The bar was unusually crowded for a Tuesday night. Ruth sat at a table in the front window, her friend Tom next to her, her other friend Donna across from her. Her level of excitement was contagious, the three looking at untouched drinks as their eyes scanned the bar.
“What’s crazy is you know he has to be here. I mean, the time is counting down and you are here, then he has to be here. You are so lucky you know the time, many others just wander through life waiting for it to happen.” Donna was slightly jealous of her friend, Ruth. Ruth had a gift not many women received in their lifetime, a gift of knowledge. Her gift made some of her friends jealous but it scared many others. Around her finger, was a ring, not a wedding ring, but a ring on the wedding finger of her other hand. A small steel band, embedded on the finger, never removed since she was born. On the ring was a digital clock, counting down to some momentous occasion, the hours on the clock now down to 0, the minutes showing 52, the seconds showing 36.
“How can you go through life knowing?” Donna asked, looking closely at her finger. “I mean it would be like knowing you are going to die or something. Doesn’t it make you nervous?”
Tom, Ruth’s best friend laughed. “Marriage is not considered a death sentence. In most cases.”
“I guess since, I’ve had the ring since I was born. My grandmother said that it was a gift to me from my mother before she died. She blessed the ring to find my soulmate then put it on my finger. The old Celtic blessing then molded the ring to my finger and the count down started. It grew with me, the time never changing. And now we are watching 49 minutes and 27 minutes until I meet my soulmate. I’ve been waiting my whole life for this moment.” Ruth replied, picking up her martini, nervously taking a sip. Looking around the bar, she bent down whispering excitedly. “You know, he may already be here.”
Tom, slowly scanned the bar. “Probably not, I don’t see anyone with Scumbag written on their forehead.”
Donna laughed as Ruth threw a punch at Tom. “Today is different. Today I meet my soulmate. My gift tells me the time, I just hope I am in the right place.”
Tom sighed, watching her eye every available male walking through the door of the bar. “You know if you relax, you’ll probably enjoy this process a little better.” He lightly touched her hand, giving her some of his good energy.
Pulling her hand back quickly, Ruth gasped at Tom. “I can’t be seen as ‘with’ you. What if my soulmate sees that and walks out that door?”
Tom sighed again, taking his eyes from her hand, looking at his beer. “If everything your grandmother says is true then it shouldn’t matter what I do. He should show up anyway.”
Lightly patting Tom on the back, Donna came to her friend’s defense. “Give the girl a break. It’s not every day that you know your soul mate is going walking through that door. She does.”
Tom looked between the two women. “She’s been talking about this for 32 years, well the 15 that I’ve known her. So if anyone knows what’s going on, we do.”
Ruth looked between her best friends. She smiled. “I am so glad you are here to witness this. So many people thought I was crazy when I explained the ring to them. So many people simply wrote me off as a nut case, tonight I prove everyone WRONG!”
Tom looked around the bar again, it was just the usual crowd. “How is this predicting anything? We know most of the people in this bar, and you’ve already written most of them off of your list.”
Donna looked around again. “I know. How are you supposed to find your soul mate when you’ve already dating most of the eligible bachelors here? Are you sure it is supposed to happen here?”
Ruth looked around the bar. “I have no idea. I could be called out into the street in any minute, meeting him there. I could bump into him coming out of the bathroom. I just have to wait.” She looked down at her finger. “41 minutes and 37 seconds.”
Tom looked at the ring again. “I never understood all of this, honestly. I think your grandmother was just making you bide your time.”
Ruth looked at him, surprised. Usually he was so supportive. “What do you mean, staying a virgin?”
Tom turned red. “There are not many 32 year old virgins in the world today. You have the looks, you have the body, but you’re still a virgin. Plus you haven’t lived the life of nun. How do you know all the other guys you dated were not your soulmate. What will you do if one of them walks through the door.”
Ruth looked at Tom, laughing. “My past boyfriends were dry runs before my soul mate. I dated losers, I know. They were teaching me what I did not want. The virgin thing just seemed logical. How could I make love to someone knowing they were not my soul mate?” Ruth looked at Tom, “You probably will not understand, it’s like trying all these different pairs of shoes knowing that that pair sitting next to you is perfect. Now Tom, I know you don’t like shoes, but you have tried on a few pairs before buying what you want. What’s wrong with me having a little bit of fun. You see, i knew I had plenty of time. I was just trying on shoes. Some brand names, others off brands, but they were all great shoes. They served their purpose. I was just saving myself.”
Tom laughed. “For the perfect pair of shoes?”
Donna laughed. “For the only ones that won’t hurt your bunions?”
Ruth heard the door to the bar open, looking back over, appraising the man walking through, turned back to her friends, looking at her ring. She held up her hand, “See? I have 37 minutes and 12 seconds before meeting my soul mate. I put a lot of effort in this.”
Watching his best friend, Tom was sad. There were so many ways he could point out that everything was all wrong, but watching her enthusiasm made him mute. He almost hoped that she did find her soul mate, that her gift was real. There was that small part of him that was hoping for failure. Something deep inside him that he wasn’t touching. “Well, you don’t have much time left as a single woman, maybe you should enjoy it while you can.”
