”Are you ready to leave yet?” I ask Steve.
”Uh. Yeah. I’m going to my hostel now.” He replies.
”Great!” My smile is wide. ”I’m coming with.”
”Why?” He raises an eyebrow at me.
”Nothing major. I just don’t wanna walk alone.” I lie, a small smile on my face.
How do I tell him that I simply need to get past his hostel with a guy who’s popular enough to silence the catcallers? After his hostel, there’s only a girl’s hostel before mine so I can walk the rest of the way by myself.
I typically walk with my friend so we take the long way with no male hostels. She, however, missed classes today, so I’m on my own.
There’s the option of taking a cab, but the cab drivers never want to drive all the way there because it’s so far and, according to them, they don’t get passengers to carry back to the school area. The only way to make them drive you to my hostel is agreeing to pay whatever ridiculous amount they charge. I would actually succumb on a regular day, but I can’t afford to today.
I need a chaperone to walk the streets of my school, including the ones that don’t have make hostels on them. This is because they occasionally gather on the streets and carry out their catcalling anyway.
Steve is one of the most decent guys I know, but I’m still scared he’d make fun of me if I gave him my reason. When I told Will, he said the boys were simply having fun and it was nothing serious. He then refused to walk me, saying it would be better if I walked on my own for my own development. He said I needed to have thick skin and the guys are simply helping with that.
”I’m ready.” He interrupts my thoughts.
He slings his bag over his shoulder and gestures that I walk ahead of him.
”I’ll just walk beside you.” I smile a small smile.
He agrees.
How long will I do this for? I have at least 3 years in this school before I graduate. That’s a long time for this story. Right now, it’s a tragedy, but tragedies always come with a ’happily ever after’, right? Well, my happily ever after would be an end where I don’t need company to walk the streets.
What do you think?