by DP Scott
There’s a Monster in the Wall!
D. P. Scott
Copyright 2012 D. P. Scott
In bed with the covers pulled tightly over his nose, Jacob lay listening. His eyes darted from the window to the wall. It was windy outside and he could hear a swishing noise from the blowing tree branches. But that didn’t frighten him. It was the noise that was coming from the wall right beside his head. Something was moving around on the other side of the blue paint! Jacob knew what was coming next--the horrible, terrifying, moaning sound. He shivered at the thought.
Diving under his blankets, he let out a shout, “Mom! Dad! Help!”
He heard running footsteps, and then, his parents rushed into his room. “What is it? Are you sick?” asked his mother, gently lifting the covers off his head.
“The monster’s back! I heard him! He’s there, in the wall!” yelled Jacob, pulling the blanket back down.
His parents raised their eyebrows, and glanced at each other.
“We’ve been through this before son. Aren’t you a little too big to believe in monsters, you’re almost eight years old?” said his father, looking down his glasses at the bump in the bed.
Jacob felt embarrassed, “Well, I wouldn’t believe in them if there wasn’t one in my wall.” Slowly Jacob pulled the blanket away exposing one frightened eye. “He’s really in there Dad.”
“I can’t hear anything,” said his father, putting his ear to the wall. “It must be the wind outside.”
“I can’t either Jacob. It’s just your overactive imagination,” said his mother. “Try to get some sleep. You have school tomorrow.”
Jacob was disappointed that the noise had stopped the minute his parents had come into his room. “What do I do if he tries to get me?”
“Be friendly,” replied his father, with a wink as he moved towards the door.
“And nice,” added his mother. They left and closed the door to his room.
Jacob waited and listened, clutching his blanket. He couldn’t hear anything now except the wind in the trees. Maybe it was his imagination. He turned over and tried not to think about it. But just as he started to fall asleep, the scratchy noise started up again. “Are you in the wall?” Jacob asked, his lower lip quivering.
“Yes, I am.”
Jacob sat bolt upright. “Why are you trying to frighten me?”
“I’m not,” said a see-through green object with red eyes. It floated out of the wall, and hovered just above Jacob’s head.
“Ahhhh....” screamed Jacob.
“Eeeek...” screamed the Monster.
“What is going on in here?” yelled Jacob’s father, rushing back into the room.
“Nothing Dad,” said Jacob, noticing the monster had suddenly vanished.
“Well, settle down! As your mother said, you have school tomorrow.”
“Okay,” said Jacob looking towards the wall the second the door was closed. “Are you still here?” he whispered.
“Of course I am. I’m here every night,” exclaimed the Monster, coming out of the wall with a big smile.
“Do you think it’s funny to scare people, Monster?” asked Jacob.
“I’m not a monster, my name’s Drake, and you scared me!” he replied, doing several cartwheels in the air.
“Anyone would think you were a monster with your ugly green skin, and horrible red eyes. And the scary noise you make in the wall, well, I hate it,” replied Jacob.
“Just because someone looks different than you do, it doesn’t mean they’re ugly or a monster. And that scary noise...I was singing as I was cleaning up.”
Jacob looked surprised. “Cleaning up? What do you do in the wall?”
Drake laughed. “I live there.”
“What for?” asked Jacob.
“To watch over you when you sleep, and to wake up your parents if you get sick, that sort-of stuff. We aren’t really supposed to talk to you. You see Green Things are sent for children. Big people can’t see us, although they probably had one in the wall or under their bed when they were kids. Most children do.”
Drake began to change colors, first he was green, then blue, then yellow, and then orange.
“I’ve never known anyone who can fly and change colors. You’re pretty neat Drake,” said Jacob, smiling.
“Oh this is nothing. I can make funny faces too. Watch this!”
They both made faces, but Drake’s were the best. He could rearrange his face by putting his eyes where his mouth should have been, and his ears on top of his head. He could also make his face long and thin, or very fat. Jacob and Drake laughed until their stomachs hurt.
“You better go to sleep now Jacob, it’s late,” said Drake, floating into the wall.
When he was half-way in and half-way out, Jacob called out to him, “Drake, can you come to school with me tomorrow and meet my friends?”
“That’s impossible. In the day I’m invisible to everyone, and at night the only person that can see me is you. Each Green Thing is responsible for one kid. I can only stay as long as you need me, then I have to go to someone else.” With those words and a flash, Drake disappeared.
The next day Jacob leaped out of bed and ran down to breakfast. He could hardly wait to get to school and tell his best friend Arnold about Drake. Eating as quickly as he could, he grabbed his lunch and headed out the door.
“Aren’t you going to say goodbye?” asked his mother.
“Bye Mom, see you after school.”
Jacob sat on the school bus guarding the seat beside him. His best friend Arnold got on the bus five stops after him, and Jacob had to make sure no one else took the seat. “Taken,” he would say to the other kids who tried to sit down while he looked for Arnold’s red baseball cap. Finally, Arnold got onto the bus.
“Over here,” yelled Jacob. He was bursting to tell Arnold the news. When Arnold settled into the seat, Jacob whispered, “Arnold, have you ever had a monster in your room?”
“What do you mean Jacob?” he asked, pulling out an Oreo cookie from his lunch.
“Like a Green Thing, under your bed, or in the wall.”
“Nah, that’s baby stuff,” said Arnold, taking a bite out of his cookie.
“Maybe, but what if you could talk to one?”
“Well, I guess that would be sort of cool,” said Arnold, finishing his snack.
Jacob told Arnold all about Drake, and how he could change colors and make funny faces. He even let him know Drake said most kids have a Green Thing in their room.
“Are you sure you didn’t dream it Jacob?” asked Arnold, looking at him suspiciously.
“No, I’m pretty sure Drake is real.”
“Yeah, well don’t go telling any of the other kids because it could be real embarrassing if you just imagined him!”
During school Jacob tried to focus on what the teacher was saying, but all he could think about was his new friend Drake. He hoped he hadn’t dreamt him up! When the bell finally rang, Jacob jumped out of his chair and started to run into the cloakroom to get his jacket.
“Don’t forget about the spelling test tomorrow girls and boys,” said his teacher.
Jacob returned to his desk, and grabbed the list of words they had to know. He glanced at the list and became discouraged. There was no way he would ever be able to learn all of the words tonight. When he got on the school bus, he started to worry. He had already been to two parent-teacher meetings because of his poor grades.
That night Jacob got into his pyjamas and brushed his teeth without being asked. His parents were surprised. “You can watch TV for thirty minutes before bedtime if you want,” called his mother.
As he tried to memorize the list of words, Jacob became upset. He knew he was going to fail the test and disappoint his parents again. When his Mom and Dad came to say goodnight, he hid the spelling sheet under his blanket until they left and closed the door.
Jacob waited a moment, and then put his ear to the wall, and listened. “Drake, can you hear me?” There was no answer. “Drake?” he called a second time. When there was still no answer, Jacob threw his head into the pillow. “This is the worst day of my life!”
“Why is it the worst day?” asked Drake, flying out of the wall so fast that Jacob jumped.
“You are real!” exclaimed Jacob.
“I told you I was yesterday.”
“Arnold said I probably dreamt you up.”
“Yeah, most kids don’t talk to their Green Things, and big people grow up and forget they ever had one,” said Drake. “Why is this the worst day of your life?”
“It’s kind of a long story, and I don’t really like to talk about it,” said Jacob quietly.
Drake