Were Those Guys Thieves?

I had a rather odd experience which might have been an attempt at thievery, I'm not sure. I was walking along near the Metro and I noticed two men in front of me... Actually, I'm not sure how I noticed them or why, but I did notice them. They didn't seem together, just part of the crowd. One minute they were out in front of me and the next minute they were flanking me, one on either side.

It all happened very quickly, and if I hadn't already noticed them, I probably would not have realized that they were flanking me. But all my radar went off. They were very close, right up against me and I felt boxed in, so much so that I just stopped dead in my tracks. To stay beside me, they had to stop too, either that or they would out-pace me. They did take a next step, but then one of them turned around and looked at me. We had eye contact. My eyes said, What the fuck? His eyes were passive. Don't know, but why would he notice that I had stopped and turn to look if he had not been aware of me? And why would he be aware of me if it was all arbitrary and accidental?

Something very similar happened to me in Rome some years ago. Again at the Metro. I got boxed in by three people there, a young woman stood in front of me so I couldn't go forward to board the train and a couple of men came up on either side of me. I really had no idea what was going on. I was simply waiting for the young girl to move, trying to understand why she wasn't. My friend, who was savvy, realized what was happening... she pushed the girl aside and literally grabbed me, and then a couple of Italians jumped in too, between me and the guys. If they hadn't intervened, I would have undoubtedly had my purse stolen.

This time, I don't know. I might have been over-reacting. I might not. It's really hard to say. It was odd though and really felt like what went down in Rome, like the same trick. I'll never know, but it is good to see that at least I have some instinct that kicks in and attempts to keep me safe, that I'm not totally oblivious to my surroundings. In fact, it felt like some part of me must have been hyper-aware.

Other than that it was a school day, which included a quiz and work to be turned in, so I was pretty invested in the student world. Today I'm off to Versailles, and if my feet (which are now covered in moleskin) hold up, it should be a good day.