Personal in Public

Today I was waiting for a bus. Not unusual at all. Today I was waiting for a bus. And there was a couple under the bus shelter. At first I didn't realize they were together. His beard was scraggley and he looked bit older than she was and and vaguely homeless. In his right hand was a tall can wrapped in a brown paper bag. Her clothes were neat and if her wig was off-center, it was just by a tiny bit. She leaned away from him as he talked to her. I was making a few calls on my cell, but watched them out of the corner of my eye. Eventually I realized that even though she would step away whenever he got closer, they knew each other. I felt uncomfortable watching them, and tried to look away, but their body language made me more uncomfortable than the watching. Eventually the exchange became physical: he grabbed her arm and she tried to pull away. She waved her other arm at a passing police car. He was smiling, a playful, childlike smile and her movements were theatrical so I wasn't sure how seriously I should take it. Then he wrapped his arms around her waist and her struggle seemed less theatrical.

I stepped closer to them and asked "Are you okay?" He told me that she was, that they were just playing. She said nothing. I looked directly at her and asked two more times before she said she wasn't. He dropped his beer and it foamed around their feet. Not really having a plan, I asked him "Could you stop that, please?" He paused as I stared at him. He repeated that they were just playing as I continued to stare, but he let her go and I said thank you. She commented that she just got out of the hospital. He didn't touch her while I was there, but when the bus came neither of them got on. Now, I wonder if there was anything I could/should have said or done to make a difference.