NOTE: This is a work of fiction intended for adults only. The story is entirely imagined by the author. Although the name of some of the places referenced in this story is real, the businesses, people and events are pure fiction.
Special thanks
to a volunteer in Literotica.com's Volunteer Editors program,
neuroparenthetical
,
for his great editing work, his patience, and his professional advice.
Mistakes may still pop up. Those, without a doubt, are my responsibility.
© Copyright 2023/24 WhiteBeard50 - All rights reserved
THE UGLY BEAR
Old Montréal, Monday, May 12, 2025
It's a big day for Jules and Karl. Karl will supervise the construction of a new building in Old Montréal, on the corner of Notre-Dame Street and Saint-Jean Street. It's his first site management job, working for a young architect already well known in this part of town; Jules Bouchard who is, at this moment, patiently waiting with Karl for the big shovel to start digging the foundation of this low-rise structure. It's a six-story building with an architecture designed to fit perfectly into this very controlled environment. Jules waited nearly three years to get the required permits. Actually, he almost gave up on this project.
The project has a very high profile, as it will house local low-income people in apartments made for humans: space, light, commodities, and comfort. Two floors are reserved for families. Two weeks ago, Jules informed the mayor that he was abandoning the project due to the unreasonable delays in obtaining the necessary permits. He noted that several Montréal area municipalities had shown interest in his concept, and were ready to proceed rapidly.
That same day, to emphasize his point, he had the fence rental company start dismantling the fence surrounding the empty lot under the watchful eye of the most-watched Montréal TV station in the province. An uproar ensued. For the next two days, Jules ignored the mayor's calls, emails, and messages posted on all social media. The last part was quite easy to do, since de didn't subscribe to any social media in the first place. While all that was going on, he signed an agreement with Montréal-Est, an independent town further east on the island. The same reporter from the TV station plus a large number of other media people, were present when the agreement was signed at the town's City Hall. Jules' projects, which are privately financed by one of his foundations, and require no public financing, are sought after by many municipalities in Québec and in other surrounding provinces and states.
Two days later, all the required permits were hand-delivered to Jules' assistant, Chloé. Last week, the fence was reinstalled. Today, Monday, May 12, the shovel digs its first load in front of all the local media, without the mayor. This project is privately financed. No government funds have been requested. No politicians were invited. It's how Jules likes to do business, and he's good enough that it's how he can do it most of the time.
"Well, Jules, here we are." Karl, a stalwart fellow, stands next to his young boss and proudly looks at the ground surrounding them. He's the project manager. He's also the best construction engineer in town, and an expert in structural engineering in particular. "Well, Jules, here we are," he says.
"Yup!" answers Jules, smiling. "Finally. You can count on city inspectors making your life miserable, but I promise you that I will provoke spectacular fireworks whenever they try and give us a hard time."
"Don't worry, Jules. I've got lots of experience with that bunch. Most of them are very good at their jobs, and they work with you. By the way, I'd like to have Mat here when the excavation is done. A bit of field experience will be good for him."
"No objection here," Jules replies. "You know that he knows and understands very well the composition of the Old Montréal underground. He did a lot of research on this particular piece of land."
Karl sees the shovel operator make a hand signal, meaning he's ready to start.
"Okay," he says, returning a signal of his own. "Better get out of the way." Then, pointing at the mob of journalists while giving Jules a smile, "They're waiting for you, boss. Good luck!"
Jules smiles back, and they both rapidly walk around the perimeter in the direction of the big shovel. Karl joins the shovel operator, who wants to make sure he understands the details of Karl's digging plans. Jules, on the other hand, dashes for the representative of the local community instead of the journalists. A small crowd of people who will benefit from this project surrounds them. The traditional ribbon is cut by a smiling ordinary citizen to the applause of the small crowd. Then Jules goes to meet the journalists outside the construction perimeter.
*
Friday May 23, end of the afternoon.
Karl walks into the office on Saint-Paul Street, shakes the dry mud off his boots, gets some dust off his clothes, and rapidly gets to the second floor, where Mat's office is located. Actually, it's a large, open space resembling a studio more than an office, and it's located on the far corner to the left of the stairs. Here, there are no closed-in offices. His space is on the ground floor, next to Jules'.
Mat is focused on his large computer screen, his back to the rest of the floor. Karl approaches him quietly and watches him work for a few minutes. He sees a beautiful building taking shape. The young draftsman uses both the mouse and his stylus pen.
An artist at work
, thinks Karl.
"I can feel and smell your presence, big guy," Mat suddenly mumbles. "You smell like damp earth and diesel fumes. Get closer; I'll show you the project perspective I've drawn this morning."
Karl stands right next to Mat and bends down, putting his big, callused, and kind of dirty left hand on the desk with his right hand on the back of Mat's chair. He looks at the drawing, which is now filling the whole screen.
"Wow!" he mutters. "Where is that going to be built?"
"Pointe Saint-Charles project," Mat replies. "You know, the big multi-building construction site. This perspective is the community centre, which will include a large library on the top floor, a daycare centre, playrooms for the kids, a medical clinic, and a bunch of other stuff. Jules gave me a long list of what he wants in there."
"Euh, whose idea is that spectacular design?" Karl is astonished by the curved lines and the glass everywhere, and what looks like large pieces of wood. The style of the drawing is astonishing. It's very artistically rendered.
"Well, he tells me what he's looking for in terms of styles. He usually has a handmade draft of what he has in mind. I sketch a few preliminary drawings, then he tells me which one he thinks will work best with the other buildings or the one he simply prefers. In this case, he drew a few modifications directly on one of my sketches. Then, well, I do this. He hasn't seen it yet. I hope I'm close to what he's looking for. He wants style and function, but also something spectacular—something like a landmark, made with local products."
"Christ," Karl says enthusiastically, "little guy, this is style, class, and damn spectacular."
"After that, big guy," Mat says with a little humorous emphasis on the last two words, "you come in."
"Christ, that'll be fun. But I can't use this thing." He points at the screen.
Mat looks at Karl, who's still eyeing the building's perspective, and smiles. "You tell me what kind of structure you want, or what's necessary to support all that stuff, from the foundation to the structure of that cute multi-curve roof."
The big guy looks like a kid opening a gift and imagining the fun he's going to have with it.
