Friday came faster than expected, which meant it was presentation day. Everyone had to share who they believed was the most influential person in history.

Jordan went first, clutching a crumpled sheet of paper. "So... I chose Genghis Khan. My three main points? He unified the Mongolian steppe under a massive empire. He fathered the most children in history. I think it's estimated that sixteen million men alive today are his descendants. And... yeah."

Mrs. Morrison frowned. "What's your last point, Jordan?"

He shrugged. "Isn't that enough? I guess... he was also responsible for, like, forty million deaths."

She sighed. "Alright. Thank you. Up next is Ruth Anderson!"

My stomach dropped. I was prepared, but speaking in front of people always made me uneasy. I whispered encouragement to myself, walked to the front, and clasped my trembling hands together.

"The person I chose as the most influential in history," I began, "is Jesus Christ."

The room went silent. No one reacted, so I pressed on.

"First, He is the Son of God, Creator of the universe. We wouldn't even be here without Him. Second, His ministry lasted only three years, yet we're still talking about Him two thousand years later. And third, His name carries power. At the slightest mention of Him, people's demons get irritated-"

"Ruth," my teacher interrupted in a warning tone.

I sighed. "Fine, but there is power in His name and I'll just leave it at that."

A boy named Duncan fake-coughed. "No evidence!" A few classmates laughed.

"No proof," I corrected him.

He blinked. "What?"

"What you meant to say was that I have no proof, not evidence. And you'd be right about that. I don't have any proof. But we do have evidence of His existence."

He rolled his eyes. "It's all lies anyway. If you really believe some guy in the sky is watching us, ready to send us to hell if we're bad, you're more delusional than I thought. If God really was watching the earth, wouldn't he see how messed up it is and do something about it already? Why does he let evil things happen, huh? Can't give me a good reason, can you?"

I glanced at Mrs. Morrison for permission to respond. To my surprise, she nodded. I steadied my voice. "It sounds like you're angry with God. Your question is valid. How can a loving God watch evil and do nothing? That would be because of our free will."

He groaned. "That's such a cop-out. Just admit you Christians don't actually know anything about your religion."

"It's not a cop-out. God doesn't go back on His word. Humans cause evil, but then blame Him for it. Why not blame the ones actually committing these atrocities? God doesn't force us to do anything. He never has. He gives us a choice. Sadly, many use that choice for evil. They may think they're getting away with it, but their time will come."

He scoffed, shaking his head. "You say that God doesn't force us to do anything, but if we don't believe in him or serve him, then doesn't your book say that we'll go to hell? Doesn't sound like a loving, free-will respecting God to me. How is it fair that we have to burn in hell for eternity just for not believing in something? An infinite punishment for a finite crime is unjust."

I picked up a marker and turned to the whiteboard. "Can I?"

Mrs. Morrison nodded.

"So every action, even the ones you choose not to take, have either a positive or negative outcome. Take a criminal for example. Certain places have different laws, some being more strict than others. The point is, they have certain standards that their citizens need to follow in order to avoid being punished and staying out of jail. Depending on where you commit your crime and who you commit that crime against, the punishment will vary. If you were to key your sibling's toy car, you're not gonna end up in jail, right? You might get yelled at for messing with their toys, but it's not an actual crime with any real punishment."

"Where are you going with this?" he asked, annoyed.

"Just listen. Let's say you take the same key and you key the front door on one of your parents' cars. Now, you're looking at being grounded and you'll probably have to pay for the damages. Now, you take it a step further and you go to a Bugatti dealership. You go to the most expensive car on display and you take that same key and scratch the door. You're probably going to get arrested, you'll definitely be in debt because of all the fines you'd have to pay, and depending on the value of the car, you might even end up in prison."

"Your point?"

I sighed. "My point is that the crime never changed. It was the exact same on all three cars, but the value of the car increased each time. But God is an infinitely valuable being. So when we sin, we're not being punished for the crime we commit, we're being punished for who we commit the crime against. That's why we need a savior. Jesus already paid every debt with His life. His sacrifice saves us from ever having to go to hell. All you have to do is accept Him into your heart and believe in the One who sent Him for us."

