The internet can be a place of sanctuary for young people who are struggling to find their place in the real world. Whether using social media or messenger apps, teenagers can connect and seek out the like-minded people they lack the company of in everyday life.
After struggling with anxiety and depression, Bianca Devins, 17, turned to the online community and found a place where she felt accepted. As well as chat rooms, she used TikTok and had an Instagram account, where she talked about popular video games and emo fashion.
Bianca lived with her mum and younger sister in Utica, New York, and had just graduated from high school. Having overcome her own troubles, she was about to go to college to study psychology so she could learn how to help others.
By 2019, Bianca was in a good place with her mental health and was becoming popular online, building up a small audience. She would happily chat to followers – and that was how she met Brandon Clark.
The 21-year-old messaged her that April and they struck up a friendship. Clark, who came from a broken home and ended up in foster care, had also struggled to fit in and found like-minded people online. They met in person and he went to Bianca’s high school graduation party. People commented that he was very well-mannered but while Bianca only saw him as a friend, it was clear that Clark wanted more.
He was searching her social media constantly, saving her photos, sending her lots of messages and taking screenshots of all the chats they had. Clark had a habit of getting fixated on things, whether it was Pokémon or the latest online game – and it looked like Bianca was his new obsession. Even though she wasn’t interested, he told people she was his girlfriend – and maybe he thought that would be the case eventually, if he could just win her affections.
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