The monster under my bed really likes donuts

I mean he will eat an entire box of dunkin’

And on Saturday mornings, he asks for his usual

A plain waffle and black coffee

Says it’s not easy to stay awake when you are always in the dark

The monster under my bed doesn’t sleep

Instead, at night when I am asleep,

He slithers out from underneath my bed

To stargaze underneath the glow in the dark star stickers on my ceiling

I know this because I have seen it, eyes half closed in a quiescent room

Detached from space and time

The monster under my bed wears a purple and cream striped tie

It is slightly small for him and hangs significantly above his belt

It looks more like a crumpled, thin strip of cloth

Than a tie

If I remember correctly, he bought it from Walmart, on sale 20% off

You’d be surprised what you can find at Walmart, he says

The monster under my bed loves Halloween

Last year, for instance, he dressed up as the Babadook

In a black top hat and cape, both from Walmart

He sewed himself a mask out of scraps of popped balloons

And looked quite frightening

The monster under my bed was gone when I woke up

A Tuesday of three years past, he did not respond to my jovial

“Good morning”

I have not seen him since

He left a note which I found underneath my pillow

It read

“You don’t need me anymore.”