie...it’s time to go to sleep. Not yet, please. I just want to talk a little longer. No. You must rest. But...why? Because...today has been hard, hasn’t it? ... Hasn’t it? ...Yes. Mom and Dad still aren’t getting along, hm? No. They’re not. Mhm. So you need rest. ...Okay. I promise I’ll be here tomorrow night, okay? Okay. You may not remember me. I won’t? No. This isn’t the first time we’ve spoken. Oh. Just...try and remember I’m here for you. I will. Good. Tomorrow will be better. It will? Yes. It will. Okay. I trust you, Zordor. Goodnight, Charlie. I love you.