Bonus story : More than just colleagues : Part 15 : The Impossible Client

On Monday morning, when Aldric entered the depot, he found the schedule already lying on the desk with several printed sheets beside it. Lucas, who had barely finished his coffee, was eyeing the documents suspiciously while Karim loaded the last blankets into the truck.

"Is this the big move?" Lucas asked.

"Entire house. Two addresses. A lot of furniture. The client wants everything finished today."

"How much is a lot?"

Patrick handed him the list.

Lucas looked through it before raising his eyes.

"Is he moving a castle?"

Aldric took the sheet next. Three bedrooms, an office, a living room, a dining room, several pieces of furniture, a large bookcase, computer equipment, and nearly a hundred boxes were listed.

"The quantity is significant," he observed.

"And the client has already called twice this morning to make sure we'll be there on time."

Lucas looked at the clock.

"It's six fifteen."

Karim closed the truck.

"This should be fun."

During the drive, Patrick explained the plan. The first residence was in an apartment building, but some of the furniture then had to be delivered to a house in the suburbs while the rest would go to a storage unit. Their coordination would therefore have to be particularly precise to avoid mixing up the two destinations.

Aldric examined the list.

"Are the boxes labeled according to their destination?"

"Normally."

Lucas looked at Aldric.

"You know what 'normally' means in our line of work."

"It means it would be wise to check."

When they arrived in front of the building, a man in his fifties was waiting for them on the sidewalk. He wore a light-colored shirt and gray trousers and kept checking his watch impatiently.

"Mr. Perrin?" Patrick asked.

"Yes. You were supposed to be here at seven thirty."

Patrick checked the time.

"It's seven twenty-eight."

"I was hoping you'd arrive a little earlier to prepare the equipment."

"We're ready to start immediately."

Mr. Perrin then looked at the truck.

"Is that the one?"

"Yes."

"Is it big enough?"

"For the first load, yes."

"Are you sure?"

Patrick smiled.

"Yes."

The client did not seem entirely convinced, but he turned toward the entrance.

"Very well. Follow me."

They had barely stepped into the lobby when the comments began. Mr. Perrin explained that the walls had just been repainted and that he would not tolerate even the slightest mark. He then made it clear that the elevator absolutely could not be blocked for too long because the neighbors might complain. When Aldric placed a blanket against a piece of furniture before moving it, the client approached him.

"Are you really going to protect it with just that?"

"Two additional protective covers will be placed around the corners."

"Because this dresser is old and quite valuable."

"I understand."

"Be careful."

Lucas, who was carrying several boxes toward the entrance, waited until the client had moved away before murmuring,

"I think he believes we came here to destroy his furniture."

Karim picked up a box.

"Don't give him any ideas."

Patrick gave them a look that clearly meant they should remain professional.

They began clearing out the first rooms. It did not take long for another problem to appear. The boxes were not labeled as clearly as expected. Some had labels such as "bedroom," "office," or "fragile," without specifying whether they were supposed to go to the house or the storage unit.

Patrick showed one of the boxes to the client.

"Where does this one go?"

Mr. Perrin frowned.

"I thought everything was already organized."

"The destination isn't marked."

"That one should go to the house."

Patrick marked the box. Two minutes later, the client came back.

"Wait. No. Actually, that one goes to the storage unit."

Lucas closed his eyes as Patrick crossed out the first mark and added the second.

"We'll probably need to confirm every ambiguous box before loading it," Aldric said.

Patrick nodded.

"I don't want to waste time checking them one by one," Mr. Perrin said.

"If we don't check now, we may have to unload part of the truck later."

"Fine. But be quick."

The second problem appeared less than twenty minutes later. The elevator was large enough to carry several boxes at once, but an intermittent malfunction was slowing it down. After two trips, the doors refused to close.

Lucas pressed the button several times.

"Come on."

"It's not going to work any better if you press it ten times," Karim said.

"Maybe it'll understand the urgency."

Aldric examined the doors.

"The sensor appears to be detecting something."

Patrick bent down and noticed that a small piece of cardboard had become lodged near the track. He removed it, and the doors immediately closed.

"Good catch," Lucas said.

Mr. Perrin appeared in the hallway.

"Why was the elevator stuck?"

Patrick answered calmly.

"A piece of cardboard was preventing the doors from closing. It's fixed."

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"We really need to avoid delays."

Lucas pressed his lips together.

The morning continued in the same atmosphere. With every new room, Mr. Perrin added another detail or changed an instruction. This table had to be dismantled last, that lamp absolutely could not travel with the other fragile items, and this armchair had to remain accessible until they left. When they reached a desk that did not appear on any of their lists, the client informed them that it would have to be moved as well.

Patrick checked the document in his hand.

"This one wasn't included."

"It's only a small piece of furniture."

Lucas looked at the desk.

"Small for a piano, maybe."

Karim held back a smile as Patrick examined the piece of furniture.

"Can you take it anyway?" Mr. Perrin asked.

Patrick glanced toward the truck before answering.

