Late Night Fill-up – Anna’s Story

I had run around to the corner store in the evening to get gas versus doing it in a rush to work the next morning. As I was standing there filling up, a younger latino (maybe early twenties) dude starts walking up after coming out from seemingly behind the neighboring tire store (which was closed). This was probably around 10:30 or so at night.

I thought maybe he was going to enter the store and wasn’t thinking much of it until he stopped on the other side of my vehicle and just stared at me blankly for a while. He had a glazed look, so I’m not sure if he was high, drunk, tired or what… I look him straight in the eye with kind of a “what?” expression, so then he says he needs a ride up the street because he lost his friend or something, he was mumbling. I told him, sorry dude, no rides today. He then proceeds to grab my passenger door handle and try to get in! Luckily, the doors were locked, which is a habit for me, even while I’m standing next to my car. My purse was inside on the seat.

He starts mumbling again and looking upset that I’m not willing to give him a ride and he walks around the front of my Jeep and stands there, kind of trapping me between the car and the pumps, with the hose right behind me. I glance over toward the store, and we’re out of sight of the clerk, and there is no one else around that I could see. Then the guy goes “I just need a ride, its not far, don’t make it weird”.

This was it for me. He was too close for comfort, so I nonchalantly raised up the edge of my blouse and tucked it behind the butt of my pistol inside my waistband and said “oh, you want to get weird?” I have no idea what made me say that! LOL But anyhow, he got the point and then said “girl, I’m just playing with you, have a good night’ and speed-walked away!

After that I got in the car and took off, and the guy was no where in sight. I took the long, windy way back home through the neighborhood just in case. That’s pretty much it! If I hadn’t gotten my new holster in the mail a couple of weeks ago, I probably would have had a gun in my purse or in my console and not on me. I usually carry a glock 17 on me, but since I had been at work and wearing a thin blouse and a pencil skirt, that wasn’t an option that day. The whole scene took maybe 30 seconds at the most. Needless to say, my hands were a little shaky for a few minutes after that!