He had always been afraid of the dark. As a child, he would hide under the covers and pray that the monsters wouldn’t get him. As he grew older, he learned to cope with his fear. He would leave the lights on at night and sleep with the TV on.

But one day, his fear finally caught up with him. He was walking home from work when he heard footsteps behind him. He turned around, but there was no one there. He quickened his pace, but the footsteps grew louder. He started to run, but he knew it was too late.

The darkness enveloped him, and he felt a cold hand on his shoulder. He turned around, and there it was - the monster he had always feared. It was tall and dark, with glowing red eyes. He tried to run, but it was no use. The monster had him in its grasp.

He closed his eyes and waited for the end. But then something strange happened. The monster started to shrink and change shape. It became smaller and smaller until it was no longer a monster, but a small, frightened child.

He realized then that his fear had been holding him back all these years. He had been afraid of something that didn’t even exist. He took the child by the hand and led him to safety. From that day on, he was no longer afraid of the dark.

The end.