"Yes, but we'll have to reorganize the load."

"Fine."

The client walked away as though the matter had been completely settled. Lucas waited until he was far enough away before turning to Patrick.

"I'm really starting to like that 'fine.'"

"We adapt," Patrick sighed.

Around ten o'clock, access to the truck became a problem as well. A delivery vehicle parked in front of the entrance, almost completely blocking the area where Patrick had planned to load the truck. The driver explained that he would only be there for five minutes. Twenty minutes later, he was still there.

Mr. Perrin began to lose patience.

"Can't you park somewhere else?"

Patrick looked down the street.

"Not without doubling the distance between the truck and the entrance."

"Then do it. We're wasting time."

"If we move the truck, we'll lose even more time overall."

"How can you be sure?"

"The new distance would almost triple the distance traveled for each load. Given the amount we still have left, the resulting delay would be greater than the one we're currently dealing with," Aldric said.

Mr. Perrin looked at him.

"You calculated that?"

"Approximately."

When the delivery vehicle finally left, the team resumed their pace. Despite the interruptions, the truck was gradually filling up.

Patrick would point to a piece of furniture and Karim would already be reaching for the straps. Lucas would spot an empty space in the truck and immediately understand what kind of box could fit there. Aldric would lift a piece of furniture and Patrick would move a protective cover before he even had to ask.

"House," Patrick called out.

Karim placed the box in the corresponding section.

"Fragile."

Lucas grabbed a blanket.

"Storage unit."

By noon, they still had not finished the first load. Patrick checked the time before announcing a twenty-minute break.

Mr. Perrin turned toward him.

"Now?"

"Yes."

"You're already behind schedule."

"They've been working for more than four hours. We'll start again in twenty minutes."

Mr. Perrin sighed before going back inside the apartment, while Lucas sat down on the edge of the truck.

"Thank you."

Patrick picked up a bottle of water.

"Let's stay calm. Some clients are stressed. Their entire home is packed into boxes. They're watching everything they own disappear into a truck. It can make people difficult."

Lucas took a bite of his sandwich.

"He was difficult before we even touched the first box."

"His behavior reminds me of certain military commanders during a retreat," Aldric said.

Lucas looked up at him.

"What do you mean?"

"When they can no longer control the overall situation, they sometimes try to control every detail."

Patrick slowly nodded.

"That's actually a pretty good summary."

Karim smiled.

"So we're in the middle of a strategic retreat."

Lucas pointed at the truck behind him.

"With a couch."

They resumed work after their break, and shortly after two o'clock, the first truckload was finally ready to leave. Mr. Perrin personally checked several boxes before asking whether a few more items could still be added.

Patrick looked inside the truck.

"Not without compromising the stability of the load."

"Not even this small chair?"

"No."

"It's light."

Aldric stepped in, pointing to the remaining space.

"The weight isn't the problem. The available space is already optimized."

The drive was normally supposed to take around forty minutes, but traffic stretched it to nearly an hour. Mr. Perrin, who was following them in his car, called Patrick twice to ask why they were moving so slowly. When the phone rang for the second time, Lucas looked at the phone connected to the dashboard.

"He can see the cars in front of us, right?"

Patrick answered anyway.

"Yes, Mr. Perrin. We're still stuck in traffic."

He listened to the client's response while keeping his eyes on the road.

"No, we can't use the bus lane."

Patrick hung up a few seconds later.

They reached the house in the middle of the afternoon, but another problem was waiting for them as soon as they arrived. The entrance to the garage was much narrower than expected. The truck could fit through, but only with a limited amount of space on either side. Patrick got out to guide the maneuver while Aldric watched the distance between the vehicle and the walls.

"About fifteen centimeters on the right."

Patrick raised a hand.

"Slowly."

Karim watched the other side.

"A little more."

Lucas looked at Aldric.

"Do you actually want to get out with a ruler?"

"That won't be necessary."

"That's reassuring."

The truck made it through without touching the walls. Mr. Perrin arrived a few minutes later.

"You could move a little closer to the door."

Patrick looked at the remaining space.

"No. We wouldn't be able to get back out properly."

The client sighed.

"Fine."

Lucas murmured quietly enough that only his coworkers could hear him,

"Three."

Karim smiled without commenting, and they began unloading. Once again, the instructions changed regularly. A bookcase was initially supposed to go into the living room before being redirected to the office. An armchair meant for the second floor had to remain downstairs, and three boxes of books were carried back to the truck when the client decided they would go to the storage unit after all.

Lucas placed the third box inside the truck.

"I think we're moving the same things more than once."

Karim replied as he set his own box down beside it.

"It's good training."

"I'm trained enough."

Aldric came out of the house carrying another box.

"This one is also going back into the truck."

"Of course..." Lucas said.

Inside, Patrick was speaking with Mr. Perrin beside a large wardrobe the client had just pointed out.

"It needs to go upstairs."

"It probably won't fit while assembled."

"It was upstairs in the old house."

"The staircase was wider."

