In the winter,

I liked to drink hot chocolate.

I used to sit in front of the fireplace,

and not move

until I was scared that my face

caught fire from the heat.

When I was going to bed,

my mother would wrap me up

in blankets,

and I would form my own little cocoon.

I would be safe from the monsters

that linger in the dark

and play over my bed at night.

Now, I lie down

as I listen to the whispers of the rain

that are full of faint yet audible screams and hushed cries

as they fall

in pools where the muddy earth kisses the air.

I hear the monsters begging

in the silence of the rain,

but I ignore their soft thundering pleas.

When I was younger,

my mother used to

bundle me up in blankets

in the winter,

but now it is the summer,

and even the lightest of blankets

makes me too hot.

I used to use them as a force field

to protect me from the monsters

that hide in the dark

that whisper and scream

like the leaking rain.

I still bundle up in a blanket

even though it is 72 degrees

and my forehead is slightly damp

and my pulse quickens

as though I am running through a maze

and time is about to run out

and I cannot see my future.

It begins to blur as the time ticks on

and I am afraid of the monsters

who linger

in this no man's land,

but when I am with you,

you're the only blanket I need.

Your arms are my protection.

I ignore their screams

that bounce off and ricochet

in frenzied patterns along my walls.

Climbing. Reaching. Grasping

along those paper flowers painted on

and suddenly I am OK

with laying bare,

as my nipples stay hard

and goosebumps kiss my body

because the monsters cannot touch me

and the screaming whispers of the rain

cease to antagonize me.

I am 19 and I am still afraid

of the dark

and my monster within

that tries to claw its way out.

So, I pray.

It's raining in the summer and I am 19 and I pray

that you are here to stay

with your arms draped around me

so I can finally sleep.

The rain has become

a sweet melody,

a gentle symphony.

I am 19

and because of you,

I finally know what it is like

to sleep through the night.