Stranger Danger

12

Trigger Warning: Brief mention of suicide/self-harm

Andy had six missed calls and a voicemail when he checked his phone during the lunch break in the studio. He put the device to his ear to listen to the message; "This is Officer Clarke from the North-West Police department, I'm trying to reach Mr Andrew Biersack. Please get in contact through the following number as soon as you can." Then she recited a phone number and repeated who she was hoping to talk to before the message ended. 

Gathering his things, Andy left the studio and sat in his car to call her back. "Uh, hey," he said when she answered, unsure of what he was supposed to say. "I'm Andy, uh, Andrew Biersack, you called me?" 

"Ah, Mr Biersack, thank you for getting in contact. I'm sorry to have interrupted your day, I'm sure you have things to do. My name's Sarah Clarke. I've got a young man in the station who claims to know you. It's important we get to the bottom of what's going on, so we would appreciate if you could come into the station as soon as you can." 

"Oh, fuck," Andy muttered. "Is he, like, wearing rags and claiming everything is evil?" 

"That's him." 

"Fuck. Okay. I'll be right there." 

* * * 

Sarah greeted Andy at the station and led him into a small room where they could discuss the issue in private. "Take a seat," she said, and sat across from him with a clipboard before continuing. "Andrew, thank you for coming in on short notice. On the phone, it sounded as though you're familiar with him." 

"Yeah. He was staying with me for a few weeks before he went back to his, uh, his house." 

"And is that the house that has just been knocked down in the forest?" 

"Uh...yes." He frowned. "It was knocked down? When?" 

"Earlier today." 

"Fuck. Is he okay?" 

"He's largely unharmed apart from some cuts on his arms, yes. Do you know why he's been in that house? Is he homeless?" 

"He's lived there his whole life, as far as I'm aware. Look, sorry to be rude or whatever, but can I see him? It's just, he's terrified of most things and he trusts me." 

"How long have you known him?" 

"Only a few weeks." 

"And you were aware when you first met him that he was illegally living in that house?" 

"Are you gonna arrest him? It's not his fault, his family left him there. He's just trying to survive. He didn't know he was doing anything wrong." 

"Were you aware?" 

Andy sighed. "Yes. But I was trying to help him. He's not a criminal, he's just scared. Please, don't arrest him. He hasn't hurt anyone." 

"You say his family left him there. Do you know his family?" 

"He has two brothers, I saw them for, like, ten seconds and never spoke to them. Couldn't tell you their names or anything. Please, can I just see him?" Andy shifted in his seat. "I swear, he's not trying to do anything wrong. That house was all he knew. It was his home. And now it's gone, and he's terrified of people. If the owner of the land the house was on wants money for trespassing or whatever, I'm happy to pay. But please, please don't punish him." 

"I appreciate that you care for him, Andrew, but I can't finalise anything until we get to the bottom of exactly what's been going on. For now, I need as much information as you can give me about him, starting with his name and age."