Michael was standing in a crowded train, heading towards Yau Ma Tei station. He was on the way to meet up with Snake, Tommy and Blade at the Temple Street Night Markets. This was one of Snake's favourite hang outs. Michael knew he wouldn't have to look very hard to find them. They'd more than likely be at the basketball courts near the north end of the Tin Hau Temple. That was where Michael was planning on checking first.
As the train pulled up at Prince Edward Station, he saw someone he recognised; a kid not much younger than himself, in a school uniform standing in the middle of the crowded train. Obviously on his way home from school, the kid was playing his Sony PSP to occupy the otherwise uneventful train ride. Michael smiled to himself when he noticed the Australian couple pointing at the kid and being totally amazed that he wasn't using any of the train's hand-holds, despite the train's quite rapid acceleration and deceleration when leaving and arriving at each station. He almost laughed out loud when the Australian man tried his luck and let go of the hand-hold attached to the bar above his head as the train pulled out of the station – and then abruptly grabbed it again as he almost fell over. Stupid tourists.
Michael craned his neck a little so he could see the kid's PSP screen. He wanted to know what game he was playing. The kid noticed the movement and looked up at him. Michael saw terror in his eyes, as if he thought Michael was going to snatch his PSP. Michael smiled at him, trying to be friendly and reassuring, but obviously it didn't work because the kid quickly stuffed his PSP into his school bag and hurried to the door as the train was pulling up at Mongkok station. With a quick backwards glance at Michael to make sure he wasn't following, he got off the train and disappeared into the crowd. Michael knew that wasn't the kid's station. He had seen him several times before and the kid always got off at Jordan station – another two stops ahead. He must've really been scared.
Michael looked at himself in the reflection of the train's window and he could see why. From head to toe, he was dressed in the spitting image of Snake – who anyone could tell was a member of the triads. All that was missing were the tattoos. And his blonde hair did nothing to soften the rebellious teenager image. Michael looked around and noticed that, despite the packed train, absolutely no one was standing directly next to him. It was as if he had an invisible barrier surrounding him that nobody could breach. No one made eye contact with him. A woman who had just got on the train seemed to notice him for the first time, and he saw that her grip on her handbag became much tighter. Michael had always thought that joining the triads would make people respect him.
Now, he realised that fear and respect were not one and the same.
As the train stopped at Yau Ma Tei station, Michael joined the rush out of the train and on to the escalators that led to the exits. He chose the South exit and emerged near Nathan Road. The humid heat, combined with the pollution and exhaust from all the cars and buses, almost instantly covered him in a layer of sweat and grime. He walked south along Nathan Road until he got to Public Square Street, near the rear of the Tin Hau Temple, then turned right. The basketball courts were just ahead. As he expected, Snake Tommy and Blade were playing on the court. When there was a free spot, Michael joined in.
About half an hour later, Snake got into an argument with another player. Snake punched him in the face, and then kicked the basketball over the fence. That was it – game over. The four of them headed off towards Temple Street to buy a much needed drink.
The markets were busy as usual, with a crush of people browsing and haggling in the narrow lane between the stalls. Michael lost count of how many times he heard "Hello Missy!" or "Hello Sir!" followed by "Would you like copy bags, copy watches, copy wallets?" He could easily tell which tourists were new to the experience – they were the ones always saying, "No thanks". The locals and the seasoned shoppers just ignored the stall owners.
Snake wound his way behind one of the stalls to a corner shop selling various drinks and ice cream while the Michael and the rest followed. Snake, Tommy and Blade each bought themselves a Gatorade, while Michael bought a coconut milkshake with black tapioca 'bubbles'. They all stood in the corner of the street, watching the endless waves of shoppers entering the markets.
Suddenly, Blade nudged Michael and nodded towards a tourist who seemed totally awed by the whole atmosphere of the markets. She was gawking wild-eyed at all the stalls, and wasn't at all keeping an eye on her handbag – which hung loosely on her shoulder.
