A Person of Higher Interest

“I went to the bank yesterday…” Aaron started to tell his story.

It was Sunday and a snowstorm was due to arrive later in the day.  While the best friends sat on their favorite bench next to the river, ominous storm clouds gathered overhead.

“You went where?” Holly cut him off.

“The bank,” he replied with a little frustration in his voice because he hated being interrupted.

“Why?” she asked before he could continue.

“To take care of some financial business.  You know, the sort of things you do at a bank.”

“This is 2023,” she pointed out.  “People don’t go to banks anymore.  They do everything online.”

She smiled snidely and took a sip of her coffee.

“I don’t like to do things online,” Aaron replied defensively.

“Really?  Don’t you email and message me dozens of times a day?  Don’t you have a blog that is only available to your followers online?”

Aaron glared at her as he took an exceptionally long gulp of his Snapple.

“I don’t like to do financial things online,” he clarified.  “You know this about me.  I don’t trust the internet to keep my secrets safe.  I need to do all transactions in person.”

She rolled her eyes.  “How Depression Era America of you.”

“Sometimes, I really don’t understand your insults or why you have an issue with certain things about me,” he confessed.

“Oh, I take issue with close to one hundred percent of things about you, but there simply isn’t enough time in the day for me to discuss them all,” she informed him.  “I have to pick and choose.  Use my time wisely.  You know, that’s the same reason I bank online.  To save time in a busy day.  Tell me, was there a long line to get into the bank?  Did you have to wait impatiently to finally get up to a teller and do your financial business?”

“I was the only one there,” he confessed softly.

“Imagine that,” she quipped.

Aaron simply nodded and had some more of his Snapple.  When Holly was determined to make a point with him, he knew the best thing to do was just sit there and take his medicine.  If he tried to defend himself too vehemently, she would make him regret it.

“So, anyway, back to my being at the bank,” he pressed on rather than try to fight her.  “As I was wrapping up my transaction, the teller asked me if I’d like to switch to a different kind of account that offered a higher rate.”

“Your response was to be skeptical because you not only don’t trust change, but you also don’t trust anything that’s free and easy,” Holly added because she knew him so well.

“Exactly,” he confirmed with a smile.  “I demanded to know the catch.  She insisted there was none, and all it would take was a push of a button on her end.  Nothing else would change other than how much interest I earned.”

Holly smiled.  “So then you launched into a witty little rant demanding to know why the bank didn’t simply offer you the higher interest to begin with if you were eligible for it.”

“Do I really need to be here for this conversation?” he asked.

“Yes,” she quickly replied.  “I need you here so I can mock you for still going to the bank and for always assuming the world is lying to you.”

“As long as I’m needed…”

Holly smirked and sipped her coffee.

“How does this riveting tale end?  Did our cautious hero take the plunge and accept the higher interest rate?  Or did he storm off with a vow to research the offer further?”

“You’re supposed to be my best friend.  I just want to remind you of that.”

“I wasn’t exactly beating off people with a stick for the gig,” she teased.

This time, her smile was sweet and made her look even more beautiful.  He just sighed because he knew that all she had to do was smile and he’d forget why he was mad at her.

“I took the higher interest rate.  For the record, I doubt I would’ve learned about the offer if I had done my banking online yesterday.”

Holly shrugged.  Maybe he had a point, but she wasn’t going to admit it.  Instead, she just turned her attention to the river.