Clubs are loud; decency is quiet. He tried to do the small, unfancy good thing, return a stranger’s bag, and got mocked for it. Moments like that turn kindness into a spectacle and make old insecurities feel brand-new. But a stranger’s laugh isn’t a verdict on his value; it’s a snapshot of their manners.
While this 24-year-old man was on leave from his deployment, he decided to spend some time with his cousins and a few friends. He’s been gone from home for more than a year, so he was excited to see them.
They all grabbed drinks at a club, and he noticed that a girl in her mid-20s had left behind her designer purse close to where they were all sitting.
This girl was pretty wasted, and her purse definitely had cost her a pretty penny, since it was a custom Louis Vuitton clutch with a sunflower painted on it. As for how he can tell it was worth a lot, he bought his mom a similar bag as a present.
“I approached her to return the purse when she walked away, and she audibly said ‘Ew’ to my face, and her friends laughed at me. I was really embarrassed and [angry], so I just dropped her purse on the floor and said [some expletives] to her face,” he explained.
“When she realized what I was trying to do, I just walked away. I will admit, as a guy, my eyes did well up a bit with tears, and I just wanted to go home.”
“I grew up with poor self-esteem and still struggle with it. I’m 5’7 and pretty chopped, and [I] still have self-esteem issues. My cousin (30F) saw my face and asked me what happened (she is basically like my older sister), and got really [mad] and went up to the group of girls who were sober and called them out on it.”
His cousin actually gave his Instagram handle to one of the other girls in the nasty girl’s friend group and said the cruel girl needed to apologize to him.
His cousins and his friends all left the club following what happened, and they continued their night elsewhere, which helped get it off his mind.
But then, when he hopped on Instagram, he saw the nasty girl had sent him a friend request, along with quite a lengthy apology note.
“I felt like I shouldn’t have dropped the purse, but at that moment, I was embarrassed. I just wanted to disappear,” he continued.
“I [should have] just given the purse to her anyway and moved on. I talked to another female friend, and she said I shouldn’t have called her a [name].”
He might replay that moment in his head, wondering if he should’ve handled it differently, but the truth is, he did exactly what a decent person does! He tried to help.
The best thing he can do now is take his actions as proof that leading with decency will always separate him from the crowd. Confidence doesn’t come from how people react to you; it comes from knowing you did the right thing, even when no one was clapping for it.
What advice do you have for him?
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By Bre Avery Zacharski
Hi, I'm Bre, Chip Chick's CEO! I have a degree in Textile/Surface Design from The Fashion Institute of Technology, and... More about Bre Avery Zacharski
