But suddenly… right in the middle of the road, there was a man. He stood still and was all alone.

He looked to be around thirty. He wasn’t moving, just standing with his back to us, as if he were waiting for something. I slammed on the brakes to avoid hitting him. We both stared at him, confused.

The man slowly turned around. He looked directly at us… and smiled. But it wasn’t a warm or friendly smile. There was something unsettling about it — almost frightening.

Instinctively, I locked all the doors and grabbed my phone, ready to call the police if needed. He started walking slowly toward the car, never looking away, still holding that strange smile. We were frozen — no one around, just an empty road, the two of us, and him.

Then my sister whispered in horror:

— Look… in his hand…

In the stranger’s hand was a woman’s purse.

 

He walked up to my window and gestured for me to roll it down. Of course, I didn’t.

— What do you want? — my voice was shaking.

— I found a woman’s purse, — he said calmly. — Is it yours?

— Is he serious? — my sister hissed. — What purse? How could it be ours?

— No, — I replied shortly and slammed on the gas. We sped off without looking back.

Dear girls, please: be careful.

It scares me to think what might have happened if I had rolled down the window. Or if we hadn’t driven away in time. Someone else might have thought: “What if it really is her purse?”

 

Or might have been too embarrassed to just leave. But don’t be embarrassed, and don’t try to explain away someone’s strange behavior.

Even if he truly wanted to return the purse — why stand in the middle of the road? How could he know who was in the car? Why did he look at us specifically?

Too many questions.

And I’m scared even to imagine what the answers might be. We simply live in a dangerous world.