How To Find Your Future

12 - A Mysterious Client

Charlie

We've finally started to go through the list. I list off the different careers while Olivia says yes, no, or not really. It's tiring at this point.

I rest my head in my hand as my other holds my pen ready to cross off, circle or leave the next option. "Nurse?"

She waves it away. "Same thing with the doctor. I'm fine with it but it isn't a thing that really interests me."

I leave it alone and move onto the next one. "Tutor?"

She shakes her head. "I wouldn't be able to sit there and tutor students. I don't have the patience."

I cross it out and move to the next one. "Teacher?"

Again, she shakes her head. "Maybe? I wouldn't turn it down, but it would have to be with a good age group and with a class I actually like."

"That makes sense. I'd never be able to teach anyone."

She tilts her head. "Why not?"

"I can barely keep myself focused on a topic and learn it, let alone teach someone else? That would be impossible."

"But you already know what you would be teaching."

"True. But it just wouldn't work out for me."

"Oh."

I nod and look down at the list. "Vet?"

"What do you plan to do?" she asks.

"This."

"This?"

I nod. "Yeah. I plan to help people find jobs."

"Why?"

I shrug. "Why not?"

"Well, like, why do you want to help people find jobs? Why are you helping me?"

I drop the pen down onto the table and lean back. "I don't know. I just remember how much I loved to go along with my dad to help his clients. It was always amazing when they got that look on their face when they found a job that they knew was for them."

"So you want to do this for a living to see others be happy?" She raises an eyebrow.

I mull it over for a minute before nodding. "Yeah. That seems right."

She laughs.

"What's so funny?"

"The fact that you don't even realize why you want that job but you know why you want the job."

I blink. "What?"

Her laughter stops. "That's not exactly what I meant." She places her hand on her chin. "But, you just know you want that job. You don't know the reason right away but you do know that that's a job you'll like." She looks down. Her voice gets quieter. "I wish I had that."

"And you can!"

She glances back up at me. "Really?"

I nod.

She laughs. "I'm going to be honest. I don't have that much faith in this plan."

What? My eyes widen. "Then why are you doing it?"

She sighs. She leans back and looks at the ceiling as her head hangs over the edge of her chair. "I'm willing to do anything to get my mom off my back about my future. So when you showed up with this plan it seemed like the best idea."

I clench my jaw and look out the front windows of the bakery. Does that mean that this whole thing might not even be worth it? That she isn't looking for herself and is only looking to get her mom off her back? I run a hand through my hair. "Is it even worth it to continue down the list?" I ask. My tone comes across harsher than I mean for it to but I don't care.