The Midnight Laundry Disaster
Josh had failed twice.
His first robbery had turned into a house-cleaning job. His second had turned into road cleaning.
Any sensible person would have given up by now.
But Josh was not a sensible person.
One evening, he gathered his four friends under their usual banyan tree and announced his new plan.
“Friends, this time, we are going to become rich!”
Steve yawned. “You said the same thing before we became bathroom cleaners.”
“And before we became road sweepers,” Jamal added.
Kiran opened his imaginary business report. “Technically, our income from both operations was zero.”
Raju looked worried. “Forget the income. I haven't even recovered the money I spent on snacks.”
Josh raised his hand.
“Silence! This time, I have found the perfect target. A rich man’s bungalow in the next village. They say he has gold, silver, and expensive jewellery.”
Raju’s eyes widened.
“How much gold?”
“Enough to make us rich for the rest of our lives!”
Raju stood up immediately. “Then why are we sitting here? Let’s go!”
Jamal shook his head. “Amazing. Mention food, and he needs a chair. Mention gold, and suddenly he has the energy to run.”
“Gold can buy food,” Raju replied confidently.
Josh smiled. His team was finally motivated.
Unfortunately, none of them had thought about the most important question.
How were they going to get inside the bungalow?
The Great Escape
At around midnight, the five friends reached the village.
The bungalow looked enormous. Its tall walls, grand entrance, and shining lights made them feel as if they were standing in front of a king’s palace.
Josh pointed towards the building.
“There it is! Our future!”
Steve stared at the tall wall.
“Our future seems to have a very big boundary.”
Kiran examined the entrance.
“According to my calculations, we have a 90% chance of getting caught.”
Jamal frowned. “And what about the remaining 10%?”
“We might get caught later.”
“Wonderful. Very encouraging.”
Josh ignored them and began searching for a way inside. They walked around the bungalow, whispering, pointing at walls, and arguing over possible plans.
After nearly twenty minutes, they had achieved absolutely nothing.
Raju was the first to lose patience.
“Can we at least steal something from outside? I'm getting hungry.”
Before Josh could answer, a loud voice suddenly shattered the silence.
“THIEF! THIEF! CATCH THEM!”
A watchman had spotted them!
For one second, the five friends stood frozen.
Then Josh screamed, “RUN!”
They ran as if they had won the Olympic gold medal for the fastest escape.
Steve, who normally complained about walking to the tea shop, suddenly ran faster than everyone else.
“Steve!” Josh shouted. “How are you running so fast?”
“I DON'T WANT TO BECOME A THIRD-TIME CLEANER!”
They dashed through narrow lanes, crossed an empty field, and finally reached a quiet corner of the village.
Nobody followed them.
Exhausted, they collapsed beside a large rock.
Josh lay flat on the ground.
“Friends, the watchman was very rude. We were only looking at the bungalow!”
Jamal sat up and stared at him.
“Next time, we should send him an invitation before visiting.”
Kiran checked his imaginary watch.
“Our operation lasted less than an hour. Financial return: zero. Running distance: approximately three kilometres.”
Raju held his stomach.
“Can someone calculate how many calories we burned? Because I need to eat them back.”
Just as Josh opened his mouth to deliver another motivational speech, a strange noise interrupted him.
Brrrrrrrr!
Two auto-rickshaws stopped nearby.
A woman climbed out of the first auto. Another woman got out of the second, carrying a large bundle of clothes. They began unloading bags filled with dirty laundry.
The woman looked around impatiently and pulled out her phone.
“Hello? Where are your assistants? I have reached the village with two autos full of clothes, and nobody is here to help me!”
She listened for a moment, then continued angrily.
“What do you mean they're not coming? Do you expect me to wash all these clothes alone? There are hundreds of them!”
She ended the call with an annoyed sigh.
This woman was the village washerwoman. She washed clothes for several families and sometimes worked late into the night to finish urgent orders.
Tonight, she had taken on extra work but had been left without her helpers.
She looked around desperately.
Then her eyes fell on five young men sitting beside a rock.
All five were tired, sweating, and looking completely lost.
The washerwoman's face brightened.
“Ah! Finally! My assistants have arrived!”
The five friends looked at one another.
Assistants?
Before they could understand what was happening, she waved at them.
“You five! Come here! Why are you sitting there? We have a mountain of clothes to wash!”
Josh blinked.
“Madam, I think there is some misunderstanding—”
“Misunderstanding?” she interrupted. “I paid your supervisor in advance! Now stop wasting time. Bring those clothes!”
Jamal whispered to Josh, “Congratulations, leader. We have finally found a job that requires no interview.”
Josh whispered back, “Shut up! Let me handle this.”
He turned towards the woman and tried to sound confident.
“Madam, actually, we came here for—”
“For what? To watch me work?”
“No, madam…”
“Then get moving!”
She placed a huge bundle of clothes into Josh's arms.
The bundle was so heavy that his knees bent immediately.
Steve stared at him.
“Careful, Josh. That bundle contains more weight than your entire career.”
Before Josh could respond, the washerwoman handed Steve another bundle.
“You look strong. Take this one.”
Steve nearly fell over.
“Madam, I have a back problem.”
“Good! Then you can wash clothes sitting down.”
Jamal covered his mouth to hide his laughter.
Kiran, meanwhile, had started counting the bundles.
“Wait, madam. How many clothes are there?”
The woman smiled.
“About four hundred pieces.”
Kiran's face went pale.
“Four hundred?”
“Yes. And I need them washed, dried, folded, and sorted before morning.”
He quickly revised his imaginary calculations.
