It had been like any other trip to the big city. I was on my way back from Seoul to the small town where I lived and taught English. We left at close to midnight, and I was a little annoyed when a middle aged man sat down in the empty seat next to mine. It was always awkward riding along with some stranger sitting next to you. The bus ride would take around 2 hours, so I just leaned my head next to the window and tried to take a nap.
I'm not sure how long I had been sleeping. But something stirred me. It felt like something was stroking my leg. As my eyes fluttered open and tried to adjust to the darkness of the bus, I began to make sense of the situation. The older man who sat next to me was running his left hand up and down my thigh. I was shocked. He had looked so non-threatening. But now I was scared. I froze, unsure of what to do... I didn't want to cause a commotion. The bus was probably packed with other sleepy passengers.
I just stared at his hand. His hand that kept stroking my thigh, up and down. Each time it seemed to creep closer up under my skirt. I knew soon enough that he'd touch somewhere more intimate. My mind was blank. Should I cough? Would he stop if he knew I was awake? I decided to shift away from him in my seat.
He was startled and quickly looked me right in the face. My eyes were wide and my mouth was slightly agape. He knew he was caught, but all he did was grin. Then he brought a finger to his lips as to say "be quiet."
I did as I was told.
He brought his finger down and returned his hand to my thigh. He continued rubbing as he stared into my eyes.