Double the Change

“Thanks,” I said to Jessica, the cute Chevron clerk. I gave her another glance as I opened the door and slid the change into my pocket: thirty-nine cents. Everyday, until they raised the price again, I received thirty-nine cents in change for my refreshing Mountain Dew.

As I was about to open my car door, a reflected ray of light caught my eye. With the sun so high, heating up the day, I almost ignored it. But I looked down and saw that, next to my rear driver-side tire was a golden dollar. I retrieved it and smirked as Sacagawea looked back at me over her shoulder, a sleeping baby on her back.

Pocketing the golden dollar, I couldn’t help but smile bigger, thinking it was my lucky day. It’s not often that you find a golden dollar. No one likes to spend them, it seems. The year on the dollar also had me intrigued: 2002. The last palindrome I was going to see in my lifetime. Not many people had understood the significance back then but I remember preaching and praising how it was destined to be a year to remember.

Looking back, I couldn’t even recall what movies had come out that year, but realized that wasn’t important.



Walking around Wal-Mart to pass the time until my next shift at Lowe’s, I became thirsty again. Not wanting to pay for an overpriced drink at the register, I stepped into the entrance, pulling a dollar bill out of my wallet and then the change that Jessica had given to me.

The golden dollar was atop the small pile in my hand, inspiring another grin. Too bad the machine won’t take you, Sacagawea. I put her back into my pocket and frowned, looking at the remaining change. I counted it twice and then closed my fist over the small bundle: seventy-eight cents. Had Jessica given me extra change? Ordinarily, I received a quarter, a dime, and four pennies when I bought a Mountain Dew. Now, I had two quarters, two dimes, and eight pennies. Had I been so wrapped up in Jessica’s angelic features that I failed to notice she had given me more money than necessary? Or had she been so enamored by my looks that she hadn’t been paying attention to what she was doing in the first place?

Or was she just stupid?

These questions bubbled through my mind as I slipped the bill and then a quarter into the machine. I then grabbed my Mountain Dew while putting the rest of the change into my pocket, giving Sacagawea some company.



In the back of Wal-Mart, I found a widescreen DVD of Spider-Man for five dollars. Since my original copy had been stolen by my ex-best friend, I thought it was time to buy a replacement. Maybe Jessica can come over and watch it I said to myself.

Bringing the DVD to the Electronics Department clerk, I tucked my Mountain Dew under my arm, fishing my wallet out, determined to pay with exact change. The clerk – her name badge read Hannah – said “That’s $5.45, sir.” She didn’t smile, but I did: her name was another palindrome. She probably thought I was weird, but I didn’t care: palindromes are fascinating!

I handed her a five-dollar bill and then fished the pocket change out. Sacagawea was the first to stare back and I considered giving her up, but I stopped when I noticed something strange. There were two quarters in my pocket again. Not only that, but there were now four dimes and sixteen pennies when there had been half that amount when I bought the Mountain Dew.

“Sir, it’s $5.45. The forty-five cents is tax. That quarter and—”

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” I said, bewildered. I gave her one of the quarters and two of the dimes, staring at the remaining change. When she handed me my receipt, I had an idea. “Do you have a pen?”

Without expression, Hannah handed me a pen. On the back I wrote sixty-one cents. I folded the paper and tucked it into my pocket, along with the rest of my change. Giving Hannah one more unreturned smile, I quickly walked through the store and to my car; I was close to being late for work.



During my break, I went into the breakroom and realized how thirsty I was. The drink machine wasn’t always stocked, but I pressed the Mountain Dew button and was pleased when it told me to deposit $1.25. When I reached into my pocket, I found a cluster of loose change and was reminded of the confusion I had dealt with.

Opening my fist, I saw many pennies. In total, there were thirty-two. Then I found four dimes and two quarters. At the bottom of the pile was the singular Sacagawea gold dollar I had found. And below her was the folded Wal-Mart receipt.

Under that was another receipt.

My heart caught in my throat when I realized that something was wrong. I knew that Hannah hadn’t given me two receipts. Opening both of them, I was stunned further: they both read sixty-one cents.

When I looked at the fistful of change that had mostly doubled over the course of the day, I took a moment to realize that Sacagawea had never doubled. This had only happened after I put her chiseled face into my pocket.

Other thoughts entered my mind and, before I knew it, I was pulling the bills out of my wallet and tucking them into my pocket, along with Sacagawea. I bought my drink and dumped the rest of the change onto the breakroom table, determined to make more than $7.50 per hour.



Word Count: 951