The Girl on the Tube

  

This morning on my way into work, I was on the Overground train reading when I suddenly heard, quite loudly, "No I don't want to go for coffee with you." said very firmly, very strongly, and with enough annoyance to cause a few people (not just me) to look up.

Packed into the rush hour crush, a frustrated looking woman with a huge suitcase and several bags was stood facing me. Behind her was a hugely tall and broad man with a smile on his face.

"Why not?" He said slowly. "Where is your stop?" To which she just desperately huffed and lifted her shoulders to block him off. This led to him saying things like "Why are you in a bad mood?" "Lets go for coffee." "I'm in a very good mood."

This last comment was said so indescribably creepily that I was seriously worried for her. She was keeping her back to the man, not engaging him at all, even calling attention to the fact that he was a creep, and yet because of how densely we were packed, and how bug her suitcase was, she was in no position to get away.

The train stopped, and she very quickly pushed through the crowd to get off. The man followed her.

Since I was at the door, I placed myself between the man and the door to slow him down a bit after she got off, and the last I saw of them was the woman jumping on the next carriage, and the man walking down the platform. I'm fairly certain that he didn't get on after her, but I was the only person who moved to get in his way.

What the hell, Londoners?

The way he was looking at her, and the way he followed her off the carriage was seriously creepy, yet no one tried to intervene. The suits in her way did move quickly to let her through but they didn't crowd back together when this guy followed, and they certainly weren't saying anything to him.

Why did this woman have to put up with the guy's attentions? She was obviously angry, and obviously frustrated. Yes this guy was huge, yes it was rush hour, and yes she did end up safely in another carriage but still!

Why did no one do anything?

More importantly, why didn't I?