“Friends, I have bad news. We are no longer thieves. We are a laundry company.”
Raju was holding a bundle when he suddenly noticed something.
“Madam, are there any food stains on these clothes?”
The woman glared at him.
“Of course! People eat food, don't they?”
Raju smiled hopefully.
“Then perhaps I can taste the stains before washing them.”
Everyone stared at him.
Even the washerwoman looked speechless.
“Are you a worker or a goat?”
“Madam, I am just trying to reduce waste.”
“Pick up that bucket!”
The Midnight Laundry Company
Within minutes, the five friends were working harder than they had ever worked in their lives.
Josh was scrubbing clothes with the determination of a man trying to erase his entire criminal history.
Steve sat beside a tub, rubbing a shirt so slowly that the washerwoman kept checking whether he was alive.
“Boy! Why are you washing that one shirt for ten minutes?”
Steve looked up.
“Madam, this shirt has a complicated history.”
“Then give it a simple future and wash it properly!”
She moved on to Jamal, who was trying to separate white clothes from coloured ones.
“Why have you mixed these together?”
Jamal pointed at the clothes.
“They were all dirty when they arrived. I thought they would get along.”
The washerwoman stared at him.
“Another word, and I will make you wash the entire village's laundry.”
Jamal immediately began sorting them correctly.
Kiran had taken charge of counting and organising the clothes. He made neat piles and announced every number.
“White shirts: forty-two. Trousers: thirty-one. Towels: twenty-seven…”
The washerwoman nodded approvingly.
“At least one of you has some sense.”
Kiran smiled proudly.
Then he added, “But madam, according to my calculations, we need at least three more people to finish this work on time.”
She handed him a bucket.
“Excellent calculation. Now work like three people.”
Kiran's smile disappeared.
Meanwhile, Raju had discovered the most dangerous part of the job.
The washerwoman had brought snacks for herself, but she had left them on a nearby stool.
Raju looked at the snacks.
Then he looked at the clothes.
Then he looked at the snacks again.
He slowly reached for a biscuit.
“Don't even think about it!” Josh shouted from across the washing area.
Raju froze.
“I was checking whether it was clean.”
“It's a biscuit!”
“Exactly. Hygiene is important.”
The washerwoman turned around.
“Who is talking instead of working?”
All five immediately bent over their tubs.
For the next few hours, the washerwoman kept them busy. Whenever one friend slowed down, she found another task for him.
If Steve stopped washing, she gave him more clothes.
If Jamal asked questions, she gave him more buckets.
If Kiran finished counting, she made him count again.
If Raju looked towards the snacks, she moved them out of his reach.
And if Josh tried to give instructions, she handed him the heaviest bundle.
By three in the morning, Josh had stopped talking.
By four, Steve was washing clothes with his eyes half closed.
By five, Kiran had forgotten how to count.
And Raju?
He was still trying to negotiate a payment in snacks.
“Madam, if we finish everything, can we get breakfast?”
The washerwoman replied without looking up.
“Finish everything first.”
“What about tea?”
“Wash.”
“Just one biscuit?”
“WASH!”
Raju returned to his bucket.
“This is the most expensive biscuit I have never eaten,” he muttered.
The Final Surprise
At last, the sky began to brighten.
The five friends had washed, rinsed, dried, folded, and sorted hundreds of clothes. Their hands were sore, their clothes were wet, and their faces looked as if they had aged ten years overnight.
The washerwoman inspected the final pile.
“Good! Everything is ready.”
Josh slowly stood up.
“Madam, now that we have finished the work, we need to discuss our payment.”
“Payment?” she asked.
“Yes, madam. We were told that we would be working here.”
The woman frowned.
“I paid your supervisor already. If you have any payment issues, speak to him.”
Josh stared at her.
“Supervisor? What supervisor?”
“The man who sent you!”
The five friends looked at one another.
Nobody had sent them.
Nobody had hired them.
And nobody was going to pay them.
Jamal finally broke the silence.
“So, madam, we worked all night for free because you mistook us for someone else's assistants?”
The washerwoman folded her arms.
“That's your problem. You should have told me earlier!”
Josh opened his mouth, but no words came out.
He could hardly tell her the truth: they had come to steal gold from a rich man's bungalow, been chased by a watchman, and accidentally become laundry workers.
That explanation would probably earn them another job.
The woman pointed towards the road.
“Now go home. And tell your supervisor to send better workers next time!”
The five friends walked away in complete silence.
After a few minutes, Steve finally spoke.
“First, we cleaned a house. Then, we cleaned roads. Now, we have washed four hundred clothes.”
Kiran nodded sadly.
“Our business has expanded into three service categories without generating a single rupee.”
Jamal looked at Josh.
“Leader, what is our next mission? Washing elephants?”
Raju suddenly stopped walking.
“Wait! We forgot something!”
Everyone turned towards him.
“What?”
“Breakfast!”
Josh closed his eyes in frustration.
“Raju, after everything we went through, you're still thinking about food?”
Raju shrugged.
“Someone has to keep the team motivated.”
Josh looked towards the rising sun and clenched his fists.
“Friends, don't worry. Our next robbery will be different. We will choose a target, make a proper plan, and become rich!”
Steve sighed.
“Can the plan include sleeping until noon?”
Josh ignored him and marched forward.
Behind him, four exhausted friends followed.
They had entered the village hoping to steal gold.
Instead, they had escaped a watchman, washed hundreds of clothes, and earned absolutely nothing.
The Foolish Thief Crew had failed at stealing for the third time. But one thing was becoming clear: wherever they went, someone always found a job for them.
And Josh still believed they were destined for greatness.