Retrospect

Zero

I waited in front of the convenience store for the people in white. I had tried this multiple times before but this time I knew I could pull it off. My hood was shielding my face from view, but I was able to see the first worker emerge from the building carrying the oh-so familiar briefcase. I already knew it wasn't in there. I had found that out during my previous attempt when I'd "accidentally" knocked it out of a worker's hand.

I scanned over each worker coming out of that door. They all filed out of the place in a rush, barely speaking to each other as they continued down the street into the night. They were wearing their usual white uniforms and these jet black face coverings that shielded their nose and mouth. They walked through puddles of water in dark, heavy boots as the rain came down gently.

A shiver ran up my spine as a gust of wind blew droplets and cold air at my face, almost flipping my hood back. This snapped me back to reality. I couldn't waste any more time. Soon they would all disappear around the corner and I would miss my chance.

Studying each worker, I took note of how they walked and where they looked. That usually told me who was the weakest which would be my target. Two more people came out and the one following them was it. The way his eyes darted around frantically as if someone like me would come along gave him away. He was a new one. Usually the ones who seem alert are the ones who are too distracted with what could potentially happen, that they don't notice what's already there. He was the last worker out the door which made it easy. I smiled as I took my first step off the sidewalk.

Groups of people came from the shops lining the street and all at once I was caught up in the crowds. If cars still existed, the whole road would have been crowded with chaos. The population was so large now, cars would be useless, so the new, enhanced metros got us around from section to section quickly. The materials from the cars were all recycled to make more towers to live in, yet there were air taxis that were pretty efficient in getting people all the way across the city. However, mostly everything was in walking distance, so air taxis were rare occasions for me.

In the flood of people, I tried to stand on my toes but it only allowed me to see the heads of the workers in white. I could barely see my target now through all the people. The crowd pushed me farther away from my target, bumping into me and knocking me forwards and back and to the side. The dim, violet and sapphire neon lights strung up between the city buildings above cast their glow on everything below them. This added to the struggle of keeping track of where my target was, since the lights blended everything together, making it hard to see a way out of the crowd. My palms grew sweaty in my gloves and my heartbeat quickened, knowing I was going to lose him if I didn't get away from these people soon.

Now I was the one looking around frantically. My hood then got pushed back from my head so my face and brown wig were visible for a second. I quickly yanked it back over my head and crouched low. I had an idea which way was right when I was standing but from down on the ground, it was impossible to tell. It didn't help either when the people closed the space up where I was just a moment ago. Since I couldn't turn back, I dropped to my hands and knees and forced myself to crawl to the right.

Through the chaos, my head bumped into a bunch of legs and I accidentally crushed someone's foot with the weight of my hand. I ignored the angry shouts and someone's attempt to kick me as I scrambled through the horde. It felt as if I was holding my breath the whole time because when I pushed through the final wall of people, I gasped and stayed there on my soaking knees, trying to get air back in my lungs.

My heart still pounded but I didn't have time to slow down. Struggling to my shaky feet, I continued on in a stumbling speed walk. The people in white were still on the street but I could see the line of them turning the corner. As soon as they did that, I would lose my chance tonight, so I sped up. I stared at the workers, searching for my target under the purple light. I was afraid I wouldn't find him again, that is, until I spotted a fidgety white uniform up the street at the end of the line. He was about to turn the corner.

I started to jog, realizing this would probably catch attention but I had no choice. If I didn't get what I needed tonight, I'd have to wait another month. That wasn't an option for me. I couldn't wait that long without knowing the truth.

My target was four workers away from the corner, but it didn't take me long to catch up to him going as fast as I did. Now that I was caught up and walking a safe distance from his side, I smoothly blended in with a small group of people and pretended to be with them. I thought about taking it at that moment, however, it would be too obvious if I did it then because I had been near him for a while. I walked a little slower than his pace and I could tell the worker was growing suspicious of everyone around him, looking at the group I was with out of the corner of his eye. I let him pass me as I crossed over the sidewalk behind him and went into the door of a small shop on the corner.

Then I began the countdown. I started from five, unzipping my jacket and shrugging it off, wrapping it around my waist as I made my way over to the other side of the store where another door was. I ran a hand through my wig, slipped off my gloves and stuffed them in my pockets and pushed the door open, hoping my target was just about to cross in front of me. If I had counted too slowly or too fast my whole plan would be ruined. It had to be exact.

As I walked out, ending the countdown, I saw my target get hit with the door and I widened my eyes, feigning surprise. "Oh! I'm so sorry!" I put my hand on his shoulder. "Are you okay?" I asked concernedly. I let go of the door and it closed.

My target laughed a little and rubbed his forehead in the purple light. "Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, his frantic look gone. I made sure to look him in the eyes just in case he was secretly scanning me. My false lenses would throw off the workers later, making it impossible to trace them back to me. But before that could happen, I needed to get that device in his uniform pocket. I glanced at it, confirming it was still there.

"Oh, well, have a good day," I said with a convincing laugh and smile, making sure he was looking anywhere but his pocket. He wished me a good day too and when I was passing him, I subtly plucked the device from his pocket, then continued the opposite way he was hurrying.

My steps were confident as I put my cold hands in my pockets. The rain didn't bother me as I ran my fingers over the device, just to make sure it was actually there. I felt the cold metal against my skin and I smiled for real this time. I looked back, half-expecting the worker in white to still be standing there at the door, but he was gone like he was supposed to be. The new ones are the gullible ones.

I turned back around, noticing I was passing a fruit stand. I figured it would be nice to eat something after all of my hard work. The seller was helping another person buy a bunch of bananas, so as I strolled by, I placed a card full of money on the table (way more than required for one fruit) and swiped a juicy, red apple, taking a big bite.