When The Customer Check-Mates Themselves

I am serving a customer at the checkout. AFTER I had scanned her many items and hit total, only then she decides to start digging in her purse to find her checkbook, and after a few long moments, finds it, and then starts to slowly fill it out. Of course, a line has built up behind her, and people look like their lives are slowly draining out of them. I felt it too. I ran the check through the register (it scanned it or whatever), then put it at the bottom of the cash drawer. I handed her the receipt, then she held her hand back out. I am not entirely sure why, because I wanted her to go, not give me a high five.

She just ‘ahhmmmm’d at me and said:

Customer: “Where is my check?”

Me: *Confused.* “In the drawer, where I just put it after the transaction.”

Customer: *Yelling.* “I want my check back!”

Me: “Ma’am, we have to keep the check to deposit it at the bank, in case there are any transaction errors.”

Customer: *Shaking her head the entire time.* “No, I have to get it back, otherwise somebody could steal my identity.”

I tried to assure her that from the register we put it in the safe at night, then in the morning, the armed guard takes it to the bank for deposit. She would not accept it.

Customer: “If I do not get it back, then I will return my purchase and buy it elsewhere.”

This must have been a power play for her, but she messed up; I was on my last week at that job and was ready to stop giving a s***.

I asked for her receipt, which I got, pulled up her transaction, and hit void previous transaction. I grabbed her check, the receipt, and the void receipt and handed it to her.

Me: “There, I have voided the transaction and returned your check. Good luck at the next store.”

I then started removing her items from the bags and making a stack beside me on the floor.

She looked dumbfounded, jaw dropped.

Customer: “No! I purchased those; those are mine!”

Kindly, with the most customer service voice I could muster, replied:

Me: “You told me that if you could not have your check back, you would buy things elsewhere, and I had already told you we were not able to give it back, so I voided your purchase, and now you have your check back.”

I looked at the next person in line.

Me: “I can help the next person.”

That beautiful customer stepped forward, right next to the lady, and started a conversation about some cereal she bought. By that time, the manager had come over, and the lady began yelling at him.

He ended up ringing her items back up in the aisle next to mine, and she paid by check, but was again unable to keep the check. I could hear it all well, in fact, half the aisle was watching their show of an interaction.

The BEST part was when she was demanding her check back (again), he asked if she wanted him to void it out so she could go elsewhere. She nearly exploded, ripped the receipt out of his hand, threw the bags in her cart, and breaking things by the sound, and stormed out yelling.

The cherry on top was that on her way out, she turned back to yell more at us and ran into the door frame with her cart, as she was looking back, not where she was going. Laughter erupted from a few kids nearby.

GREAT DAY, I got talked to, but I was almost out, so meh.