"Can you try?"

"We can check. But if it doesn't fit, we'll have to take it apart."

Mr. Perrin sighed.

"Fine."

They lifted the wardrobe and carried it toward the stairs. After only a few meters, Aldric could already tell that the angle would not be sufficient.

"Stop," Patrick said.

They set the wardrobe back down.

"It won't fit."

"Are you sure?" Mr. Perrin asked.

Lucas looked at the wardrobe, then at the staircase.

"Unless we remove a wall."

Aldric placed a hand on the piece of furniture.

"The structure can be disassembled."

"How long will it take?" Mr. Perrin asked.

"About twenty minutes."

"Another delay."

They dismantled the wardrobe. The job had long since gone beyond the planned schedule. Yet no one on the team seemed to be panicking. Patrick continued dealing with the client. Karim prepared the pieces, while Lucas had organized the screws in a small box and noted where each one belonged.

Aldric stopped and looked at Lucas, who raised his eyes toward him.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"You're staring at me."

"I was observing that you organized the screws correctly."

"Cleaning my apartment left its mark on me..."

"Enjoy the compliment. They're rare," Karim said.

The wardrobe was finally carried upstairs and reassembled. Aldric and Karim were fastening the last pieces while Patrick checked the stability of the furniture. Lucas, meanwhile, was gathering the tools when a familiar voice came from the entrance of the house.

Aldric looked up. Emma had just entered with a folder tucked under her arm and was exchanging a few words with Mr. Perrin. She turned toward the staircase, spotted Aldric, and stopped.

"Aldric?"

"Hello, Emma."

She smiled as she approached.

"I didn't know you were the ones handling the move."

"We didn't know you were coming here either."

Lucas turned toward the entrance and smiled as well.

"Administrative reinforcements."

Emma laughed.

"Hello, Lucas. Glad to see you're still working as seriously as ever."

"I was putting the tools away."

"Of course."

Mr. Perrin looked back and forth between Emma and Aldric.

"You know each other?" Mr. Perrin asked.

"Yes, they're friends. And regarding your house, we still need your signature on the key handover form. I was in the area, so I thought it would be easier to come directly rather than ask you to come back to the agency."

She opened her folder and took out several sheets before showing him where he needed to sign. Mr. Perrin took them and began looking through them.

"I thought everything had already been signed."

Emma calmly pointed to the missing section.

"Here."

"That wasn't indicated."

"That's exactly why I stopped by."

While the client signed, Lucas moved closer to Aldric.

"Look. Even paperwork obeys Emma."

"She has considerable experience in this field."

"I can hear you..."

"That was a compliment," Lucas said.

She stayed for a few minutes to speak with Patrick and greet the others. When she noticed how tired the team looked, she raised her eyebrows.

"Difficult?"

Lucas glanced at Mr. Perrin, who was far enough away not to hear them.

"Very pleasant."

Emma smiled.

"I see."

"Are you heading home after this?" Aldric asked.

"Yes. Do you still have much longer?"

Patrick looked at the truck.

"An hour, maybe two."

"Good luck..."

Before leaving, she handed Aldric a bottle of water from her bag.

"Here."

"I still have some."

"Save it for later."

"Why him?" Lucas asked.

"Because you already have a bottle in your hand."

"Valid argument."

She left, and they returned to work.

The sun was beginning to set when they finally loaded the last boxes destined for the storage unit. Mr. Perrin checked everything once again before asking if the table could stay in the house after all.

Patrick closed his eyes for a fraction of a second.

"Yes."

They took the table back out of the truck. Karim cleared some space while Lucas removed the protective covers, Aldric lifted the other side of the table, and Patrick cleared the way. A few minutes later, the table was in place.

"A little more to the left," Mr. Perrin said.

Lucas took a deep breath as Patrick exchanged a glance with Aldric. Without commenting, Aldric picked up the table again and moved it a few centimeters.

"There?"

The client stepped back to get a better look.

"A little more."

They adjusted its position once again.

They gathered their remaining belongings and left the house. Mr. Perrin accompanied them to the entrance before turning to Patrick and holding out his hand.

"Thank you again. You did a good job."

Patrick shook his hand.

"My pleasure."

Mr. Perrin then shook hands with Karim, Lucas, and finally Aldric.

"Have a good evening."

"You too," Patrick replied.

The four men returned to the truck and climbed inside. Patrick took his place behind the wheel while Karim sat beside him. Aldric and Lucas took their seats in the back.

"Did he really just say we did a good job?" Lucas asked.

Karim nodded.

"Yes."

Lucas leaned back in his seat.

"I thought he was physically incapable of saying that."

Patrick finally burst out laughing, and the tension that had built up throughout the day seemed to disappear all at once.

"I'm exhausted," Lucas added.

Karim let his head fall back against his seat.

"Me too."

Aldric checked the time.

"We exceeded the planned schedule by three hours and seventeen minutes."

Lucas looked up at him.

"Thank you. I really needed that level of precision."

"At least it's over."