Bonus story : More than just colleagues : Part 24 : A Day Like Before

On Monday morning, Aldric arrived at the depot at the usual time. Nothing had changed. The metal door was already open, the same truck was waiting outside the warehouse, and the moving blankets were stacked in a corner. Patrick was in his office with a coffee in hand, going over the day’s schedule, while Karim checked the equipment by the truck.

Aldric set down his bag.

“Good morning.”

Karim raised a hand.

“Hey.”

Patrick came out of the office carrying several sheets of paper.

“Morning. Two moves today. The first one should be pretty straightforward.”

A voice came from behind Aldric.

“So something’s definitely going to go wrong.”

Lucas had just walked in carrying a tray with three coffees and a bottle of lemonade.

“Can you avoid jinxing the day before it even starts?”

Lucas set the drinks down on a crate.

“I’m just being realistic.”

Karim took his coffee.

“Thanks.”

Patrick took one as well.

Aldric looked at the tray.

“You only got three coffees.”

Lucas handed him the bottle.

“And this is for you.”

“Thank you.”

Lucas shrugged.

“I’m starting to know everyone’s order.”

Aldric opened the truck while Patrick went over the schedule.

“First client, fourth-floor apartment. Elevator should be working. Then a house in the suburbs. Mostly boxes and a few pieces of furniture.”

Lucas took a sip of his coffee.

“‘Should be working.’”

Patrick looked up.

“Don’t start.”

“I didn’t say anything…”

Aldric grabbed several moving blankets before Patrick had even finished explaining.

“We’ll take eight,” Patrick said.

Aldric added two more blankets to the pile.

“Done.”

Lucas looked at Patrick.

“He already knew…”

Karim checked the straps. He pulled out four, examined them, then loaded them into the truck.

“This one’s worn.”

Patrick held out his hand. Karim passed him the strap, and he immediately inspected the stitching.

“We’ll replace it.”

Lucas grabbed a new strap from the equipment box as Patrick closed the folder.

“We load the…”

Lucas naturally finished for him.

“Dollies, blankets, and straps…”

Patrick looked at him.

“You always say the same thing.”

“Because we always need the same things.”

Karim closed the equipment box.

“Ready.”

Aldric placed the last blanket in the truck.

“As am I.”

“Then let’s go,” Patrick said.

The drive to the first address took about thirty minutes. Lucas spent half of it telling them about his latest soccer match. His team had won three to one, but he devoted most of the story to explaining why the referee had made the wrong call on a foul.

Karim watched the road from the front seat.

“You won. So it didn’t affect the outcome.”

Lucas sighed.

“That’s no reason to ignore an injustice.”

Patrick kept his eyes on the road as he drove.

“Did you commit the foul?”

Lucas fell silent.

“You did not answer,” Aldric pointed out.

Lucas sighed.

“Maybe.”

“So yes,” Karim said.

“I got the ball…”

“Before or after his leg?” Patrick asked.

Lucas took a second too long to answer, and everyone burst out laughing.

When they arrived at the building, Patrick parked a few yards from the entrance. The client was already waiting for them and led them up to the apartment. This time, the elevator was working.

Lucas stopped in front of the open doors.

“I take back everything I said.”

Karim stepped inside with a dolly.

“So far.”

Patrick checked the list.

“We’ll start with the boxes in the living room, then move on to the furniture. Aldric, you can…”

Aldric was already heading toward the bookcase. Patrick stopped mid-sentence as he watched him.

“…take the bookcase.”

“Yes.”

“You can stop giving orders. He reads your mind now,” Lucas said.

“Saves my voice…”

Aldric lifted the bookcase and carried it to the truck. He set it against the side wall, secured it with a strap, then returned to the apartment to join the others.

The first box passed from Karim to Lucas, then from Lucas to Aldric. Patrick had already organized the space inside the truck: the heavier boxes went toward the back, while fragile items stayed near the door so they could be secured separately.

“Fragile.”

Karim already had a blanket in his hands.

“I know.”

Lucas handed him the lamp as Aldric passed behind them carrying a dresser. When Patrick saw him coming, he opened the truck door wider.

“To the right.”

Aldric adjusted his path.

“Understood.”

The client watched them work.

“Have you been working together for a long time?”

“A few months, with this team.”

“Only a few months?”

Lucas set a box inside the truck.

