She pushed up out of the leather chair, adjusted her sweater, and left the office. On the door read the words 'Daria Morgendorffer, Manager'. She had started working at the First Bank of Lawndale two years ago after graduating from Raft. At first it had just been a way to earn cash in the wake of the poor economy. But she had taken comfort in storing people's money, watching the numbers dance day after day. After a year, she had discovered evidence that the previous manager was skimming funds off of customer accounts. Daria never would have found out, too, if she hadn't been calculating exact interest rates -- the man had been siphoning off fractions of a cent, which had added up to well over 200,000 during his tenure as manager. She had turned him in, and gotten a promotion and a fat raise for her efforts.
Her 'rounds' consisted of standing at the door to her office and making sure her employees weren't holding an orgy or setting fires. Unsurprisingly, they weren't. She had three tellers: Andrea, Upchuck, and Jane. Andrea and Upchuck had apparently dated for a while after high school, but were now just friends. And Jane was Daria's oldest friend, so she had succumbed to a bit of nepotism and gotten her a job there (just until Jane's paintings started selling. And Mystik Spiral hit number one on TRL).
The hands on the clock reached apogee: lunchtime. "Okay guys, let's clear out," she told her employees.
They filed out, with Daria locking the door behind them. She lingered a bit, looking across the street, eyes narrowed a little.
The building was newly constructed, and a banner hung above the door: "Lawndale Credit Union: Now Open!"
"We'll see," Daria muttered.
XXXX
The quartet had their lunch at the Pizza King, which was just down the road from the bank. They typically got an extra-large with everything on it, and four large Cokes.
Today, however, their lunch was interrupted by an unexpected visitor.
"Daria! Jane!"
The four turned, to see that they were being hailed by Jodie Landon, an old classmate. She wore a well-tailored business outfit.
"Oh, hi Jodie," Daria greeted. Jane and Upchuck offered up similar pleasantries; Andrea and Jodie did not run in the same social circle, so Andrea just offered up a slight nod.
"So, guys, what have you been up to since Lawndale High?" Jodie asked.
"Well, we all actually work at First Bank of Lawndale. Daria's the manager!" Jane said.
"How about you, Jodie? Are you...single?" Upchuck asked, only a hint of his once-proud leer on his face. (Working with three women who didn't tolerate his foolishness had done quite a number on his impulses, but they couldn't be suppressed entirely).
"Oh, well, I'm dating someone...sorry...and I'm working as a manager too, actually! At the new Lawndale Credit Union. Would you guys like to open an account there sometime?"
Daria was amazed at the balls on Jodie. "No, we're fine," Daria said distantly. A slight trilling caught her attention. "I believe that's your phone."
"Oh!" Jodie pulled it from her pocket -- one of those fancy touch-screen dealies. "I've really got to take this -- it's been nice talking to you, Daria and Jane and Charles and, uh, Amy. Later!" She walked off, chatting into the phone.
"Bitch," Andrea said after she was out of hearing range.
"Concur," Daria replied.