"Was that little analogy supposed to make me, or anyone else in here, feel better? I'm sorry, but you still haven't presented this so-called 'evidence'. How could you possibly believe in something completely without having undeniable proof of that thing?"

"The same way you trust that chair you're sitting in to hold you up. Or the pilot of a plane you've never met to get you to your destination. Faith doesn't mean blind belief. I've felt God's presence. I've seen Him change my life and my family's. Don't write Him off because people misrepresent Him. Jesus Himself called out hypocritical leaders in His day. People fail, but that doesn't mean God isn't real."

Before Duncan could respond, Mrs. Morrison cut in. "Alright, that's enough. We can't spend the whole class on this. Ruth, thank you. Please take your seat."

I sat down, unsatisfied. I'd tried, but it never felt like enough. I wasn't a debater. My hands were still shaking as I forced myself to breathe.

After class, as I headed out, a girl tapped my shoulder. "Ruth? Hi, sorry to bother you. I don't know if you know me. I don't really speak much in class but my name's Kristy. I'm Duncan's girlfriend."

I sighed, bracing for another argument. But instead, she smiled. "I just wanted to say that you handled yourself really well. I'm sorry he gave you a hard time."

I waved it off. "Oh, it's fine. You don't have to apologize for him. I knew that my topic would cause some kind of controversy."

She nodded. "Honestly, I don't know where I stand with faith. I want to believe, but things happen that make me question. Still... you explained things really well. Answered questions I didn't even know I had. Do you have a Bible study group I could check out?"

My eyes lit up. "I... don't, but I will definitely start one! Would you want to come check out my church? They have some established small groups as well."

She shook her head. "No, I don't think I'm ready to go back to church yet. There's a lot of trauma that I have. But if it was just you and a couple of others that like to study the Bible, I'd be interested."

"Absolutely. I get it. You can take my number and I'll set something up soon. Does that sound good?"

She smiled. "Perfect. Thank you, Ruth."

We exchanged numbers and went our separate ways. I was ecstatic. Despite Duncan's disbelief, Kristy was hungry for truth. It felt like God was answering my silent doubts, reminding me that He uses everything.

As I walked to Algebra, my phone buzzed. A text from Elle.

I facepalmed. It was her birthday. I'd completely forgotten, too wrapped up in stressing over my presentation.

[11:54am] Elle: ummmmm
[11:54am] Ruth: hey girl, happy birthday!! so sorry i forgot to tell you when i got up, i've had such a busy day
[11:55am] Elle: oh thanks!! it's okay, girl. did you want to hang out with me and linds after class gets out? got some fun stuff planned for the bday :)
[11:57am] Ruth: oof, i really wish i could but i have to work tonight, sorry :/
[12:12pm] Elle: oh.
[12:24pm] Ruth: don't do that.
[12:24pm] Elle: i'm not doing anything. you knew when my bday was. i don't see why you couldn't just take the day off
[12:35pm] Ruth: bc i need money and you know that?? look, i'm sorry i couldn't take off work to be with you on ur bday but i was still going to get u something the next time i saw u
[12:41pm] Elle: i get it, sorry for acting this way. i'll see you when i see you

By the time our back-and-forth ended, class was over. She apologized, but her tone lingered. I hated when people made me feel guilty for working. It wasn't my fault. I didn't come from money. My parents made me get a job at sixteen, and since then I'd had to pay for everything I wanted. And even though I made the least in my family, they still asked me for help sometimes, never mind that my car swallowed most of my savings.

I couldn't afford to skip shifts, not even for a birthday.

I began to get myself ready for work. Once I was done, I got in my car and raced to my job because I was running a little behind since my car decided it didn't want to start right away. I took a deep breath before heading in to work and instantly met eyes with Irene.

"You're late," she said flatly.

"Sorry," I muttered.

She folded her arms. "Also, you're not on the schedule today."

My brows furrowed. "What? I'm scheduled from three to nine."

She sighed. "I did some tweaking to the schedule and you're only needed on Mondays now."

My chest tightened. "What? Why would you do that? I didn't ask for that."

"Well Ian told me that you said you didn't mind him working your shifts," she said, pointing to him.

