Im a people watcher, thats my job. I watch so many people walk past
everyday, all of them different. But they know the rules.
It's rude to stare
They think I don't see them, as I sit here, with my head hung low. But I do. I always see them, as their eyes flicker towards me, only for a second, before they carry on. Everyone has somewhere to go, someone to see. Except me.
Children are different, as they walk past, clinging to their mothers hands, they stare, they point, I hear their whispers
"Mummy..." They tug on her arm, "Mummy why is that girl sitting there," They ask "Why isn't she in her home,"
"I don't know," They always reply, their eyes glancing in my direction, before pulling their child faster the other way.
But they do know, they know as well as I do. I haven't got a home to go.
I get lonely sometimes; just wishing people would stare, so I could make eye contact. They stare at each other, as they walk past me, their eyes darting from one person to another; it's not rude if they're not different. Everyone does it.
Someone's staring, an alarm bell goes off in my head, and I whip my head round, just in time to see them avert their eyes away, careful not to seem rude, the woman, barely younger than me, pushes her dark brown hair out of her face, as she hurries on past, all her concentration poured into looking in the other direction, and trying, and failing, to do so subtly.
But then I realise, as she looks over at the buildings, she's walking towards me, she hasn't noticed and as I go to move out the way, Im a second to late.
"Ow... sorry..." She mumbles, standing up,
"That's ok," I say, my voice dry and hoarse, "No problem," My hand leaps down to my cup of water, collected from the rain this morning, knocked over by the polished boot on her foot, a small tear rolls down my cheek, and as I go to brush it away angrily, I miss and it splashes on the bottom of the cup,
"Oh... let me buy you another.." The woman trailed of,
"Water," I tell her,
"Let me buy you another water..." I pause, looking up at her, and for the first time meeting her eyes, and finally, after waiting so long, she just stared back at me, her eyes not flickering away,
"Ok," I stood up, my back aching, "Thanks um.." "Monica," The woman smiled,
It's rude to stare
They think I don't see them, as I sit here, with my head hung low. But I do. I always see them, as their eyes flicker towards me, only for a second, before they carry on. Everyone has somewhere to go, someone to see. Except me.
Children are different, as they walk past, clinging to their mothers hands, they stare, they point, I hear their whispers
"Mummy..." They tug on her arm, "Mummy why is that girl sitting there," They ask "Why isn't she in her home,"
"I don't know," They always reply, their eyes glancing in my direction, before pulling their child faster the other way.
But they do know, they know as well as I do. I haven't got a home to go.
I get lonely sometimes; just wishing people would stare, so I could make eye contact. They stare at each other, as they walk past me, their eyes darting from one person to another; it's not rude if they're not different. Everyone does it.
Someone's staring, an alarm bell goes off in my head, and I whip my head round, just in time to see them avert their eyes away, careful not to seem rude, the woman, barely younger than me, pushes her dark brown hair out of her face, as she hurries on past, all her concentration poured into looking in the other direction, and trying, and failing, to do so subtly.
But then I realise, as she looks over at the buildings, she's walking towards me, she hasn't noticed and as I go to move out the way, Im a second to late.
"Ow... sorry..." She mumbles, standing up,
"That's ok," I say, my voice dry and hoarse, "No problem," My hand leaps down to my cup of water, collected from the rain this morning, knocked over by the polished boot on her foot, a small tear rolls down my cheek, and as I go to brush it away angrily, I miss and it splashes on the bottom of the cup,
"Oh... let me buy you another.." The woman trailed of,
"Water," I tell her,
"Let me buy you another water..." I pause, looking up at her, and for the first time meeting her eyes, and finally, after waiting so long, she just stared back at me, her eyes not flickering away,
"Ok," I stood up, my back aching, "Thanks um.." "Monica," The woman smiled,