The Roaring 20s

Vanessa waited outside the bar as and read 'The Great Gatsby'. She figured it was the best way to get in the mindset for what she wanted her documentary to be. As she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, she looked up to see whether Nate was near by. Chuck had given Nate the key and she couldn't get in without it.

He jogged up, dodging a few night owls that were still wandering around as he made his way to the club. "Hey," he said, coming to a stop a foot or so away. "Sorry I'm a little late. Was finishing up the last bit of my homework and lost track of time."

Vanessa stoop up as she tucked her copy of Gatsby into her bag and shook her head. "No biggie. Did Chuck give you the key?"

Nate dug into his pocket and pulled out the single key. "Yeah." Before he stepped up to slip the key into the lock, he looked around. "I thought your friend was coming along too."

Vanessa laughed slightly. "Chuck and Sam don't get along. I decided for the sake of actually being able to get in here, Sam was going to sit this one out. Looks like it's just you and me." She looked up at him as she took the key from his hands. "I hope that's okay."

He shrugged as she grabbed the key. "Fine by me. So what is it that you're hoping to find in here?"

Vanessa shrugged. "I have no idea." She put the key into the lock and opened the door. As Vanessa stepped inside, she got the strangest feeling of deja vu.

He had started to follow her in, almost running into her as she stopped. "Are you all right, Vanessa?"

Vanessa nodded as she snapped out of her daze. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Okay." He stepped closer to her, his hand going to the small of her back on something like instinct. "Where do you want to start, then?"

Vanessa walked over to the bar and hopped behind the counter. "I think this would be a good place to start." She looked around before opening a small alcove which revealed a few bottles. "Score." Vanessa said with a grin as she put one of the bottles on the table. "This is probably good stuff. It's been under there for a while."

He rolled his eyes with a smile as he walked over to lean on the bar. "Thought you said you've never been here before?"

Vanessa got two glasses for them and looked at Nate as she shrugged. "I haven't. Lucky guess, I suppose." She poured him a shot and handed it to him before pouring herself one.

He toyed with the rim of the shot glass for a moment before picking it and holding it to his forehead. "Here's to love and unity," he said, the words rolling off his tongue, "Dark corners and opportunity." And so he couldn't stop to think just where he'd heard the phrase before, he tipped the glass back against his mouth.

"To that mon cher." Vanessa said as she threw back her shot glass.

He set the glass back down, toying with it while the booze burned its way down his throat. "So," he grinned, "was this just a ruse to come and drink?" Not that he was opposed, really.

Vanessa laughed and shook her head. "No, I just thought that we should put ourselves in the right mindset." She hopped back over the bar. "Come on, there's more to this place than what meets the eye."

Nodding, he followed along behind her. "Isn't there always with the old speakeasies? I mean, they were kind of meant to be more than what they seemed." He tried to ignore the crowded feeling, like there were people there when the place was clearly empty.

Vanessa stopped and looked at him. "Do you hear that?" She could have sworn she heard music and laughing.

He shook his head. "I didn't hear anything." And he hadn't, he thought. "What do you think you heard?"

Vanessa shook her head. Maybe it was the alcohol playing tricks with her mind. "I thought I heard music."

"Maybe someone left a radio on," he suggested hopefully. "If we find it, we'll turn it off."

Vanessa paused then nodded. It was probably just the alcohol messing with her mind. "Yeah, I guess so. What do you know about this place anyway?"

He shrugged and poked his head into a doorway to see if there was a radio or anything. "Nothing, really. I mean, aside from what you'd said before. Used to be a speakeasy in the 20s, right?" He'd been trying to keep up with the class when they'd been covering the 20s in History but it just never seemed to stick.

Vanessa nodded as she came to a locked door and frowned. "Yeah. Has this door always been locked?"