WARNING to female bus travellers...

Every once in awhile, one of my classmates comes to school and shares a story about a horrible experience they have had while riding the bus to or from school. Usually, I listen, comment on how weird their experience was, and thank God nothing out of the ordinary ever happens to me. Unfortunately, something happened on the bus on my way home from school Tuesday, and I was so scared that I feel I have a responsibility to blog about.

I was taking the bus all the way from downtown to the University of Manitoba, as usual. I am always on at the first bus stop, and off at the last bus stop, so I spend the hour on my Blackberry catching up on Facebook, emails, or anything else of interest. Yesterday I was doing the same thing, and didn't pay attention when a man sat down beside me. The bus started it's journey, and I peacefully zoned out.

As the bus ride progressed, I became aware that the man sitting beside me started moving closer and closer. Initially I wasn't concerned, as sometimes people need slightly more room to be comfortable. But, he didn't stop moving, and I gradually started to feel that he was invading my personal space. I politely asked him to move over a little bit, and after staring at me hard for a moment, he complied.

Around this time, many readers might be asking me why I didn't get up and move. I would have, but the bus was completely packed. I was stuck, and I decided to stick it out beside this individual who was beginning to set off warning bells in my head.

At a major bus stop, most of the passengers cleared out. There was only myself, the man beside me, and three other people remaining. Instead of moving away into a vacant seat, as most people would do, he stayed right beside me and started moving closer again. Just when I was about to ask him to move, he turned to me and said "hello." I didn't know what to say, so I responded curtly. He asked me if I was going to the university. Obviously I was, because that was the next major place the bus was stopping, so I nodded weakly.

Next, the man turned to me, and said "you are very beautiful." At that point, I was done. I loudly told him he was being inappropriate, and asked him to get up and move so I could sit somewhere else. Initially, he didn't move, but when I stood up he got out of my way. I quickly moved towards the front of the bus, pulled out my cell phone, and called my boyfriend.

This is where things start to get scary. He FOLLOWED me to the front of the bus, sat down across from me, and wouldn't stop staring at me. On the phone, I was able to convey to my boyfriend that I was in trouble. He said he was coming to my aid as quickly as possible. When the bus prepared to stop at it's final destination, I wanted to see if this man was actually following me. I stood up, as if I was preparing the exit the bus. The man stood us as well. I then quickly sat back down. So did he, and he was still watching me as I was talking on the phone. When the bus stopped, I got up and literally ran out the back door. I walked towards a group of people, moved off the sidewalk, and stopped.

The man walked by a moment later. I initially thought he was going to keep walking, and that I was being paranoid. Then, he stopped looked around, spotted me, and started walking towards me. I put out a hand, which basically said "get the hell away from me." The man took a step backwards, turned, and walked across the street. When he reached the other side, he stopped, turned back, and started staring at me again. I was terrified. Why was this man still watching me? By this point, it was clear that he was following me.

Thankfully, my boyfriend arrived a few moments later. I am fairly sure that as we were driving away I saw the same man walk by again, except he had taken off his hat and put the hood of his jacket on. Talk about scary. In hindsight, I know I should have told the bus driver immediately. I didn't, because when something like this happens a person naturally assumes they are being irrational. Most people also don't want to make a fuss, because it is possible they are wrong. I should have followed my intuition and said something right away.

I will be filing a police report about the incident, because it is possible this man has done this to someone else before me. He may also do it again. I want to stress how very important it is that women listen to their intuition. It's better to be safe and wrong than in danger and right. There are all kinds of people out there, and not everyone is a decent, honest person like you and me.

It is always an interesting experience when taking the bus. Make sure to pay attention to your surroundings, and always be aware of who is sitting beside you. I am lucky that nothing worse happened that day, but I was truly terrified by this experience.