Untold: A Young Man's Quest for Purpose

It had been three months since Jake stood on the stage with his cap and gown, accepting his undergraduate degree. Three months since he felt the applause of friends and family as if it were a wave lifting him higher to what was next. But now, at twenty-two, he sat at his kitchen table staring at the diploma in front of him, trying to remember that feeling.

As a kid, he had big dreams. He would be an astronaut or a professional athlete or maybe even president of the United States. All that youthful ambition seemed distant now as he wondered what exactly came after this degree he'd worked so hard for.

His parents had always provided for him growing up, but times were different now. They couldn't afford to just let him move back home and try to figure things out. Jake needed a job.

The weight of uncertainty sat heavy on Jake's shoulders as he clicked through job listings online. Every click seemed to just be more confirmation that there was nothing out there for him — nothing that matched the hopes and dreams he once held so closely.

He closed his laptop with frustration and decided to take a walk outside. Maybe some fresh air could clear his head.

He walked aimlessly around the small town where he'd gone to school, past houses filled with people doing things like mowing their lawns or playing catch with their kids in the yard. They all knew what they were doing — they all had a purpose — while Jake felt like an empty shell drifting down the street.

As night began settling in, Jake found himself walking past one of the few bars in town still open during these pandemic-stricken times. Music poured out into the street, and loud laughter could be heard from inside along with clinking glasses and cheering voices from patrons who seemed not only happy but also blissfully unaware of any concerns about their future.

Jake watched them through the window for several minutes before giving into temptation and stepping inside.

The world inside was a warm contrast to the cool autumn night, with people packed shoulder to shoulder around tables as if they had never heard of social distancing. The maskless bartender gave Jake a nod as he walked in the door and made his way through the crowd, trying not to make eye contact with anyone or draw attention to himself.

As Jake approached the bar looking for an empty stool, he noticed a man sitting alone at a table near him. Although surrounded by people, no one seemed to even glance in his direction — it was as if there was an invisible bubble around him keeping others away. His head was down as he stared at a half-empty glass of whiskey while twisting the gold wedding band that lay on the table next to it.

Jake's eyes met those of another patron who gave him a smile before raising an empty shot glass signaling what she wanted from the bartender. He awkwardly returned her smile before finally finding an empty seat at the bar.

"What can I get you?" asked the bartender without any pretense of small talk.

"Uh… Bud Light? I guess," mumbled Jake still not sure why he'd come in here in the first place.

As he scanned around, Jake noticed something odd. No one here looked like they were having any fun. Everyone seemed so focused on their conversations or drinks and completely indifferent toward what was happening around them — which wasn't much given that there was no dance floor or live music or anything happening other than people drinking silently in groups of four or five.

The bartender set Jake's beer down in front of him and went off to help another customer leaving Jake alone with his thoughts again.

He took out his phone and checked his email again — still nothing but spam messages about refinancing loans and discounted erectile dysfunction drugs. Maybe checking job listings one more time wouldn't be such a bad idea…

His train of thought was interrupted by someone ordering three tequila shots. Jake looked up to see the man at the table who had been sitting alone now surrounded by three women who were clearly a few drinks ahead of him.

"Thanks for this," said one of the women as she grabbed a shot and quickly downed it. "But we're going to head out now. You gonna be ok?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine," he replied with a forced smile. "Just wasn't watching the news is all. Kinda forgot it was my anniversary."

The women gave him sympathetic smiles before heading toward the exit, leaving the man again sitting alone staring into his glass.

Jake turned his attention back to his phone but was again interrupted when someone sat down on the empty stool next to him.

"Hey there, handsome," said a middle-aged woman whose red lipstick matched her tight-fitting dress. Her perfume was strong enough to smell even through her mask which dangled from one ear exposing her bright yellow hoop earrings and hair that clearly had just come from a salon.

Jake froze not sure how to respond as she tossed her long brown curls behind her shoulder showing off a gold necklace with the letter 'S' hanging in front of her cleavage.

"I'm Svetlana, by the way, but you can call me Lana if you'd like," she said with an over-exaggerated wink followed by too long of a pause, waiting for Jake's introduction. When none came she nervously laughed then asked, "Wanna get outta here?"

"Uh… no thanks," Jake finally managed to say with an awkward chuckle hiding behind his beer bottle.

Lana's disappointment showed on her face for only a second before being replaced by another inviting grin as she looked over at man at the table next to them still staring into his glass.

"Well then maybe Ray needs some company? Looks like he could use it after whatever's going on in that head of his."

Jake's eyes darted back and forth between Lana and the man as he frantically searched for a way to extricate himself from this rapidly escalating situation.

Before he could say anything, though, the bartender walked over with another woman on his arm who rolled her eyes when she saw Lana. "You again?" she said more as a statement than a question before addressing Jake. "Sorry about my friend here. She can be a bit much sometimes."

"Hey, I like you just fine!" said Lana defensively followed by that too long of a pause again until finally she added, "Willie Nelson!"

The four of them all looked at each other in awkward silence before Jake finally spoke up. "I'm Jake," he said then pointed at the diploma sticking out from under his arm. "Just graduated college… so maybe that's why I don't know what's going on."

Lana gave him an encouraging smile as Willie took her hand to lead her toward an empty booth near the back.

"I'm Kim, by the way," she said looking back at Jake one more time with that same eye roll before disappearing into the crowd with Lana.

As they left, Jake was once again alone — which is exactly how he wanted it — but now also feeling like maybe this place wasn't so bad after all.

He turned around in his barstool and leaned against the bar taking another sip of his beer while surveying the room — still no dancing or singing or any kind of organized fun happening at all… but something was different now.

There were conversations happening everywhere and people laughing together while making cheers for no reason other than it was their idea to buy another round. And there was music playing over the speakers — not live music since there wasn't even a stage set up — just someone who had put on some songs they liked, and now everyone else seemed to be enjoying them too.

And then there were the bartenders who not only knew everyone's name but also what they wanted to drink without having to ask. They moved like dancers behind the bar — spinning bottles and pouring liquid into cups with a precise rhythm that mixed with the music to create a symphony of happy noise.

It was as if Jake had been sitting in a black-and-white movie until someone turned on the color, and now everything looked so much more vivid and alive than he could have ever imagined.

Suddenly, Jake felt a tap on his shoulder pulling him out of this revelatory trance.

"Hey buddy," said the bartender leaning in close so that Jake could hear him over the noise. "You want another one?"

Jake looked down at his still half-full beer bottle then back up at the bartender and smiled.

"Yeah… yeah I do."