Fries.

He stood there, squinting into the mist.  Several feet away, his car was still running, headlights on and driver door ajar.  Under the sound of the purring engine, the wind whispered incessantly.
He was almost certain there was a girl standing on the bridge support, staring at the water.  He inched closer as the  strands of mist blew away, revealing her completely.
Her eyes turned towards his own, then she went back to regarding the water.  He noticed with a jolt that she was a prostitute, with tattered fishnet stockings and a brown coat several sizes too large.  She looked to be only sixteen or so.
"Yes?"
"Are you..." He cleared his throat. "Do you need anything?"
"No."
_{Go away.
I don't need this
I don't need anything
I'm not sad and
I'm not broken
So leave me alone.}
He was silenced by the onslaught of hostility suddenly emanating from her form.  He took a step closer in spite of himself.
"Hey... You hungry?"
She ignored this, and he hesitated before deciding to risk it.  He was back less than a minute later, the brown bag crunching soggily in his glove.  
He sat down on the asphalt and started to eat.  After a long moment, the smell of french fries started to permeate the air.  
She breathed it in, suddenly tearing up because it triggered a flood of flashbacks.  She sucked in air, trying to get a grip of herself.  He bit into his hamburger, pretending not to see her cry.
Finally, her sniffing died down and he warily offered the rest of his fries.  She flinched when his voice cut through the air, then she nodded and climbed down.
"This doesn't mean a thing." She mumbled through her mouthful. "I could be up there tomorrow night.  This is just a weakness."
"Then I'll keep bringing fries until you don't want to jump."
She stilled. "You know nothing about me."
"No..." He stretched the word out.  "No, I don't.  But it'd be nice, don't you think?"
"Non." She shook her head.  "I'm a, well."  She gestured helplessly.
"And I'm a traveling salesman.  Really, which is worse?"
She cracked a smile, and he grinned inside.
One more life saved.   

Reviews

[Chloe..Across the Unive..]

What a very good short story! Fries and a quick mind saving a person.. i loved this .. very good
i think it you wanted this could go on ..love the last four lines .. very clever.

Chloe