The Monster Who Was Afraid to Be Mean
- LettersLetter
- May 22
- 5 min read
Momo was a small monster.
He had soft blue fur.
He had round feet.
He had a quiet voice.
Momo lived in a forest with many other monsters.
The forest was dark, but not too dark.
The trees glowed a little at night.
Little lights hung from the branches.
They swayed slowly in the wind.
All the monsters lived in cozy homes.
Some lived in logs.
Some lived in the hills.
Some lived under big roots.
Every night, the monsters went to practice.
It was called Scaring Practice.
They met in a wide place called Echo Field.
“Monsters must be scary,” said Grizzle.
Grizzle was big.
Grizzle was loud.
Grizzle was the teacher.
He stomped his feet.
THUMP. THUMP.
He growled low.
“Grrrrrrrr.”
“Watch me,” said Grizzle.
“This is how a monster scares.”
The other monsters watched.
They nodded.
Then it was their turn.
Wobble went first.
Wobble was round.
Wobble stomped very hard.
“BOOO!” shouted Wobble.
The trees shook a little.
“Good,” said Grizzle.
Next was Twig.
Twig was tall and thin.
Twig bent low, then sprang up.
“HISSS!” said Twig.
“Very good,” said Grizzle.
The monsters clapped.
Then it was Momo’s turn.
Momo walked to the middle.
All the monsters looked at him.
Momo took a deep breath.
He tried to roar.
“Rooo—”
But it came out small.
“...hello.”
The field was quiet.
Then Wobble snorted.
Twig covered his mouth.
A few monsters giggled.
Momo looked down.
“Try again,” said Grizzle.
Momo nodded.
He took another breath.
“BOO!” he tried to say.
But his voice was soft.
“Boo… are you okay?”
More giggles.
Momo’s ears drooped.
“Louder,” said Grizzle.
“Meaner.”
Momo tried again.
He opened his mouth wide.
But what came out was,
“You look nice today.”
The giggles grew bigger.
Momo stepped back.
His face felt warm.
That night, after practice, Momo went behind a hollow log.
He wanted to practice alone.
“I can do this,” he said.
He stood tall.
“BOO!” he said.
But it sounded like,
“Boo… sorry.”
Momo sighed.
He tried a growl.
“Grrr…”
But it turned into,
“Good job.”
Momo sat down.
“I don’t know how to be mean,” he said.
Behind the bushes, Wobble and Twig were watching.
Wobble shook with quiet laughs.
Twig whispered, “He’s the worst monster ever.”
They both ran off, still giggling.
The next night, Momo went back to Echo Field.
He stood in line.
The other monsters whispered.
“That’s him,” one said.
“The soft one,” said another.
Momo looked at his feet.
When it was his turn, he tried again.
“BOO,” he said.
Soft. Small.
Not scary.
Grizzle frowned.
“Momo,” said Grizzle, “monsters must be scary.”
Momo nodded.
“I know,” he said.
“Then try harder,” said Grizzle.
Momo tried.
He really tried.
But it felt wrong inside.
Like wearing shoes that did not fit.
After practice, Momo walked home slowly.
The glowing trees hummed.
The lights swayed.
Momo did not feel cozy.
“I think I am the wrong kind of monster,” he said.
The next night, something different happened.
The monsters went into the forest.
It was part of the practice.
“Stay together,” said Grizzle.
“Do not wander.”
The forest was darker here.
The glowing lights were far apart.
The path was twisty.
Wobble stomped ahead.
Twig stretched up high to look around.
Momo walked quietly.
Then—
A small voice.
“Hello?”
It was faint.
Momo stopped.
“Did you hear that?” he asked.
Wobble kept stomping.
Twig kept looking.
“Hello?” the voice said again.
It was Lumo.
Lumo was very small.
Lumo was new.
Momo turned.
“I hear you,” said Momo softly.
He followed the sound.
Step by step.
Slow and careful.
Behind a bush, under a low tree, Momo found Lumo.
Lumo was curled up tight.
His eyes were wide.
“I can’t find the others,” said Lumo.
“They are too loud.”
“I got scared.”
Momo sat down near him.
Not too close.
Not too far.
“That happens,” said Momo.
“I get scared too.”
Lumo looked up.
“You do?”
Momo nodded.
“Yes.”
The forest was quiet here.
No stomping.
No shouting.
Just soft wind.
Momo spoke gently.
“You are not lost,” he said.
“I am here.”
Lumo took a small breath.
Momo waited.
He did not rush.
“Can you stand?” Momo asked.
Lumo nodded.
Slowly, Lumo stood up.
His legs shook a little.
“That’s okay,” said Momo.
“We can go slow.”
They took one step.
Then another.
Momo did not shout.
He did not roar.
He listened.
He watched.
He stayed close.
In the distance, loud voices.
“LUMO!” shouted Wobble.
“WHERE ARE YOU?” called Twig.
The noise made Lumo flinch.
Momo shook his head gently.
“It’s okay,” he said.
“They are just worried.”
Momo bent low.
“Let’s go this way,” he said softly.
He chose a quiet path.
Step by step.
They walked back.
Soon, the trees grew brighter.
The lights came closer.
The path opened wide.
Wobble and Twig came rushing over.
“Lumo!” they shouted.
“You’re here!”
Lumo held onto Momo’s arm.
“He found me,” said Lumo.
Grizzle stepped forward.
“You found him?” he asked.
Momo nodded.
“Yes.”
“How?” asked Twig.
“We were calling so loudly!”
Momo looked at Lumo.
“I listened,” he said.
“I stayed quiet.”
“I sat with him.”
Wobble blinked.
“You didn’t scare him out?” he asked.
Momo shook his head.
“No.”
“I helped him feel safe.”
The monsters were quiet.
Grizzle looked at Momo for a long moment.
Then he looked at Lumo.
Lumo was standing now.
Not shaking.
Not hiding.
“Hmm,” said Grizzle.
They all walked back to Echo Field.
No one was laughing now.
The lights swayed above them.
Soft and slow.
Grizzle stood in the center.
“Tonight,” he said, “we learned something new.”
The monsters listened.
“Being loud is not the only way,” said Grizzle.
“Being strong is not only about fear.”
He looked at Momo.
“Momo helped in a different way.”
Wobble nodded slowly.
Twig crossed his arms, then uncrossed them.
“That was… kind of brave,” Twig said.
“Yeah,” said Wobble.“Quite brave.”
Lumo smiled up at Momo.
“Thank you,” he said.
Momo felt warm.
Not the bad kind.
A good, soft, warm.
Grizzle cleared his throat.
“Tomorrow,” he said, “we will try something new.”
The monsters leaned in.
“We will practice being quiet,” he said.
“And listening.”
The monsters looked at each other.
Then back at Momo.
Momo gave a small smile.
That night, the forest felt cozy again.
The trees hummed.
The lights swayed.
Momo walked home slowly.
Not because he was sad.
But because he liked the quiet.
“I am a monster,” he said.
Softly.
“And I am me.”
And for the first time,
that felt just right.
The LettersLetter "Free Bedtime Stories Club" Team
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