“Ugh!” Alfie grimaced as he pulled yet another sticky paper out of one of the many filing cabinets in his office. This one seemed to be covered in some weird-smelling jam, was it cranberries?
“Hey-yoooo!” Jack’s voice erupted from the door. He was again in one of his happy moods, which were typical to whenever it was time to torture somebody. Alfie only hoped that it wasn’t his turn again, he already had to go through the pain of being burned alive this morning. He could still taste the smoke in his mouth.
“I heard Jacintha treated you fairly.” Jack smiled, nodding his head at Alfie’s burned clothes. Alfie nodded, trying to suppress a shiver down his spine - Jacintha was way worse than Jack ever seemed to be. “Anyway,” the devil continued, “she was saying that you wanted to talk to me about something? If it’s about the punishment, I’m sorry, can’t help you with that, like I’ve said, you’re in Hell for a reason and you have to-”
“It’s not about the punishment,” Alfie interrupted quickly. He didn’t want to look like he was afraid of the consequences of what he did when he was alive. “I have an idea about organizing these files better and wanted to run it by you.”
Jack, who still had his left hand raised from gesticulating and then being interrupted, smiled at the elf. “Oh, really?” he said, impressed, lowering the hand. “What is it about? You know what? Let’s go to my office and talk about it!”
With that being said, Jack turned around and left the elf by himself. Alfie put the papers he was holding down with haste and ran after the devil. He arrived into his office just as Jack was taking a seat at his massive desk, with a pen and a notebook, looking ready to talk business with his personal assistant.
“So what ideas do you have?” he asked, looking down at his opened notebook, while Alfie took the chair in front of him.
“I was thinking we could use technology to store all the souls’ files and folders. It would be tidier and easier to access. At this moment, if you ask me to find somebody’s file I won’t be able to locate it in that jungle of filing cabinets!” Alfie said breathlessly, afraid the devil might interrupt him.
Jack put his left elbow onto his desk and leaned his chin into his left palm. He looked past the elf, deep in thought for a few moments, then a grimace appeared on his face. Alfie swallowed hard - Jack didn’t seem to like his idea.
“To be honest, I do not like computers,” Jack finally said, and Alfie was able to exhale again. He didn’t realize he was holding his breath while waiting for the devil to answer.
“Oh, it’s not going to be stored on computers!” Alfie said breathlessly. “I was thinking about getting tablets, they are easier to hold and carry around.”
“Oh…” the devil muttered, taken by surprise. “Are they hard to handle?”
“No, they’re very intuitive!” Alfie defended the technology. “And also phones, for you to communicate with you devils, without having to move from your office!”
“Yeah, it all sounds great and all, but I won’t be able to see what they’re doing!” Jack argued, taking his head off his palm and waving his hands aimlessly. “I will have to trust that they’re doing what they’re saying, and to be honest, between you and me,” Jack leaned in towards the elf and whispered: “I don’t trust those idiots.”
Alfie smiled and tried to suppress a giggle as he answered: “You can video call them. Then you’ll be able to see what they’re doing.”
Jack leaned back into his chair, dropping the pen on the table. Again he looked beyond Alfie’s chair, at an empty glass case he had on the wall next to the door. He sighed, but then he seemed to remember he had a person sitting in front of him and got upright. He interlaced his long fingers on the table, while looking the elf straight in the eyes.
“So you tell me, I won’t have to move an inch from this office, but I’ll be able to know what all my devils are doing at all times and have all the souls’ files at my fingertips?” he asked, not believing what his assistant had said.
Alfie nodded before he opened his mouth to say anything. “Yes, sir. I can organize everything, get all the phones and tablets ready to go, and could even manage your calendar and appointments from them!”
“Amazing!” Jack whispered. “Will you teach me how to use this technology?” he then asked the elf.
“Definitely!” Alfie smiled,...