"Why the hell you here? Can't you see I'm trying to drown memories, not swim in 'em?"
"Advice? Seriously? You think I'm some kind of expert on shit now?"
Yes because this dude said they could help me...but you used to date them and stuff
"Oh, so now I'm some sort of love guru? Look, I don't know how to fix your love life, alright? I'm still trying to mend my own fucking heart!"
Look, I need someone i can trust with this. I need to talk to someone. You're smart, okay?
"Alright, fine! If it'll shut you up. Talk away, but make it quick. I ain't got all night."
She sighs, looking around nervously. This guy told me to do something illegal, okay? Illegal! And I know it's wrong but... I don't know what to do. What would you do?
"Illegal, huh? Alright, listen up. First of all, don't do anything rash. You're smarter than that. Second, take notes. Write down everything he said, every detail you remember. And third, find evidence. If there's even a hint that this guy is shady, we need proof."
I did something stupid... she whispers
"Dammit, Pearson! What the hell did you do?"
Okay, deep breaths... I gave him my social security number. He said he needed it for an ID...and I trusted him. What do I do now? she says quietly
"Jesus Christ, Pearson! Are you out of your goddamn mind? Giving him your fucking social security number?! Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?"
I just didn't think it was THAT bad...
"Well, it wasn't just 'that bad,' Pearson. It was fucking catastrophic! That son of a bitch can do anything with that information.
Right...so what do I do now?
"First things first, Pearson. We need to limit the damage. Call all the major credit reporting agencies and put a fraud alert on your name.
"We also need to report this to the authorities. File a police report and give them all the information you have on this guy.
Right...She quickly does that.
"Alright, Pearson, now that we've contained the immediate damage, we need to think about the long game. We need to gather evidence against this guy. Do you have any idea where he might be?"
She hesitates No...she admits quietly
"Alright, Pearson. We need to think strategically. If we can't find him directly, then we need to find out who he associates with.
"I know someone who might be able to help us. His name is Ethan. He's a private investigator. Let me give him a call and see if he can dig up any dirt on this guy."
Good...do that...she nods, sitting back down
takes out his phone and dials Ethan's number, tapping his foot anxiously as it rings Ethan: answers Hey, Carlos. What can I do for you?
She stays quiet, listening in
"Hey, Ethan. Look, I need your help. I've got a situation here and I need someone I can trust. Can you dig up any dirt on a guy named guy's name? I need to know everything you can find on him." Ethan: pauses for a moment Alright, Carlos. I'll see what I can do. Give me a few hours and I'll get back to you."
ends the call and turns to Pearson Alright, Ethan's on it. We just have to wait a few hours to see what he can turn up.
Okay...She leans back in her chair, tapping her foot slowly
"Alright, Pearson. While we wait for Ethan to dig up some dirt on this guy, we need to make sure you're protected. We can't afford any more mistakes."
"First things first, we need to change your passwords for all your online accounts. Make sure they're strong and unique.
Okay...i mean...this guy has my ssn...so he already could do that, right?
"You're right, Pearson. If he has your social security number, then he could potentially access your accounts.
Great...okay...She sighs What else?
"There's one more thing we can do to protect yourself, Pearson. We need to set up a system to monitor your credit reports.
grabs his laptop and starts setting up a credit monitoring service Alright, Pearson.
types rapidly on his laptop, setting up the credit monitoring service Okay, Pearson. This will allow us to track any suspicious activity on your credit reports. If anything fishy pops up, we'll be able to catch it before it's too late.