Doug in the Dark

Doug in the Dark

Doug was a four-year-old boy who was very shy.

At night, when the lights were off, he felt tiny and scared.

Sometimes Doug had big, noisy nightmares.

He would wake up shaking and run down the hallway to his parents’ room.

“Mom! Dad! The dark is too scary!” he cried as he climbed into their bed.

They hugged him and kept a little lamp on, but Doug still felt worried inside.

One sunny afternoon, Grandma came to visit Doug at home.

She had a soft, squishy package in her bag.

“I brought you a special friend,” Grandma said, smiling.

She pulled out a fluffy white rabbit with long ears and a round belly.

“This is Coco,” Grandma said.

“When you press Coco’s tummy, he will glow and keep you company at night.”

Doug pressed Coco’s belly, and a warm, gentle light shone out.

It was like a tiny night-sun glowing in his hands.

Doug hugged Coco very close.

Coco felt soft and safe, like a warm pillow that could listen.

That night, Doug held Coco in bed.

He whispered, “I’m scared of the dark,” and pressed Coco’s bright tummy.

In Doug’s mind, Coco’s stitched mouth turned into a real smile.

“I’m here,” Coco seemed to say. “You are braver than you think.”

Doug peeked around his dark room.

With Coco’s glow, the scary shapes turned into his chair, his toys, and his bookshelf.

“Those weren’t monsters,” Doug whispered.

“They were just my things in the dark.”

Every day, Doug and Coco played together at home.

They built blanket forts, zoomed toy cars, and had pretend tea parties.

When Doug felt nervous, Coco was always in his arms.

“Be strong and brave,” Coco seemed to whisper.

One afternoon, Doug and Coco were playing by the open window.

Doug made Coco “fly” like a superhero.

“Oh no!” Doug gasped as Coco slipped from his hands.

Coco tumbled right out the window and landed in the big garbage can below.

Doug ran to the door, but by the time he got outside, the garbage truck was already lifting the cans.

He saw Coco fall into the back of the big, noisy truck.

For a moment, Doug froze.

He felt small and shaky without Coco’s warm glow in his arms.

Then something inside Doug felt strong.

“I have to be brave for Coco!” he shouted, running after the truck.

He pumped his little legs as fast as he could down the street.

“Stop! Wait! That’s my rabbit!” Doug cried.

The garbage man heard his tiny voice and stopped the truck.

He climbed down and looked at Doug kindly.

“My rabbit is in there,” Doug said, out of breath but standing tall.

“His name is Coco, and I love him.”

The garbage man searched in the truck.

At last, he pulled out a slightly squished, slightly dirty, but very real Coco.

Doug hugged Coco so tightly.

In his mind, Coco hugged him back and whispered, “You saved me all by yourself.”

That night, Doug was sleeping when he heard soft crying.

It was coming from his baby brother’s room.

Doug tiptoed down the hallway with Coco glowing in his arms.

His little brother was curled up, tears on his cheeks.

“I’m scared of the dark,” his brother whimpered.

Doug remembered how that felt.

Coco’s light glowed warmly.

In Doug’s mind, Coco whispered, “Your brother needs me now.”

Doug’s heart squeezed.

“I don’t want you to go, Coco,” he whispered back.

“I’ll be scared without you.”

Coco seemed to smile kindly.

“Your fear is just your imagination,” Coco said in Doug’s mind.

“Just like me talking to you right now is your imagination too,” Coco continued.

“You were brave today. You chased the truck without me.”

Doug thought about running after the big, loud truck all by himself.

He had been scared…but he had still done it.

“You don’t need my light anymore,” Coco seemed to say.

“But your brother does.”

Doug felt sad and brave at the same time.

He slowly placed Coco in his little brother’s arms.

His brother hugged Coco, pressed his belly, and the soft light filled the room.

The crying stopped, and his brother’s face relaxed into a smile.

In his brother’s eyes, Coco came to life again.

“Don’t be scared of the dark,” Coco seemed to tell him. “You are safe.”

Doug watched his brother cuddle Coco and close his eyes happily.

Then Doug turned and walked back to his own room alone.

In the hallway, Doug imagined monsters clawing at his bedroom door.

Big shadows with long fingers reached out in his mind.

Doug took a deep breath.

“It’s just my imagination,” he told himself. “I am not afraid anymore.”

He opened his bedroom door and stepped inside.

The monsters were gone; there were only his toys and his bed.

Doug climbed into bed without Coco for the first time.

The room was dark, but his heart felt bright and strong.

“I am brave now,” Doug whispered to himself.

And he fell asleep happily, all on his own.