“We learn fast.”

Karim wrapped the lamp in the blanket.

“Some faster than others…”

Lucas turned toward him.

“Why do I feel like that was aimed at me?”

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No one answered, and the client smiled. Aldric continued working, but Patrick’s comment stayed with him. A few months somehow felt both very short and surprisingly long.

The first job ended earlier than expected. None of the furniture caused any particular trouble, and the elevator kept working the entire time. When Patrick closed the truck, Lucas gave him a satisfied smile.

“See? No problems.”

“You’re the one who said there was going to be one…”

“I changed my mind…”

They took a short break before heading to the second address. Lucas pulled out his phone and sent a picture of the truck to the group chat.

Lucas: First job finished without a disaster.

Emma: So it is possible?

“Even she’s joining in now…”

Patrick: Apparently.

Karim: Lucas didn’t break anything.

Lucas placed a hand over his chest.

“The lack of respect in this group is unbelievable.”

Aldric: The day is not over yet.

Lucas immediately looked up.

“No. Not you too…”

Karim burst out laughing while Patrick looked at Aldric in the rearview mirror.

“You asked for that.”

The second job took place at a small house in the suburbs. The family was moving to another house only a few streets away, which made the whole process considerably easier.

Patrick went over the division of tasks.

“We’ll do two trips. Main furniture first, then the boxes. Lucas, you take…”

“The living room with Karim,” Lucas said.

“Yes…”

Karim had already grabbed two moving blankets while Aldric lifted a table.

“And Aldric…”

Lucas cut in before he could finish.

“He takes anything that weighs more than the three of us combined.”

Aldric looked at the table in his hands.

“This one is not particularly heavy.”

Karim smiled.

“For you.”

Patrick shook his head. Their coordination was even more obvious in this house, since he hardly ever needed to repeat an instruction. Whenever Lucas saw Karim coming through with something heavy, he automatically moved over to hold the door. Whenever Patrick started taking apart a piece of furniture, Aldric was already clearing enough space to set the different pieces down.

At one point, Patrick started speaking from the top of the stairs.

“We’ll need to protect the…”

Karim, standing at the bottom, held out a moving blanket.

“Wall.”

Patrick looked at what he was offering him.

“Yes.”

Lucas smiled as he watched them.

“This is getting a little creepy.”

Aldric walked past him.

“You have said that before.”

“Because it is.”

They then had to move a particularly bulky couch through a staircase with a tight turn.

“We’re going to have to tilt it up…”

Aldric was already angling the couch. Patrick stopped mid-sentence, and Lucas burst out laughing.

“You don’t even need to finish your sentences anymore.”

“Fine. Keep going like that…”

Karim grabbed the other end of the couch.

“A little more.”

Aldric immediately adjusted the angle, and the couch cleared the turn without touching the wall.

“I’m officially useless,” Lucas said.

Patrick turned toward him.

“Go get the cushions.”

“Thank you for restoring my dignity.”

While Aldric was lifting a wardrobe, a young boy appeared in the doorway. He immediately stopped and watched Aldric’s every move, his eyes wide. When Aldric crossed the room by himself with the piece of furniture in his arms, the boy turned toward his father to make sure he had seen it too, then looked back at Aldric.

“Sir, you’re really strong.”

“Don’t tell him that. He’ll ask you for a precise assessment,” Lucas said.

Aldric set the piece of furniture down.

“I had no intention of asking.”

Patrick smiled as the boy turned toward Lucas.

“Are you strong too?”

“Yes, I’m very strong…”

“As strong as him?”

Lucas followed his gaze to Aldric.

“Next question…”

Everyone burst out laughing. They finished the first load shortly before noon, and Patrick suggested eating their sandwiches in the garden before continuing. The family had agreed to let them use a small outdoor table.

Lucas opened his bag and pulled out a thermos filled with coffee.

“Anyone want some?”

“Gladly,” Patrick said.

Lucas unscrewed the lid, which doubled as a cup, poured some coffee into it, and handed it to him.

“Thanks.”

Lucas then poured some coffee into another cup, which Karim took.

“Sugar?” Lucas asked.

He was already holding out a small packet.

“I came prepared.”

Karim smiled as Aldric watched the exchange.

“What?”

“I was simply noticing that you know everyone’s habits.”

Karim pulled out his phone while continuing to eat.