"Watch this," Blade said to Michael. Blade then walked up and stood next to the woman, pretending to look at some cheap watches. He waited until the woman bent down to inspect some jade jewellery, and then quite casually reached into her handbag and pulled out her purse. He walked back to where Snake, Tommy and Michael were standing with a satisfied grin on his face. He gave Snake the wallet, who then opened it, pulled out a wad of cash and a couple of credit cards, then threw the purse into a garbage bin.
"Your turn," Snake said to Michael.
The past few weeks, Blade and Tommy had been trying to teach Michael the finer points of 'lifting' someone's wallet or purse. Michael had been listening carefully, but until this time, with the help of various excuses, he had always been able to avoid the actual deed. Now though, Snake made it clear that it was time for him to put theory to practice.
Snake nodded towards a tall American man, who was busy haggling in a stall selling Hello Kitty merchandise. Michael watched him for a while, looking to see where the man kept his wallet. He was hoping that the man kept it in his back pocket, as it would make it easier for Michael to do the 'bump and grab', which Blade pointed out was the best way to lift someone's wallet. When the man finally paid for his merchandise, Michael sighed with relief when he saw him put his wallet into his back pocket.
Michael's heart started racing when he positioned himself behind the tall American, who by then was walking through the isle between the stalls. The voice inside his head was practically screaming at him to stop. He looked back towards Snake and the others to see if they were watching him. He thought that he might be able to come up with another excuse to abort his mission. Maybe he could say that the man had joined his friends and he lost his opportunity. To his dismay, Snake and the others were walking about 20 paces behind him, watching carefully. Michael counted at least 5 perfect opportunities in the last 30 seconds where he could've bumped the man as he stopped to look at various items in stalls, but each time he hesitated and the man moved on. He looked back again and Tommy and Blade were visibly trying to hold back their laughter at his incompetence. Snake however, was scowling angrily. He stared at Michael with a steely glint in his eyes and mouthed, "Do it!"
A mixture of fear and anger overwhelmed Michael. Fear of Snake's disapproval, and anger at Tommy and Blade's mirth at his inability to do what came so easily to them. He took a deep breath and resigned himself to finish what he had started. But when he turned around, the man had disappeared.
He heard Tommy and Blade explode with laughter behind him and his anger welled up as he turned left and right, looking for the man. He finally spotted him walking through one of the stalls towards the not so crowded area between the back of the market shops and the permanent shopfronts. Michael quickly followed. He knew that he had lost the chance to take the man's wallet under cover of the massive crowds, but by now he didn't care. He just wanted to shove the man's wallet in front of Tommy and Blade's face and show them he could do it.
As the man passed by a narrow and deserted alleyway, Michael quickly walked past him, bumping him and snatching his wallet in one fluid movement. He nearly jumped for joy when he successfully pulled the wallet out of the man's pocket. His elation quickly turned into shock when, with a sharp 'slap', the man grabbed Michael's wrist in a vice-like grip and pulled him into the alley. Michael struggled to free his arm, but the man was much stronger. His hand was so big it covered half of Michael's forearm.
"That was pretty smooth kid, but I'm gonna need that." The man's voice was deep and rumbling, with a slight edge of amusement. Michael continued to struggle, but to absolutely no avail. He couldn't dislodge his arm from the man's iron grip.
"Let him go!" Snake yelled as he, Tommy and Blade appeared at the end of the alley. The man didn't budge. Snake slowly walked up and stood next to Michael while Tommy and Blade stood to either side of the American man, surrounding him. Snake reached into his pocket and pulled out his switchblade. With an audible 'click', the blade was released.
"I said," Snake repeated, "Let him-" the next sound Snake made was a weird 'whooshing' sound as the man punched him in the sternum with his left hand, knocking the wind out of him. Snake staggered back and dropped his knife, but before it hit the ground, the man stepped towards his left and elbowed Blade while simultaneously lashing out with his right foot and hit Tommy. As with Snake, he hit them both in the sternum, effectively incapacitating them. As the three of them doubled over and struggled to breathe, the man gently let go of Michael's arm and held his hand out.
Michael gave him back his wallet.
The man said, "You need to find yourself some better friends, kid" then walked out of the alleyway and back into the markets, as if nothing had happened.