I glared at him. "No, I didn't say that. I said he could work my shift for that day! Why would I just give all of my shifts to someone when I need money?"

Ian shuffled forward. "You told me to ask Irene for more hours..."

"Not mine, Ian! What the heck?"

Irene cut me off. "Whose hours did you think he'd get? We don't have that many employees."

"Irene, please. I need the hours! I can't survive on this pay plus only working one day out of the week. This isn't fair."

"Then quit," she said flatly.

I instinctively gasped. "What? No, why would I quit?"

"Because you're ungrateful," she snapped. "You don't seem to get that you're replaceable. I am so sick of you coming in late all of the time only to come in and do subpar work. You've slacked off for the past few months and you think that just because I haven't said anything that you've been getting away with it, but I've been taking note. So if you don't want to quit, consider this a verbal termination. Now get out of my store."

Her words hit like a brick. Tears stung my eyes as reality sank in. I was fired. I glanced at Ian. He looked guilty, but it didn't matter. Nothing could save my job now.

As soon as I got in my car, all of my emotions spilled out at once causing me to sob and scream. "This is not fair! Why does everything keep going wrong in my life!? What did I do? What did I do!?"

After ten minutes, I forced myself to drive home.

When I walked in, Dad looked up. "Didn't you just leave? They let you off early?"

"Yeah," I said quietly, heading straight to my room. I couldn't tell him yet, not tonight.

Still, now that I had no job, I figured I could at least spend Elle's birthday with her.

[3:34pm] Ruth: guess who suddenly got some availability and can hang out now
[3:38pm] Elle: wait, really????? what happened?
[3:41pm] Ruth: got fired.
[3:41pm] Elle: WHAT!? THAT WITCH FIRED YOU? DON'T SAY ANYTHING ELSE, WE NEED TO DISCUSS THIS IN PERSON! GET READY
[3:42pm] Ruth: say less

I got ready and waited in the living room until Elle pulled up.

"Where are you off to?" Dad asked.

"Spending the day with Elle, since it's her birthday."

"Alright. Don't stay out too late. It's still a school night."

"I won't."

As soon as I got the text that she was here, I ran outside. Once in the car, Elle and Lindsey turned to me in unison. "Tell us everything!"

I shrugged. "I mean there's not much to tell, really."

Lindsey rolled her eyes and sighed. "Ugh, so modest. This isn't gossip if that's what you're concerned about. It's just telling the truth. Now what really happened?"

I sat back in my seat. "I'm serious. I walked in, she told me that she changed my schedule to only work one day out of the week, and when I said that wouldn't work, she called me ungrateful and fired me."

Elle shook her head. "Ugh, Irene's the worst. But maybe it's a blessing in disguise. You've hated that job. Now you can find something better."

"Hopefully," I said flatly.

Lindsey gasped. "Oh no. Is little Miss Ruthie losing her faith?"

I frowned. "Relax. I'm not losing my faith. It could be a blessing, but I'm not sure that it is. I can't see how it's God's will for my life to be unemployed when He knows I need money. But I'm still going to trust and believe that everything will be taken care of."

"Well, a job's not just gonna drop in your lap because you prayed," Lindsey said. "You actually have to apply for jobs."

"I'm aware. Can we go already? What've you done so far today?"

Elle began driving. "Well, me and Lindsey already got our nails done, but there's this restaurant that just opened not too long ago that I really want to try out. You down?"

I nodded. "Yes, please. I am starving."

She agreed and we pulled up to the restaurant in no time. For some reason, it was extremely busy during this time, so the only available seats were at the bar top. I reluctantly followed Elle and Lindsey to our seats. We weren't even old enough to be sitting at the bar or drink anything from it, so it made me uncomfortable being there.

Elle noticed and tapped me on the shoulder. "You okay?"

"No! Elle, she's fine. We're not even doing anything," Lindsey said before I could respond.

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, thanks for answering. I didn't know your name was Ruth. And I'm fine. As long as nothing pops off, I'll be alright."

"So... exactly what I said," Lindsey said in a smart tone.

"Let's not ruin my birthday, okay?" Elle muttered..

It took everything in me not to respond because it wasn't even my fault. The bartender came out before either of us could say anything. "Hey, ladies. What are we drinking tonight?"