Ruth looked down at her hand. On her ring finger, opposite hand to the traditional ring, sat a small metal band, digital numbers ticking the seconds away. Ruth looked down to the simple band. “My grandmother said that the ring was my mother’s gift to me just before she died giving birth. She touched my finger with her finger just before she died and the ring appeared. Grandmother said that the ring grew with me, that they tried different doctors to remove it but all concluded that it was part of my body, that it could not be removed. Grandma said it was my gift from my mother, she knew that she could not be with me as I grew up, so she left me this gift, this insider knowledge no one else gets.”
Tom looked at the ring, over the years he’d come to hate the thing, watching the way Ruth obsessed over the thing. “But how do you know it is for your soul mate?”
Ruth looked to her friend, he was the most comfortable person in her group, sometimes he did ask the stupidest questions. “My grandmother and mother looked it up in an ancient Irish text, they found a ring like it, and just like mine, the clock didn’t start ticking until I hit puberty. According to the text, the gift of true love is given in the ring, that when it counts down to zero, you will have your soulmate.”
Donna took a sip of her drink. “So that is why we’ve done all this bar hopping and shopping?”
Ruth looked around the room. “I can trust the ring, but I can also prepare. So I should wear something expensive and go to places where rich people frequent, making sure I marry someone with money. I mean it does make life easier.”
Tom almost spit out his beer. “Doesn’t that make you hypocritical? You are changing who you are to find a mate that has money? Shouldn’t you accept your soul mate for who he is, not hoping that he comes in a good looking package and can finance a lavish lifestyle.” Tom wasn’t going to admit that he felt a little miffed, he made the least wage in the group but wouldn’t give up being an English teacher if someone offered him a fortune. Until he sold his great American Novel that is.
Ruth and Donna turned to him, they hadn’t heard that energetic outburst from Tom in a while. Ruth made sure no one in the bar was watching them with interest before she continued. She brought her voice low. “I am just making sure I am covering all the bases. What if I was destined to go to those places, that my mate was there and me doing something stupid like trying out a few different rich people places brought him to me. I’m not stooping low, I’m just making sure I’m out there. That if he has been there waiting for his soul mate then at least I’ve walked by.”
Tom sighed. “Well, I think that damn ring is a curse, to be honest. It has held you back, never opening up to any man because it wasn’t time. You played with a lot of us believing the promise of the ring. Figuring people like us weren’t right for you because the clock was ticking, and you were sure something better was coming along. We were diversions while you waited. What would the ring do if you decided that staying with the right guy in front of you at the wrong time rather than waiting on a promise that may not come? What will you do if it comes to zero and you are alone?”
Both women stared at Tom incredulously. He was never so vocal about dating. He never really dated, just simply hung out with their group of friends. Ruth was the first one finding her voice, looking down at her ring. “I guess we have 9 minutes and 54 seconds to find out, now don’t we. I can go back to nice guys if my soulmate doesn’t show up.”
Donna looked to her friend. “My only hope is that your soul mate is bringing my soul mate with him. I’m tired of dating.”
Tom looked between his two friends. “You two are hopeless. Love doesn’t just come to you, you have to go out looking for it. Your soulmate already walked by you and you didn’t even notice, waiting for someone else coming along. Why not be proactive? Look around you. What if you’ve know your soulmate the whole time, you were so busy with your own shit not realizing the world doesn’t work on your clock. Life continues on just like that clock ticks away. It is not waiting for you to feel complete, or for everything to work out. It moves according to its own plan.” Looking around the bar, he continued. “Now I am going to be proactive, taking charge of my own destiny. I am in charge of my life, and I choose to live it. I’m not waiting for someone or something to tell me to take a chance. I’m tired of waiting. If you want to take a chance with me, then you know where I live.” Sitting his half empty beer on the table, Tom grabbed Ruth kissing her hard on the lips before setting her down, walking out the door to the street.
Touching her lips lightly, her mouth in a silent “Oh,” Ruth looked at Donna. Donna looked over to the closed door of the bar. “Damn, I had no idea. Oh well, your soul mate is coming anyway.”
Ruth looked down at the ring on her finger, gasping for air. She tried taking the ring off of her finger, but it wouldn’t budge. It had changed. The clock never reached 0-0-0, it simply reset when she wasn’t looking, in Ruth’s quick calculations she had over a year before meeting her soulmate.
Looking back at the door to the bar, Ruth thought about that kiss. Turning to her friend, she sighed. “Maybe this time was not meant to be. Maybe I have to wait a little bit longer for my real soul mate.” Looking down at the clicking clock on her finger, she muttered. “It’s not that long.”
Donna didn’t say a word, watching at her friend. Before saying what was on her mind and possibly ruining two friendships, she grabbed her drink.
Looking back at the door, down to her ring, the into her beer, Ruth turned to Donna. “Or I could take charge of my life and go for what I want. Change the time on the clock again…..”
Jumping from her chair, Ruth ran through the door of the bar, charging into the cool summer night. She wasn’t sure which way he went, her heart reminding her you know everything about him. He’s been there for 15 years, giving you his heart, his life, his soul. Where did he go?”
Pausing, looking up and down the street, Ruth ran in the direction she knew he’d take.
