L'affaire Bob

15. On My Head

When I opened my eyes, the sun, already high up in the sky, was flooding through the window, falling across my face.

I had once again fallen asleep in the living room.

I turned my gaze to the clock on the wall. A "7:30! Crap!" escaped my lips. I was late. Work started at eight, yet here I was, still lying on my couch.

Now, don't get me wrong; 7:30 would have been a perfect time if today wasn't Coffee Day.

My house was only fifteen minutes away from the agency, and I could've arrived ten minutes early if I wanted to, but today was my turn to buy our morning coffee.

Meaning I had to pass by the coffee shop, which would take around 20 minutes because of how crowded it always was.

Now, I'm not that good at math, but even I could say that 20'+15'=me being late to work.

Jumping off the couch, I hurried inside my room and grabbed the nearest clothes. Five minutes later, I was sprinting down the stairs and out of the building as fast as my legs allowed me to. I hopped in my Peugeot 203 and drove off to the coffee shop.

When I entered Café Guillaume, I almost gave the barista a heart attack.

-"Doux Jésus, Paul. Why are you in such a hurry this morning?"

-"I'm late to work," I said hastily.

Guillaume Junior nodded in understanding.

-"So, you're taking the usual?"

-"We don't have much time for that, so don't give me one. Prepare only Marc's and Pierre's."

It felt odd asking for two only. Usually, I would ask for four cups, including Bob's. But now, he wasn't here anymore.

Sensing my sudden mood change, Guillaume uttered: "I read it in the newspaper, man. I'm sorry about Bob. I give you my sincerest condolences."

I winced.

-"Can we not talk about that today?" I asked him.

-"Oh, umm, sorry. I guess I'll get back to your coffee, then. Right after I finish with the five orders before you."

-"Sounds good," I replied, but it came out harsher than intended.

Bob's death was hard to deal with; it was hard to accept that he was gone and even harder to acknowledge this feeling of emptiness in my chest. So I, of course, chose to ignore it and tried not to think about it frequently.

By the time I had come to this marvelous solution, the barista had already finished preparing both coffees and was handing them to me. A third cup, I noticed, was with the other two.

Confused, I looked back at Guillaume.

-"You'll need it," he said. "Take it for free."

I flashed him a grateful smile, took the cups from him, and paid. Taking a look at my watch, I noticed that I still had five minutes before my workday started, so, after leaving a little tip to Guillaume, I hurried back to my car and resumed my ride to the agency.

Soon enough, the office building appeared in front of me. I parked my car and, after getting out, locking it, and putting the keys back in my pocket, I dashed upstairs.

Arriving on the second floor, I sprinted between the dozens of people standing in the hallway and immediately went to Marc's office.

-"Hey," I greeted him, panting. Without waiting for his reply, I slumped down on the nearest chair and handed him his coffee.