How Can I Confirm if BitLocker is Enabled on My Laptop?

Based on what you described, it sounds like BitLocker might not be active since you don't see the lock icon, and the command's protection status is showing as off. If you had a decryption key, you could retrieve it through the PowerShell by running (Get-BitLockerVolume -MountPoint C).Keyprotector, replacing C with the appropriate drive letter.

It looks like BitLocker is enabled, but "Device encryption" is really just a simpler version that comes with Windows; it can hide some options unless you're using Pro. To keep your data safe, your most crucial step is to have backups! Normally, your recovery keys should be stored in your Microsoft account if it was set up correctly. You might want to check here: account.microsoft.com/devices/recoverykey.

When you check the BitLocker settings, do you see an option to back up the key? Windows often encrypts installations by default, but they don’t make it obvious how to retrieve the key. You should still be able to enable BitLocker now if you wish and save the recovery key to a USB or even take a photo of it.