I work in a little store right on the beach. We mainly sell women's clothes, though we do have a few men's items like hoodies, hats, and some towels, but that's about it. So whenever a man comes into the store, it gets a little uncomfortable. Sure, we do have some who come in shopping for their girlfriend, mothers, sisters, perusing our small men's section, or even the occasional man who comes in, and walks right out once they realize it is mainly a women's store. Every once in a while a man will come in and just watch me. I can tell because they won't even be paying attention to what they are looking at or even holding. I'm sure you are going to buy yourself that women's dress. After a while they put down whatever they had picked up, usually in the wrong place I might add, and try to come talk to me.
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One night in particular a man, who has come into the store many times before to look at our small menswear collection, comes in. Instead of looking at the clothes, he just comes straight up to the counter. He knows what time we close on this particular night and tells me he over heard a conversation with my boss earlier in the day about where I park when I had first gotten to work. He tells me that it is too far to walk and that he has seen me walking there a few times before. He also says that someone like me probably shouldn't walk alone, it would not be safe for me. Someone like me. I ask what he means by this, and he just says, "You're an attractive girl, you shouldn't walk alone." That freaked me out. After my insisting many, many times that I am fine to walk alone, it is only six streets, he insists that he needs to walk me to my car, and does not take no for an answer. He was not giving me an option here. I told him that my brother was going to come drive me to my car, which was a lie at the time, but he did not believe me. He tells me that he is going to come back by when we close to walk me to my car, even though I still am saying no. This was around seven at night. For the next two hours I watch him bike past the store almost every fifteen minutes like clockwork. At this point I really do not want him to come back by and end up calling my bother to come drive me the measly six blocks to my car because this man would not take no for an answer.
No means no. I do not understand why some people just cannot fathom the definition of the word no. Girls always get told to walk in groups, not walk alone, and even that they probably shouldn't dress too attractively if they are going to be out walking alone. I understand this—it is not safe—but I want to be able to work in my store alone and feel safe and I should be able to walk alone to my car if I need to.
