~ You Can Bank On It ~

by

Jeannine D. Van Eperen

Mondays were busy banking days, and this proved no exception. All tellers had long lines from nine in the morning when the bank opened until the three o’clock closing hour. At three o’clock all tellers had mounds of money around them that must be verified, put into correct taped bundles, and their individual cages balanced. At three-thirty, Julie wiped her brow and said, “Thanks be to God, I balanced. How are you doing, Mrs. Dollar?”

“Ah, Julie, we’re both blessed today.” Both women sat on their stools as they busily put away the money in its proper place, then sold excess to the head teller, and took their assigned amount to the vault for safekeeping.

Mae peeked into the vault. “Can you join me for a cup of coffee, Julie? You balanced, didn’t you?”

Julie smiled as she answered. “Yes, both Mrs. Dollar and I came out to the penny. I hear Doris is off. I should try to help her.”

“Run along, Julie. I’ll see if Doris needs any help, and if she’s still off you can help out while I take a break. Heaven knows, we both need one,” Arlene Dollar said.

“I take it, I won’t get out by five,” Mae said and made a wry face. “When I go to sleep at night all I ever see is checks dancing before my face.”

“Tell me about it,” Julie said. “The night before last, I woke myself up. I dreamt I was putting my teller’s stamp on a check I cashed, and my fist came down on my leg. I’ve got the bruise right here to prove it.” Julie pointed to her thigh. “It’s bad enough working all day and then on my time off, I dream about it.”

Julie and Mae got coffee and sat down at a small table in the bank’s small lunchroom. They were alone. Most of the tellers were still balancing, and the rest took their breaks a few at a time rather catch as catch can. Often, eager to get home, they gave up a break in order to finish up their work.

Mae cupped her chin in her hand as she leaned on her elbow. She looked earnestly at her friend. “Julie, you just don’t know how lucky you are. Honestly, I really envy you?”

“Envy me?” Julie asked in surprise. Her aqua eyes studied Mae to ascertain if she was serious. “What’s to envy? I’m twenty-three, divorced and have a three year old to support.”

“You also have a lovely family to fall back on, Julie.” Mae sighed. “Look at me--eighteen, single, mother dead and a drunk for a father.”

“Mae, you know your life isn’t all black. You’re just in a blue mood today.”

Julie smiled and tried to tease her friend into a better mood. “What’s the matter? Did your boy friend stand you up last night?”

“Randy? He knows better than to do that.” Mae’s lips curved in a smile.

“See, you feel better all ready. I can tell.” Julie saw Mae’s eyes gleam as she thought of her latest love affaire.

Chuckling softly, Mae said, “Yeah, a man will make me feel better every the time. “Julie,” Mae said slowly, not wanting to upset her friend. “Don’t you ever miss being married?”

“Miss being married?”

“Yeah. You know. Don’t you miss it?”

“No.”

“I heard Ida Costello mention once that your ex was one handsome lug of a guy.”

“He was, Mae, very handsome--and charming, very charming.” For a moment Julie thought of Sean and her smile turned to a frown. “But he was a louse, Mae.”

“In what way?”

“Just take my word for it, Mae. He was a louse. You can bank on it. I don’t speak with forked tongue.” Julie laughed and tried to joke to hide her regret.

“Speaking of banks,” Mae said. “As much as I hate to admit it, our coffee break is over. The Duke City National needs our talents.”

“Such as they are.” Julie rose from her chair at the table. “Thank God the bank’s doors have closed. It was one rough day today! You probably won’t get out of here till seven or so.”

Mae made a wry face. “You didn’t have to tell me that, Julie. At least, you could have let me be happy until I got back to my proof machine.” Reluctantly, Mae stood up. “What I have to put up with back there! Old prissy puss, Rose, saccharine sweet, Carlotta, and stupid old Holly!”

“Oh, Mae, you know you like them.”

“Well sort of.”

As they walked from the room, Julie said, “I thought you liked the proof department.”

“Oh, I do, Julie. I like it better than bookkeeping, but Ida still keeps her eagle eye on me even way back there. It was more fun going to work when I could stare at Horace Brook all day.”

“Walk out in the lobby and stare,” Julie suggested. “He’s still around, you know.”

“Yeah, and he’ll always think of me as a child.” Mae had worked at the bank since she was sixteen when she put in a few hours each day after classes, and since her high school graduation, she’d become a full-time employee working in the proof department, running a proof machine that verified the teller’s work and sorted checks.

“He’s already taken, Mae, don’t forget that.”

“All right, Julie. I’ll be good and think of Randy. Do you remember when I pointed him out to you? Come to think of it, Randy is taken, too, but he’s getting out of that situation.” Mae laughed. “Ah, Randy, I love you!”

“You’re crazy, Mae. Do you know that?”

“No, I just like men. Like Will Rogers, I don’t think I’ve ever met a man I didn’t like or that I couldn’t find something nice about. I’d probably even like your ex-husband, Julie.”

“I’m sure you would,” Julie said sardonically.

“He couldn’t have been that bad, Julie, not if he was as handsome as Ida Costello says. How was he in bed, Julie?”

“Mae, you’re impossible.” Julie felt her face flush hotly, and was visibly annoyed. Even after three years, it still hurt to think of Sean--Sean McDougal, damn him! And damn Mae, too, for bringing him up now.

Unaware that she’d opened up old wounds, Mae waved blithely as she left Julie at her cage and walked with swiveling hips to the proof department.