Elle smiled. "Hi, it's my birthday today. I came here to try this place out and see what the hype was about."

He returned the smile. "Ah, 21, huh? Well, happy birthday. Drinks are on the house."

Elle avoided eye contact with me because she knew that I was watching her to make sure she'd tell the truth. Elle had just turned 18, not 21, so she needed to let him know that she wasn't old enough to legally drink yet. She turned her body away from me and whispered something into his ear. All I heard him say was 'you got it' before walking away.

He came back a few minutes later with three drinks for each of us. I shook my head. "No thanks. I don't drink."

Elle touched my shoulder. "Relax. It's a virgin."

"Like you," Lindsey joked.

I rolled my eyes. "You sure? What did you tell him?"

"I just asked for yours to be non-alcoholic. You're fine."

It wasn't lost on me that she said she told him to get me a virgin drink, which meant that she and Lindsey would be getting the real thing. It wasn't my place to judge, but what they were doing was illegal. The guy could lose his job and license if anyone found out that he was serving drinks to teenagers.

Although I didn't love the idea of them sneaking real drinks, I bit my tongue. I needed one night without confrontation.

About an hour into us eating and catching up, I noticed a guy sitting across from us that kept looking in our direction. He smiled at me once he saw that I was looking and I immediately looked down. A few seconds later, he approached me.

"Sorry to bother you, I just wanted to say that you are so pretty. Has anyone told you that today?"

"Uh..."

"Didn't mean to seem like a creep or anything. I just wanted to give a pretty lady like you a compliment, that's all. Can I buy you a drink?" he persisted.

I shook my head. "N-no... no. I don't drink. How old are you?"

He chuckled. "Oh, I'm... probably old enough to be your father, but let's keep that between you and me, yeah? What were you drinking before? I'll order it for you and your friends again."

I softly sighed. "No, we're good. Thank you-"

"Ruth! She doesn't speak for us. We'll have another round," Lindsey interrupted, to no one's surprise.

"And you don't speak for me. I said no," I snapped.

He raised his hands. "Hey, I won't pressure you into anything. I'll just head back to where I was sitting. Sorry."

I watched as he walked back to his seat and when I turned away, both Lindsey and Elle were giving me dirty looks. I sighed. "What now?"

Elle crossed her arms. "If a guy is trying to buy you a drink, let him. We could've gotten some more free drinks if you just flirted with him a little. It wouldn't kill you to use your looks to your advantage every now and then."

I took the drink she was holding from her hand and set it down. "You don't need anything else to drink tonight other than water. Did you guys just decide that I was going to be your designated driver or something? I didn't come out so I could babysit you two."

"Then why did you come?" Lindsey slurred. "You're no fun anyway."

"Alright, it's getting late and I need to get home. Elle, hand me your keys. We're leaving," I said sternly.

When she didn't move or acknowledge anything I said, I reached in her purse to find her keys. She pushed me. "Don't touch my stuff! Move! Find your own way home. I'm staying here."

I pointed at her. "Elle, if you and Lindsey don't get up right now I will call your parents and have them deal with you. Get up! I can't wait forever for you guys to sober up. It's gonna take too long."

Lindsey groaned. "Just call Ricky and Sam. Let them pick us up." She shoved her phone at me with their numbers.

I called, waited until their boyfriends arrived, then left.

At home, regret washed over me. I never should've gone out when I was already drained. My patience was gone, my friends were reckless, and I was left with the weight of it all.

When I set my purse on the dresser, I noticed a folded slip of paper sticking out. A name and number. Curious, I searched it online. My stomach turned. It was the man from the bar. And he was married.

Disgusted, I tossed my phone aside and dropped to my knees..

"Dear Father, You know the plans You have for me. Plans to prosper and not harm. I don't see what You're doing behind the scenes, but I want to trust You. You know my thoughts, my struggles, my trials. Please have mercy on me. Help me lean not on my own understanding. Surround me with godly people. If anything or anyone takes me even an inch from You, push it miles away. Soften my heart so I can love others. On my own I struggle, but You live in me, and I cannot fail. In Jesus' name, Amen."