Blue Alert - 4

"James"

-x-

I really needed to stop waking up in weird places. I could hear people talking around me.

"--e have a history of narcolepsy?"

"I'm... not sure. Sandra never said anything about it."

"I see. Well, Mr. Ainsley, you might want to get him checked at a hospital for any psychological damage."

"Wh-What?"

"He's in your care, sir. Until we can locate a relative of his, he'll be under your roof for the time being."

What? I opened my eyes, only to squeeze them closed again -- too bright. I had to wait until my eyes adjusted to give a look-see.

"But isn't he already of legal age?"

"I'm well aware of that, but for the purpose of our investigation and because you are the closest he has to family right now until we contact any other relatives he has, we ask that you accept him temporarily."

I turned my head to see Mike talking with that one guy who drove me... Wait, where was I again? I looked around. I was in the police department, just outside someone's office. I think I was sleeping on the bench, it would explain why I was lying down on it.

"Scott!"

I turned to see Mike looking at me. I wasn't too fond of that name; only my mother called me by it. Now she couldn't. "You know I hate that name, Mike."

I sat up slowly, conscious of how I still looked like someone threw me in the sewer and pulled me back out after three hours of soaking. I really needed some new clothes. And a bath. Maybe some new skin, too, because this was disgusting.

I looked up to see Mike and that officer staring at me. "...What?"

Mike shook his head. "Nothing. ...Hey, you want to get some new clothes and whatnot?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "But where? My house has reporters and cops surrounding it."

Mike flapped a hand. "I'll take you to my place. You can borrow something from me before we go buy you something more your size."

"What's wrong with getting clothes from my house?"

This time the officer -- I finally saw his name badge on the breast of his uniform, it said "Johnson" in all caps -- answered me. "Since your house is now a crime scene, we won't be allowing anyone in or out of the house aside from forensics. You'll have to get some new clothes for the time being, and notify your school about your new situation."

Situation. He said it as if I merely had some sort of medical problem. But no. Hello! Correct me if I'm wrong, but my mom's dead. I don't even know all the details except that she's d-e-a-d. Was anyone couldn't to give me the 411 or did I have to go home and spruce up first?

Mike sat down on the bench next to me, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry, Sc--James. We'll get along well, right? And it'll just be for a little while."

I looked at him, then gave a sigh. "...Okay. I just want answers."

Mike's hand squeezed my shoulder. "I'll tell you once we're out of here, okay?"

I nodded. What else was I supposed to do? Mike helped me up and after talking with the officer for another minute or two, he led me away. Walking through the halls, I realized that we were in the police station. Blue collars were everywhere, doing something. I only saw a few female police officers and they weren't anything like the ones you normally saw on the television or in movies. There was no sexy, romantic element to them. And they definitely didn't wear skirts.

When we were outside, Mike showed me to his car. He even opened the door for me, which was a little weird. Mike never really paid much attention to me before. Not to say he ignored me, but he just really liked my mom. And I... was baggage. We had a different relationship, different from the ones I had with my mom's previous boyfriends.

As we drove, Mike was quiet. He played music to help pass the time, and I couldn't really blame him for doing so. I just stared out the window, thinking things over. It took Mike a few minutes to finally talk to me, explaining what had happened. I took it all in, saying nothing afterward. It was weird how I didn't start crying after hearing my mom has been stabbed. And not just her, but Jasper too. I loved that dog... He was always there for me when I needed him. And now, even he was gone.

I had nothing left but myself. And who knew what was going to happen to the house and everything else inside. Would they find evidence of who did it? Would there be proof somewhere that would lead to the person who killed my only family? Would there be punishment when that happened? And how severe? How much time could a person get if convicted of murder and animal cruelty?

I leaned my head against the window. I could hear Mike sniffling just under the croon of the radio. This was depressing. But oddly enough... not nearly as much as I thought it should be. I couldn't tell if I was sad or still in shock. I heard some people took a long time to come to terms with the death of a family or loved one. Maybe that was the case with me.

When we arrived at Mike's place, I still hadn't so much as sniffled. Mike lived in a bachelor's apartment, so the place was pretty small. Enough for one person, but not two. He let me use his bathroom. I stripped and showered for what must have nearly been a whole half hour, scrubbing at my skin, trying to get rid of the grime and smell.

Mike let me borrow a towel and a set of clothes which I changed into. Looking at myself in the mirror, it was easy to say I wasn't in the best of conditions. I looked like I needed twelve more hours of sleep and probably some miracle cream. And food too. My stomach grumbled, reminding me that I hadn't eaten yet.

I met Mike in the living room and asked if there was anything to eat. He let me have full access to the kitchen, so I helped myself to the fridge. I made myself a sandwich and sat down to eat, watching Mike as he occupied himself with something in the living room.

"How long am I supposed to stay with you?" I asked, halfway through my sandwich.

Mike looked at me and shook his head. "I don't know. The police are working on getting this figured out. You're welcome to stay as long as necessary. Or until you have somewhere more permanent to stay. I gave Officer Johnson my number so he'll call if anything comes up." He smiled sadly. "It might be a few days. We... we can go get you some new clothes and whatever else you need in the meantime."

I just nodded in return. If that's what I had to deal with, then that's what I had to deal with. Really, there was nothing else I could do except follow directions. My life... at this point... was just too much to handle. I'd rather let someone else take the reins for a while until it all settled down.