She took a deep inhale from the cheap cigarette before blowing it out through her nose in the cold air. Huddled tight under the threadbare coat she wore, she shivered, waiting desperately for the bus. She was new to the city, like many before her, there to escape her past. Here, among the swath of masses, she hoped that she could lose herself. Here, no one could find her, know her, shame her. Her jeans had earned their rips and tears honestly, no cosmetic tweaks for her Salvation Army clothing. She exhaled again, coughing in a fit, stubbing out the addiction between her fingers. She'd quit smoking but it was her sole enjoyment and she had cried the last time she had thought about quitting. Without it, she'd have a bit more money and nothing else. So she stuck to her one vice.
She looked up down the street and then her phone, cracked and 4 years old. Even after being charged, it was down to 10% and would be dead soon. Nothing of hers worked well and it was another expense she couldn't afford. The economy was supposedly good but all she could find was minimum wage jobs and even the most basic decent apartment was well outside her price range. So she lived a block away, in a rat infested hellhole, scared every night of the sounds she heard. Random screams, crying, fucking, arguments, all easily heard through her paper thin walls. How can you be surrounded by millions and yet, be so alone?
She watched as a large man walked up to the bus stop. Most people she could ignore or ignored her, but she'd seen him before. He leered. He was one of those who not only undressed you with their eyes, but didn't care if you knew it. She hated him so much. He reminded her of her stepdad. He had those same eyes, eyes and hands that drove her here. The last few times he had been around, she'd not been alone. This evening however, it was just the two of them. She looked at her phone again, down to 7% now, and still no bus despite being 5 minutes late.
It was then she felt him. On the open street there was no reason for him to be so close, but he was right behind, stepping into her, his crotch pushing into her ass as he reached around and forcefully cupped her breast, pulling her against him. She should have screamed, she should have slapped or pulled away, but to her shame, she froze. Just like with her stepdad, she froze. She felt his disgusting breath on her ear as he leaned in and whispered to her.