Long reply is long. :| Sorry.
The past couple times Ollie had tried doing this, it had ended very strangely. With the man who had asked him not to take his Scooby Doo underwear, the woman who'd tried to convince Ollie to take her Pekingese dog (which she couldn't have paid him enough to do) and then that girl who had punched him in the eye. Well, the punch in the eye wasn't exactly strange, no. As a matter of fact, it was expected… preferred. He'd honestly rather be hit in the face for stealing than conversed with randomly or "rewarded" with a yappy dog. It brought back the thrill of the theft, which was something that Ollie had been missing for way, way too long.
Because of the strange times and the sock in the face, Ollie was sincerely unsure that he wanted to give it another go. At least not so soon. He'd very obviously screwed up a couple of times and he was more embarrassed by that than he was comfortable admitting.
What would Uncle James say at a time like this, was all he could wonder. Something about confidence and how many times he'd screwed up at first no doubt. Still, if society was normal and Ollie had been caught three times in a row? Well, he would probably be in jail. But society isn't normal. It should be easier to steal shit but because everyone's guard is high, well, it's not, he thought, shaking his head.
As if it was a clarion call, he looked across the room and his eyes fell upon a girl who was sitting next to a wide open backpack with a few items strewn about in front of her. And she wasn't even looking. Part of it felt uncharitable. She was right there and she looked so peaceful, and Ollie almost felt guilty disrupting that with his thievery attempt. But he needed one successful attempt. He needed it. Even if it was just a trophy heist.
Trophy heists, he could hear Uncle James saying, are a joke. It's like trophy hunting. Unfulfilling and a little bit ridiculous. Only the lowest of thieves try that. But Ollie felt pretty low right then. Three snatch-and-goes in a row and he hadn't even come out with anything new for days. He needed this. For his own sake. So… taking stock of the items, he stole an extra long glance at the machete and took his lower lip into his mouth, hoping that he could be quick enough with his snag not to be caught.
Reaching his hand out, he put his fingers around the hilt of the handle, turning his attention completely from the girl now.