“Yanis wants to know if we’re still coming on Sunday.”

Lucas looked up.

“Where?”

“The park.”

“We planned that?”

Karim showed him the group chat. Lucas looked through the messages.

“Oh, right…”

“You’re forgetting plans you agreed to now?” Patrick asked.

“There are a lot of them…”

“Sunday at three,” Aldric said.

“You really remember everything…”

“Useful information.”

Karim smiled.

“I’ll tell Yanis you’re coming. He’ll be happy.”

Lucas frowned.

“You can tell him I’ll be there too…”

Karim put his phone away without answering.

“Did you hear me?” Lucas insisted.

“Yes…”

“And are you going to tell him?”

Karim took another bite of his sandwich.

“If he asks.”

Patrick let out a laugh as Lucas stared at him indignantly.

“I see how I’m regarded in this team…”

“Yanis already knows you come along pretty often,” Karim replied.

“That’s not the same thing. He needs time to prepare.”

“For what?” Aldric asked.

“Good question,” Karim said.

Lucas shook his head.

“None of you have any respect for an essential member of this group…”

The break continued without any particular topic dominating the conversation. They talked about the weather, Lucas’s next match, Patrick’s home renovations, and the drawing Yanis had started the day before. It was the kind of conversation that could have taken place anywhere, with nothing particularly remarkable about it. Yet Aldric found himself appreciating that very ordinariness.

After lunch, they drove the first load to the new house and unloaded the main pieces of furniture. They then returned to the old address to collect the remaining boxes.

Shortly before they were due to head back to the new house, Lucas pulled out his phone to reply to a message. Since that morning, he had sent several pictures to their group chat, mostly to comment on the most difficult pieces of furniture they had to move and complain about the sheer number of boxes the owners had somehow managed to accumulate.

A new reply appeared.

Emma: Where are you guys today?

Lucas sent her the name of the street before slipping his phone back into his pocket. He didn’t give it any more thought and went back to helping Patrick load the last few boxes.

A few minutes later, his phone buzzed again.

Emma: Seriously? I’m five minutes away 😂

Lucas showed the screen to Karim.

“Emma’s nearby.”

“Working?”

“Apparently.”

Aldric, who was passing by with a box, overheard them.

“Does she have an appointment in the area?”

“Yeah. She says she might stop by afterward.”

Patrick closed the truck doors.

“If we’re still here.”

They set off again. Around two in the afternoon, while they were unloading the last boxes in front of the new house, a familiar car slowed down on the street and stopped a few yards away. Lucas, carrying two boxes at once, turned his head.

“Well, she found us.”

Emma got out of the car with a folder tucked under her arm. Patrick raised a hand in greeting as she approached.

“Hey.”

“Hi,” Emma replied.

Aldric set down the box he was carrying.

“Is your appointment over?”

“Yes. I really was only five minutes away, so I figured I’d stop by before heading back.”

“You just wanted to make sure we were actually working…” Lucas said.

“Exactly. I wanted to make sure Patrick wasn’t letting you take it easy.”

“Of course…”

Karim came out of the house at that moment and spotted Emma.

“Hey, Emma.”

“Hey. How’s it going?”

“Good. We’re almost done.”

Emma looked at the nearly empty truck.

“You really are almost finished.”

Patrick nodded.

“About twenty boxes left.”

“Can I help for five minutes?”

Patrick was about to answer, but she had already put her folder back in her car and picked up a small box. Lucas’s eyes widened.

“You’re wearing your work clothes.”

Emma glanced down at her shirt.

“This box weighs three kilos.”

“If you get it dirty, I don’t want to be held responsible.”

“Then get out of my way.”

Aldric picked up another box, and Emma walked beside him toward the new house.

“Has the day gone well?” Emma asked.

“Quite well. No broken elevators, no furniture stuck in a staircase, and no one telling us at the last minute that a couch needs to go up six floors.”

“Lucas must be disappointed.”

“I can hear you!” Lucas shouted.

She ended up staying for almost twenty minutes. She carried a few small boxes, chatted with Karim, and asked Patrick whether the insurance company had confirmed the date for the repairs.

“Next Wednesday. I’ve already got all the paperwork ready.”

“Without me?”

“I’ve learned.”

“A historic moment,” Emma said.

“I’m proud of you.”

Emma checked the time before slipping her phone back into her pocket.

