Tiny Sympathy

He needs a nightlight,
Yet he’s the one asking if I’m alright.
Just wanted to check, he explains,
In a voice small enough to disappear in the three feet
Between my small bed and his small frame.
You were making sounds in your sleep.
You sounded scared. I wanted to check.
I’m alright, I say from somewhere between consciousnesses.
Do you need me to come tuck you in again?
An impossibly small shift in the shadows.
A nod in assent.
Symbiosis.
We protect each other from monsters.