Sheer Terror

    Since it's Halloween, I figured I could write about a moment of sheer terror that I witnessed on the subway not long ago.
    There was this teenage girl waiting down on the platform for the train to come by. I noticed her as I walked down the stairs, but didn't note anything unusual as I went by. A minute or so passed as we were waiting and then I noticed her starting to walk up and down the platform at a hurried pace. I got an inkling that something weird was going on, but then it was like a switch was flipped and she went into full panic mode.
    We're talking like breathing heavily, panting, screaming, wide eyes, tears streaming down her face, running around in circles, intermittent sobbing. Basically, out of control panic. She was the most terrified person I've ever seen. She was calling to someone - sister or mom or something - asking why they left and where they went.
    I looked around for a police officer - there's usually plenty of them at this station - but I didn't see one. Luckily, an older lady grabbed her and got her to stop screaming and pacing. The poor girl just kind of melted there. The lady and a group of gathering supporters calmed her down some and tried to get her story from her.
    Shortly thereafter, my train arrived. I was satisfied that she was in good hands, so I got on the train and left.