Case 36: Courter in Yellow

William Northwest(34)

Dipper POV

My eyes started to sting about an hour ago. I felt like a kid trying to follow the flight pattern of a fly the way I was watching the words swim on my screen.

All of it hurt my head, I had at some point detached myself from knowing Bill looking at these files as if they were about someone entirely different.

Someone who was homeless from his unknown birth date till he was caught shoplifting a jacket from a mall at the age of 13.

Then caught stealing food from three different grocery stores and a gas station only a few months later. He was put in juvenile detention for a few weeks before he was bailed out by the owner of the area's teen center owner who bailed out 3 other teens at the same time.

He lived in the teen center for 2 years before running away.

He lived on the streets of California for another year. Petty robberies around town that went without an offender were accounted to him.

Then the cops picked him up sleeping in a local park. He wasn't in the foster system long enough to run away, only two days after being registered he was adopted by the Northwest family.

From there his records were sealed and other than a few runaway attempts he's been clean ever since.

Nothing other than his location ties him to any gang activities let alone Tad Strange.

None of this reads like Bill to me, the man I know is possessed like he's always lived in the lap of luxury, he doesn't bat an eye at the world below his pay grade and he wears a suit like he was born in it. I can't picture him sleeping on park benches, or stealing food and clothes.

I know I'm too close to this, which is ridiculous because I was brought in to be a fresh pair of eyes. Yet somehow I ended up right in the middle of this shit storm.

There was a very soft knock at the door.

Prying my eyes away my head throbbed right behind my eyes, blurring my vision a little for just a moment. Wendy leaned against my doorway, like she was watching a wild animal.

"Hey there, not a good morning I guess.." She muttered.

"No, not really."

She curled her fingers around her waist. "I've never had to- do this with fellow cops, let alone detectives in my own team. I'm sorry we could be better at this."

I was already shaking my head before she finished talking, "It's fine, really I can't blame you I would be doing the same thing in your shoes, I'm reading his file right now and seeing in real time how close I am to this case. It's bad I should not be on it anymore."

She stepped into my office, closing the door behind her. "That's not it. Gravity Falls may be a city but it's very very small. Everyone knows everyone here. We are all too close to this case." She sat down in the chair on the other side of my desk but she pulled it close and leaned over the desk a bit. "You are a damn good cop, I've seen the case files for the cases you've solved before, we really need someone like you on this. Don't back out now."

"You know he asked me to be his boyfriend last night." I can't really hide it from them forever.

She nodded, "I thought you guys had gotten together sooner. I'm sorry again. I know I wouldn't want to be looking at my partner in this light." Her eyes reflexively flicked out the window to Robbie. I didn't point it out to her.

"Yeah."

She felt the conversation drop awkwardly, I had practically thrown it on the floor and was happy leaving it there.