No Deposit Was Going To Cover Their Plans For That Room

A young guy walks into the lobby of our hotel.

Customer: “Do you have a room available tonight?”

Me: “We do. A standard room is [rate].”

The customer starts to hand me some cash.

Me: “Uh, payment can only be made using a card, I’m afraid, and I’ll need to see some ID.”

Customer: “Oh, I didn’t know.”

He hands me his ID. It shows that he’s twenty-one, barely. I also see his attention continue to look over toward the street. There’s a pick-up truck full of, what looks like, eighteen- to twenty-year-olds, keeping an eye on this guy at my check-in desk.

Customer: “I… uh… I don’t have enough in my bank account to cover the cost.”

Me: “I’m sorry, but it’s standard for hotel bookings.”

Customer: “I… uh… I’ll figure something out.”

I see him walk outside, over to the pickup truck, and tell the teens the bad news. It’s only then that I see that one of them at the back is sitting on a pallet made entirely of beer cans.

My coworker walks over. He’s also seen the interaction.

Coworker: “Aww, you just deprived me of the entertainment of watching him and his friends attempt to sneak a keg’s worth of beer into the hotel.”