Infinity

Chapter Two: Pesky Preparation

Jake Charleston threw his graduation hat in the air. His friends around him did the same. They all cheered and hugged each other in excitement.

"Finally... I got my medical degree," Jake thought happily. "Maybe I can start a job as a surgeon now." Jake was finally out of college. His two friends, Luke and Tommy, had also received their medical degrees that day.

Jake was a 30-year-old man with ear-length, dark brown hair and light green eyes. He was in college, studying in hopes of being a surgeon, specifically a heart surgeon. Jake was very positive, outgoing, and energetic. He always was a prankster and loved to crack jokes. Deep inside, Jake had a desire to go on an exhilarating adventure someday. He wanted to find that adventure somehow.

Jake met Luke and Tommy at the beginning of his first year of college when they all were roommates. They were roommates for the first two years of college, but had moved into their own homes after that. They stayed best friends, despite the fact they weren't roommates anymore.

Tommy was a 30-year-old man, just like Jake, with ear-length, light blonde hair and dark blue eyes. He was in college, studying in hopes of being a phlebotomist, or a person who drew blood. Tommy and Jake got along greatly because of Tommy's outgoing, positive attitude that was similar to Jake's. He seemed to always be talking to new people and was very talkative. He cracked jokes a lot as well.

Luke was a 31-year-old man, unlike Tommy and Jake, with ear-length, dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. He was in college, studying in hopes of being a medical researcher. He wanted to find cures and medicine for many different illnesses. Even though he was very serious about his schoolwork and career, he loved to have fun. Just like Tommy and Jake, he was outgoing and joked around a lot.

Jake, Luke, and Tommy all stepped out of YALE University. Luke and Tommy started asking Jake questions immediately.

"Are you going to move somewhere?" Tommy and Luke asked. "Are you going to the graduation party tonight? What hospital are you thinking about working at? Are you serious about shaving your head?"

"I may move, but I don't know for sure yet," Jake answered. "I have no idea what hospital I'd want to work at. No, I'm not shaving my head. It was just a joke. Where is the party?"

"My house," Luke answered. "It starts at seven tonight."

"I'll be there," Jake said with a smile. Luke and Tommy left while waving bye. Jake looked at some thunderclouds rolling by when a sudden pain hit his left arm. He swatted at his arm furiously.

"Probably just a damn mosquito," Jake growled. He started walking to his car, which was five blocks away. Rain started pouring down and soaked his hair, which flattened against his head. Jake put shades over his eyes and stepped into his car.

Jake drove back to his house, which was a one-bedroom apartment not far from the college he studied at. Since he had finally graduated, he planned on getting a decent job for a while to earn enough money to buy a basic house. He was also thinking of moving to another country, like Sweden or England, but he had no idea which culture he was most interested in.

He walked inside his apartment and put his car keys on a table. Then he changed into jeans and a T-shirt from his graduation robes. He sat on a couch in exhaustion from the four-hour graduation ceremony and turned on the TV.

There was nothing interesting on the TV. He ended up turning on the news on channel nine. He grabbed a banana for a snack and watched a news story about a current war in Ukraine.

Out of nowhere, he started hearing a beeping sound. It wouldn't stop. Jake turned off the TV to see if it was coming from the TV. It wasn't. He ignored it, turned the TV back on, and tried to not let the sound bother him. But the beeping was loud... and annoying. He turned up the volume on the TV to block out the sound of the beeping. The volume was up to 35 and it still was louder than the TV.