“I’ll let you finish. I still need to stop by the agency.”

She gave the group a wave.

“See you Sunday.”

“See you Sunday,” Karim replied.

Lucas raised a hand to wave goodbye while Patrick wished her a good rest of the day. Emma walked back to her car, placed her folder on the passenger seat, and got behind the wheel. A few moments later, she pulled away and drove down the street.

Aldric watched the car until it disappeared around the corner, then turned back toward the truck.

Lucas picked up another box and looked around.

“Right. Where were we?”

Karim handed him a box.

“Here.”

Karim walked around the truck to make sure everything was properly secured and that none of the straps were sticking out. Patrick turned toward him.

“Everything good?”

Karim gave the handle one last pull.

“All good.”

Lucas picked up the few pieces of trash left near the curb.

“And we didn’t forget anything.”

Aldric finished counting the moving blankets.

“All eight are accounted for.”

“Perfect,” Patrick said.

Lucas climbed into the truck and took his seat.

“Now that I’ve proven my competence, I can make tomorrow’s schedule.”

Patrick smiled as he climbed in as well.

“Absolutely not.”

“Why? I was exemplary today.”

“I don’t want to go bankrupt…”

Karim burst out laughing while Lucas was still protesting as they drove away.

On the way back, Lucas put some music on again. Karim recognized the song he had performed at karaoke a few days earlier. Lucas turned toward him.

“You know this one. Sing.”

“You’ll be waiting a long time…”

“You were easier to convince at karaoke.”

“Karaoke is over.”

Lucas pulled out his phone and sent a message to the group chat.

Lucas: Karim refuses to sing.

Emma: Disappointing.

Karim checked his phone before looking at Lucas.

“Did you really have to tell her?”

“She needed to know.”

Aldric: He does sing very well.

“You too now?…”

“My observation remains accurate.”

Lucas burst out laughing, with Patrick quickly joining in, while Karim put his phone away and shook his head.

The workday ended shortly before five. When they arrived back at the depot, they unloaded the equipment they had used during the move and put the truck back in order. While Patrick put away the straps and Karim checked the rest of the equipment, Aldric gathered the last of the moving blankets and began folding them.

Patrick was filling out the day’s report. A few moments later, Lucas returned from the small office with four bottles of water and handed them out to the group.

“Here.”

Patrick looked up at him.

“No more coffee?”

“It’s five o’clock.”

“Finally, a sensible decision.”

Lucas handed him his bottle, and they finished putting everything away. Once the equipment was back in place and the report was complete, Patrick set the truck keys down on the desk.

“Alright, we’re done.”

Karim picked up his bag.

“Have a good evening.”

He only made it a few steps before stopping when Lucas, leaning against a crate, looked around at the others.

“What are you guys doing tonight?”

Patrick shrugged.

“Nothing special.”

“I’m heading home to have dinner with Samira and Yanis,” Karim replied, checking the time.

Aldric picked up his bag as well.

“I have no plans either.”

“We could go grab a drink.”

“We’re already seeing each other on Sunday,” Patrick said.

“So? Does that mean we can’t have a drink today?”

“I can stay for about twenty minutes before I head home,” Karim said.

Lucas immediately turned to Aldric.

“You?”

“That works for me.”

“Alright. One drink,” Patrick said.

“Perfect.”

They left the depot and continued talking as they walked down the sidewalk toward a café a few streets away. Lucas told them another story about his latest match, Karim replied to a message from Samira, and Patrick mentioned that he needed to buy some paint the next day.

They settled into the café. Karim’s promised twenty minutes quickly turned into forty, while Patrick eventually ordered a second coffee despite his earlier comment. Lucas told another two stories, and Aldric became involved enough in the conversation that it did not occur to him to check the time until Karim announced that he really did have to go home.

They eventually left the café and went their separate ways. The sun was already beginning to set as Aldric headed toward the metro. He had not even reached the station entrance when his phone buzzed in his pocket. When he took it out, he found a notification from their group chat.

Lucas: Same place Saturday?

Patrick: 👍

Karim: 👍

Emma: The place you went to without me?

Lucas: We literally decided to go at the last minute 😂

Karim: It was supposed to be twenty minutes.

Patrick: You stayed forty.

Karim: I know.

Emma: I see I start missing things the moment I leave you guys alone for an hour.

Lucas: So, Saturday?