reproze

I knew I liked Gwen the minute I saw her. It's easy to get lost in a crowd in New York City; easier, still, if you know how to stay hidden. I often found myself traipsing around dense stretches, wordlessly weaving between tourists and aggrieved businessmen and anxious NYU students, enjoying my anonymity. I didn't know them, and they sure as hell didn't know me. It wasn't often that someone caught my eye. I preferred it that way: invisibility was a cloak that I came to appreciate. They had their story, and I had mine. They had their wallets, and I had theirs. But I'm getting ahead of myself. I spotted Gwen before I spotted her mark. She had a flash of black hair tucked under a black hood, rendered almost imperceivable save for her tiny, slender fingers, just peeking out from under her sleeve. I could catch just the slightest wink of dark brown eyes, rapidly shifting to take in the scene. Just as soon as her hand was there, it was gone - but not before snagging a hefty brown leather wallet. Surprised, and maybe even a little bemused, I looked up. The owner of this wallet was a man in an impeccably clean blue suit, with mussed silver hair, and a seemingly permanently etched scowl. Good for her, I thought. I looked back down at the crowd. Gone. Or so the average person might think, if they didn't know where to look. But I am not an average person. And I looked in the opposite direction of the blue-suited man, nearly a block away, and I watched with satisfaction as that tiny cloaked figured opened the folds of his former wallet and slip a few hundreds out. I moved through the crowd before crossing the street. "What'dya got there?" I called out. A tiny face whipped around, scared. Those eyes again. Wild, like an animal. I could tell she was preparing to run. I put my hands up, realizing I'd played it too cool. Too long since I'd spoken to another person, I thought privately, and proceeded with more caution. "Sorry - it's just..." I reached for my pocket and saw her wince. I pulled out a watch. "It seemed like you were playing it safe." "How did you-" she looked back at the man, who at this point was long gone, completely unbeknownst to his missing belongings. "I passed him on the way over here," I said, handing it to her. "Here, keep it." "Why would you do that?" she sniffed, as though I was giving her something much less appealing than an easy couple of g's at the pawn shop. "I'm on your side," I said, "And anyway,