The weekly market in our colony is very popular. We get all kinds of inexpensive things here. It is always very crowded. Sometimes anti- social people also come there. One evening, while I was going out to visit the market, my mom had warned me of the dangers that lured out there. Paying no attention to her, I left, eager to get there.

I was on my way to the other side of the street which was past the bus station. The cold air was biting my cheeks, burying myself in it. Windy underground stairs led to the market. After taking a couple of steps I realized I was being watched, by a young man leaning against a railing in the corner ahead.

In the dim light I could make out he was wearing a hoodie, cap and a mask, casting a shadow over his face. I heard the loud sound of the traffic fade into the bleak evening. I was alone. We were alone.

I hesitated as I walked, feeling a strong grip of my cellphone in the right pocket. In the low light I could barely make out the white tiles. I kept walking but there was still so much more to go.

“Clack”! I stopped and turned around, frightened, but only met twinkling lights and bodiless shadows. Feeling angry at myself for getting so startled, I said,“Keep it together girl, it's probably nothing….!” I went to clutch my phone in the pocket but came in contact with empty air. I tried to search for it.

I heard a sound: muffled footsteps. I got tense, trying to listen closely as it got louder. I turned around, heart pounding with fear. I knew that this unpleasant encounter could shut me from the whole world. My mom’s warning of danger kept repeating in my head. I had encountered one of the criminals that roamed in the weekly market and now I was too late. All I wished for was it to be a nightmare but unfortunately it wasn’t.

- Yammini, VIII