I barely slept that night.<\/p>\n
Every time I turned over, I remembered my father's expression when he saw the check.<\/p>\n
Then I remembered Grandma's hand on my wrist.<\/p>\n
Those two things didn't belong together.<\/p>\n
My father had looked at the paper for barely a second before deciding it was worthless.<\/p>\n
Grandma had looked at me as if keeping it mattered.<\/p>\n
I didn't know which of them understood the situation.<\/p>\n
By six in the morning, I had stopped pretending I was going to fall asleep again.<\/p>\n
I got out of bed, made coffee, and opened the drawer in the kitchen.<\/p>\n
The envelope was exactly where I had left it.<\/p>\n
I took it out and placed it on the table.<\/p>\n
For several minutes, I just stared at it.<\/p>\n
I could call Grandma.<\/p>\n
That was the obvious thing to do.<\/p>\n
But I imagined my father answering if she had already gone downstairs.<\/p>\n
I imagined him asking why I was still talking about a joke.<\/p>\n
I imagined Marcus hearing about it and finding another reason to laugh at me.<\/p>\n
I put my phone down.<\/p>\n
I didn't want to ask my family what the check meant.<\/p>\n
I wanted to know whether it was real.<\/p>\n
That was a question someone at a bank could answer better than anyone at my Christmas table.<\/p>\n
I searched through my documents for the check again, checking that I hadn't accidentally left it somewhere else.<\/p>\n
Then I examined the front carefully.<\/p>\n
I wasn't looking for anything sophisticated.<\/p>\n
I didn't know how to identify a counterfeit financial document.<\/p>\n
I simply wanted to make sure I hadn't overlooked something obvious.<\/p>\n
The check had my name.<\/p>\n
The amount was written clearly.<\/p>\n
The signature was there.<\/p>\n
Nothing immediately explained why everyone had laughed.<\/p>\n
I put it back into the envelope.<\/p>\n
Then I got dressed.<\/p>\n
I chose a plain sweater, dark trousers, and the coat I wore when the temperature dropped below freezing.<\/p>\n
Before leaving, I checked my handbag twice.<\/p>\n
The envelope was inside.<\/p>\n
I don't know why I felt nervous.<\/p>\n
I wasn't planning to deposit the money without asking questions.<\/p>\n
I wasn't planning to spend anything.<\/p>\n
I just wanted someone qualified to look at it.<\/p>\n
Still, the thought of walking into a bank with a check for five million dollars made my stomach tighten.<\/p>\n
It felt ridiculous.<\/p>\n
But so had the thought of leaving it in a drawer forever.<\/p>\n
I drove downtown as the morning traffic began to build.<\/p>\n
The sky was pale gray.<\/p>\n
The sidewalks were crowded with people carrying coffee and rushing toward work.<\/p>\n
Everyone seemed to have somewhere important to be.<\/p>\n
I was on my way to ask whether my grandmother had given me a worthless piece of paper.<\/p>\n
I almost turned around twice.<\/p>\n
At the second red light, I reached for the envelope.<\/p>\n
I didn't open it.<\/p>\n
I just touched the edge of it through my handbag.<\/p>\n
Then the light changed.<\/p>\n
I kept driving.<\/p>\n
The bank was in a large office building with glass doors and a polished stone lobby.<\/p>\n
I had been there before, years earlier, to resolve a problem with an old account.<\/p>\n
Back then, I had spoken to a teller, signed a few forms, and left with a printed receipt.<\/p>\n
I had never needed a private appointment.<\/p>\n
I had never dealt with a bank manager.<\/p>\n
And I had certainly never walked through those doors carrying a document that might represent more money than I could imagine spending in a lifetime.<\/p>\n
Inside, the air smelled faintly of coffee and floor cleaner.<\/p>\n
A few customers stood in line near the counters.<\/p>\n
A security guard sat beside the entrance.<\/p>\n
I waited until a teller was free.<\/p>\n
She looked up with a professional smile.<\/p>\n
"Good morning. What can I help you with?"<\/p>\n
I placed the envelope on the counter.<\/p>\n
"I received this from a family member, and I'd like to know whether it's legitimate."<\/p>\n
She opened the envelope and removed the check.<\/p>\n
At first, she looked at it casually.<\/p>\n
Then her eyes moved back to the amount.<\/p>\n
Her smile faded slightly.<\/p>\n
She glanced at me.<\/p>\n
"May I ask how you received this?"<\/p>\n
"My grandmother gave it to me last night."<\/p>\n
The teller looked down again.<\/p>\n
She didn't laugh.<\/p>\n
That was the first thing I noticed.<\/p>\n
