Yes, being aware of your surroundings is key. This happened to me and a friend when I was in my teens. A car full of men stopped and asked if we needed a ride. When we said no, one got out and chased us. We jumped a fence, but he couldn't get over it. He ran back to the car, and they hunted us down. We hid in bushes and under evergreen trees. As we lay on the ground, we saw their headlights as they slowly drove up and down the street. After about an hour, we safely reached a restaurant. We narrowly escaped.