by: Wendy
*Author Note: Although a response to the one set challenge, this is kind of a prequel to “Jessica Lynn.” *
Daisy sighed in frustration at the number of people already in line when she stepped into the bank. Boss was too cheap to have more than one teller working on what he considered “off” days – and, of course, pay day for the Boar’s Nest was one of those days. “I’d hate to see his idea of busy,” she muttered, taking her place in line. It looked like half of the town was in there, and the poor teller, Rose Ellen, looked frazzled.
As the line inched forward, Daisy glanced again at the check in her hand. Normally, she just deposited the whole thing in the family’s account, but today was different. Today she had special plans for this money, but, if Rose Ellen didn’t hurry, she just may chicken out.
After her visit with Doc Applebee last week, Daisy had been trying to gather the courage to share her big news with Jesse and the boys. Then, when she got her check this afternoon, it had hit her – she didn’t have to tell them anything. Instead, she would just cash the check and leave town. As hard as it would be for her, she could save them the shame of knowing what she had done. She could get a job somewhere, surely, and manage to provide for herself and the baby. This was her problem; it had nothing to do with her family. They would get along just fine without her.
Pulling herself out of her thoughts with a little shake of her head, Daisy gazed around the room. This would be almost as hard to give up as her family would. She had known everyone in this room her entire life. She forced a smile and waved in response to Cletus as he passed by to go back on patrol. The deputy had been friends with the Duke cousins since elementary school – in spite of being a Hogg. Then there was Mr. Johnson at a nearby table filling out a deposit slip. His family had lived down the road from the Duke farm for generations, and he had helped Jesse on runs until the boys learned to drive and help with the stills. He and Jesse had been friends their entire lives. Looking past Mr. Johnson, she spotted Linda Jacobs. The two of them had been friends since Linda moved to Hazzard in the second grade. Daisy did not have many memories from childhood that did not involve Linda. And, of course, there was Cooter, joking with Rose Ellen as he paid on his loan. She didn’t know how she would have survived without Cooter. No matter what happened, he was always there to pick up the pieces if one of them wrecked, or provide a distraction if necessary. Cooter was more like a member of the family than anything else.
She had a million memories attached to each and every person in this room. As the memories flooded over her, she glanced again at the check. It was not too late. She had the deposit slip in her purse, filled out and ready to go. She could just go home and talk to her uncle. Explaining herself would be difficult, but not impossible. Jesse would be upset, of course, but he would understand. He had always told his kids that there was nothing they couldn’t tell him – it didn’t mean that he wouldn’t yell some, but he would help them with any problem they had. As she moved up again, Daisy smiled to herself, hearing Jesse’s voice in her head again “Dukes don’t run. Sometimes we oughta run, and sometimes we feel like we’d like to run, but we don’t and we won’t!”
“All right, you win,” she muttered to the voice in her head, “I’ll try it your way.” As she moved toward the head of the line, Daisy watched a woman, new to Hazzard, come in with a young child, and smiled again. She began to picture herself bringing her own child with her when she brought her checks. Everyone would make a fuss over the baby. When it was older, Rose Ellen would give it lollipops at the counter for being good in the bank. Everything would turn out just fine.
When her turn finally came, Daisy felt wonderful – cheered for the first time in a week by thoughts of what life could be like if she stayed here in Hazzard. She greeted Rose Ellen with a real smile, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted. As she placed the check on the counter, though, all of her fears came crashing back, and she heard her voice say, “I need to cash this, please.” Rose Ellen didn’t even blink, just counted out the money and handed it to her with a smile. When Daisy turned to leave, she heard Rose Ellen say, “See you in church Sunday.”
She nodded slightly, but, as she walked away, a tear slipped down her cheek, and she whispered, “No. You won’t,” her voice too low for anyone to hear. At the door, she stopped and took another look back at her friends and neighbors inside, knowing that she would probably never see any of them again. Another tear slipped down her cheek, and she stepped quickly out onto the sidewalk, heading for home to pack for her new life.