She also didn't tell me it was obviously fake.<\/p>\n
Instead, she turned the check over and examined it more closely.<\/p>\n
I stood there with my hands clasped in front of me, trying not to look as nervous as I felt.<\/p>\n
After a moment, she picked up the telephone beside her workstation.<\/p>\n
"I'm going to ask someone to review this."<\/p>\n
"Is there a problem?"<\/p>\n
"I'd rather have a manager take a look before I give you an answer."<\/p>\n
She spoke calmly, but something about the way she handled the paper made my stomach tighten.<\/p>\n
She placed the check inside a clear document sleeve.<\/p>\n
Then she asked me to wait.<\/p>\n
I sat in a chair near the customer service desks.<\/p>\n
A man in a business suit was speaking quietly with another employee.<\/p>\n
A woman was signing paperwork beside the windows.<\/p>\n
Somebody's phone rang and stopped.<\/p>\n
Ordinary things.<\/p>\n
I watched them because I didn't know what else to do.<\/p>\n
A few minutes later, the teller returned.<\/p>\n
"Ms. Whitaker?"<\/p>\n
I stood.<\/p>\n
"The manager would like to speak with you."<\/p>\n
I followed her down a short hallway to a small office.<\/p>\n
The manager was a middle-aged man with neatly combed hair and a dark tie.<\/p>\n
He introduced himself, offered me a chair, and placed the check on his desk.<\/p>\n
He didn't touch it immediately.<\/p>\n
Instead, he looked at me.<\/p>\n
"You said your grandmother gave you this?"<\/p>\n
"Yes."<\/p>\n
"Last night?"<\/p>\n
"At Christmas dinner."<\/p>\n
He nodded slowly.<\/p>\n
"Did she explain the reason for the gift?"<\/p>\n
"No. Not really."<\/p>\n
I felt foolish admitting that.<\/p>\n
A normal person might have asked more questions before leaving a family gathering with a check for five million dollars.<\/p>\n
But I hadn't known what to ask.<\/p>\n
Everyone else had been laughing.<\/p>\n
I had been too busy trying to decide whether I was the only person in the room who wanted to take Grandma seriously.<\/p>\n
The manager turned his attention to the document.<\/p>\n
He examined it, checked information on his computer, and made a note on a piece of paper.<\/p>\n
Then he picked up the telephone.<\/p>\n
He spoke in a low voice that I couldn't fully hear.<\/p>\n
I caught a few words about verification.<\/p>\n
Then he gave the person on the other end some information and waited.<\/p>\n
I stared at the edge of his desk.<\/p>\n
There was a small scratch in the wood near his right hand.<\/p>\n
I found myself counting the seconds between his movements.<\/p>\n
He listened.<\/p>\n
Asked another question.<\/p>\n
Listened again.<\/p>\n
Then he ended the call.<\/p>\n
For a moment, he said nothing.<\/p>\n
I shifted in my chair.<\/p>\n
"Is it fake?"<\/p>\n
He looked at me.<\/p>\n
"I'm not prepared to give you a final answer yet."<\/p>\n
I felt the disappointment before he finished speaking.<\/p>\n
Of course.<\/p>\n
I had known it was possible.<\/p>\n
Grandma could have been making a strange joke.<\/p>\n
Someone could have created the checks for an occasion she thought would be amusing.<\/p>\n
The bank might have needed more time to determine what I was looking at.<\/p>\n
I took a breath.<\/p>\n
"That's fine. I just wanted to check."<\/p>\n
The manager didn't return the check.<\/p>\n
Instead, he opened a folder and began reviewing the information again.<\/p>\n
His expression had changed.<\/p>\n
The casual professionalism I had seen when I first entered the office was gone.<\/p>\n
He looked concentrated now.<\/p>\n
Almost troubled.<\/p>\n
He asked me to confirm my full name.<\/p>\n
I did.<\/p>\n
He asked whether I had identification.<\/p>\n
I handed him my driver's license.<\/p>\n
He compared it with the name on the check.<\/p>\n
Then he asked for my telephone number.<\/p>\n
I gave it to him.<\/p>\n
He wrote it down.<\/p>\n
"Ms. Whitaker, I'm going to need a few more minutes."<\/p>\n
I nodded.<\/p>\n
He stood and stepped into the hallway, taking the check with him.<\/p>\n
I remained in the office.<\/p>\n
The door was partly open.<\/p>\n
I could hear his voice, but not his words.<\/p>\n
He returned several minutes later with another employee.<\/p>\n
The second man looked at the check.<\/p>\n
Then he looked at the computer screen.<\/p>\n
Neither of them spoke to me at first.<\/p>\n
I began to feel embarrassed all over again.<\/p>\n
Maybe they were trying to decide how to explain that the check was fraudulent without making me feel worse than I already did.<\/p>\n
