Historia: Spring Cleaning

“Please can you get up, for a moment?” said Gerard to his girlfriend.

She was sitting on the sofa, reading her letters. She didn’t hear him. Gerard was using the vacuum cleaner. He started to clean the sofa.

“Sorry!” said his girlfriend.

She put down her letters and stood up. Gerard cleaned all of the cushions on the sofa.

His girlfriend tried to pick up her letters, but Gerard moved them. He used a cloth to wipe the table.

“Thank you,” said Gerard. He kissed her.

“I know you like it when our flat is very clean,” she said. “But it’s Saturday. Why don’t you relax?”

“It’s the first day of the month,” Gerard explained.

“Of course,” she replied. “Every month, you clean the whole house. Alright, how can I help?”

Gerard told her to wipe her desk. When she finished, he told her to wipe all the taps. Then he told her to wash all the curtains.

“Are we finished?” she asked, a few hours later.

“It’s the first day of spring,” Gerard explained.

“Of course. Every spring…”

“We have to wash the carpets.”

They pushed all the furniture out of the room. They put the table in the kitchen, the sofa in the bedroom and the plants in the bathroom.

Gerard brought water and soap, two sponges, and two hair dryers.

He and his girlfriend worked all afternoon and all evening. Finally, they pushed all the furniture back into the room.

“Now, we are finished!” said Gerard at last.

They were very tired. Their clothes were dirty. There was soap on their arms and legs. They sat down on the sofa.

Finally, his girlfriend picked up her letters again.

“This one is from our landlord,” she said.

“What does it say?”

“We have to leave in one month!” she cried. “And – and –”

“What is it?” cried Gerard.

“We have to pay for a company to wash the carpets before we leave.”