✧┊zero to one hundred ❣
@zeroxmi:
✧ // *
when the boy does try to actually grab his wallet, he proves that snatching his belonging isn’t as easy as it seems. he catches the hand, twists it before sweeping the boy off his feet. when the pickpocket loses the balance, jongin is quick to apply his aikido technique, a hand on the boy’s chest to pin him down against the bare asphalt. he quirks an eyebrow, then. “not as easy as it might have seemed, no?” he asks, tone remaining adhesive to the stagnancy. not exactly derisive, but it could be derived that way. when the boy asks him as to who he is, he actually pulls away, remaining careful as he steps away from the thief. “just your average joe, i suppose? i don’t think you’d like to know my name. trying to pickpocket someone doesn’t really make the whole friendship gesture, i believe?”
jihoon doesn't care about money. after all, his father is a successful (albeit self-made) businessman, his mother made a humble living through hard work herself, and they already ran a successful business by the time he was born. he hasn't wanted for much, and he's always known he has it better than others, even if he lacks the gratitude someone in his position should have. still, jihoon is greedy, and more than that, he cares about a challenge. he always wants to prove his worth-- to see how far he can push before anyone realizes he crossed the boundary lines, or before it backfires. usually, the answer is far. sometimes he knows when enough is enough, and sometimes he flies to close to the sun.
the man he follows now made himself an easy target-- an obvious display of wealth in a common place, and jihoon, observant, frequent people-watcher, saw it, and his eyes were glued to him from then on. jihoon doesn't know if he actually has anything interesting to steal on him, but he has a wallet, and he'll take one of those just to prove he could do it, if anything. rich people that foolish deserve to get stolen from anyway (even if sometimes, he is one.) he follows him, but takes out his phone and holds it in his hand so he can look down at it and act busy should the man catch on. he can feign innocence-- pretend he didn't realize he was walking so close because he was distracted, then bump into him, and snag his wallet with his free hand. he sticks his earbuds in to really sell it, and plays a video on mute so all he has to do is keep his eyes on the screen and use one hand to hold it.
he executes stage one of his plan: bumps into the stranger, but it all goes south from there. he knows as soon as the man catches his arm that he isn't the easy victim he pinned him as. no, this is like trying to steal from himself. he could've done the same to him if he had more time to react, or so jihoon would claim. still, he's the one that ends up on his back, earbuds falling out thanks to the impact, the back of his phone hitting on the pavement as he lands. the camera is probably shattered now, but he can always get a new one. still, it's the first thing he checks, and miraculously, the screen still flickers to life-- thank you, samsung. he looks up at his target-turned-attacker then. "aw, shucks," he says on being caught, paired with a crooked smile. he doesn't like the way the man talks to him, though-- considers dropping the act in favor of something more intimidating, but decides to work the cordiality for a while longer, smile still on his face.
curiosity gets the best of jihoon. "who exactly are you?" he asks, because not everyone can get the best of jihoon like this. he's a good thief, thank you very much. his gaze flickers about when he steps away, instinctively searching for an opening to steal from him now, but decides against it, opting to simply watch him instead. his response makes him laugh. "oh yeah, me too," he answers, beaming. "well, it was fun while it lasted," he sighs, and he pouts, still looking up at the man, even though he could probably get up now. he takes that opportunity to sit up after all. "i don't know, we could be friends," and that grin is still on his face. "i don't need to know your name though~"