Maybe they were discussing whether someone had attempted to deceive me.<\/p>\n
Maybe they were wondering why a woman who worked two jobs had walked into a bank with a document like this.<\/p>\n
I wanted to tell them that I hadn't asked for the money.<\/p>\n
I wanted to explain that I wasn't trying to get anything for free.<\/p>\n
But nobody had accused me of anything.<\/p>\n
So I kept quiet.<\/p>\n
The second employee eventually left.<\/p>\n
The manager sat down again.<\/p>\n
He folded his hands on the desk.<\/p>\n
"Ms. Whitaker, I need to ask you something."<\/p>\n
I looked at him.<\/p>\n
"All right."<\/p>\n
"Does your grandmother have a relationship with this bank?"<\/p>\n
"I don't know."<\/p>\n
"Do you know where she maintains her accounts?"<\/p>\n
"No."<\/p>\n
He paused.<\/p>\n
"Has she ever discussed an inheritance or a financial gift with you?"<\/p>\n
"No."<\/p>\n
That answer came out more quickly than the others.<\/p>\n
Grandma had never promised me money.<\/p>\n
She had never told me I would inherit anything.<\/p>\n
She had never sat me down to explain her finances.<\/p>\n
We talked about ordinary things.<\/p>\n
My work.<\/p>\n
Her garden.<\/p>\n
The books she was reading.<\/p>\n
Sometimes she asked about my apartment or whether I had found a better position.<\/p>\n
She didn't discuss her wealth.<\/p>\n
If she had any.<\/p>\n
I looked at the check on the desk.<\/p>\n
"Can you tell me whether it's real?"<\/p>\n
The manager took a breath.<\/p>\n
"I'm trying to establish exactly what we can confirm."<\/p>\n
It wasn't the answer I wanted.<\/p>\n
But it wasn't a dismissal either.<\/p>\n
He turned toward his computer again.<\/p>\n
I sat very still.<\/p>\n
Then he picked up the telephone for a second time.<\/p>\n
This conversation lasted longer.<\/p>\n
He listened without interrupting.<\/p>\n
Once, he looked at me and then at the check.<\/p>\n
When he finally put the receiver down, he didn't immediately move.<\/p>\n
I watched his face.<\/p>\n
Something had happened.<\/p>\n
I couldn't tell what.<\/p>\n
But whatever it was, it had changed the way he looked at me.<\/p>\n
He stood and walked to the office door.<\/p>\n
"Would you mind waiting here while I speak with another member of our team?"<\/p>\n
I nodded.<\/p>\n
He left.<\/p>\n
The door clicked shut behind him.<\/p>\n
I stared at the envelope on the desk.<\/p>\n
It was the same plain white envelope Grandma had handed me the night before.<\/p>\n
I had carried it through the city, across the bank lobby, and into this small office.<\/p>\n
My family had treated it as a joke.<\/p>\n
I had almost agreed with them.<\/p>\n
Now a bank manager was making telephone calls, checking records, and refusing to give me a simple answer.<\/p>\n
For the first time since Christmas dinner, I wondered whether my family had been wrong for a reason much bigger than embarrassment.<\/p>\n
I thought about my father's check lying beside his plate.<\/p>\n
I thought about Marcus offering me twenty dollars for mine.<\/p>\n
And I thought about Grandma telling me not to lose it.<\/p>\n
The manager returned with a folder.<\/p>\n
He sat down, placed it in front of him, and looked directly at me.<\/p>\n
"Ms. Whitaker, before we go any further, I need you to understand something."<\/p>\n
I waited.<\/p>\n
He opened the folder.<\/p>\n
Then he looked at the check again.<\/p>\n
And I realized that whatever he was about to tell me, it wasn't going to be a joke.<\/p>\n
I barely slept that night. Every time I turned over, I remembered my father's expression when he saw the check. Then I remembered Grandma's hand on my wrist. Those two … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":41213,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41215","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insightdrama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41215","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=41215"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41215\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41219,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41215\/revisions\/41219"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/41213"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=41215"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=41215"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/insightdrama.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=41215"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}