The line at Club Mystic

Both your cab and the other one arrive at the club at nearly the same time. They come to a stop on the sidewalk outside the tacky bright blue lights and the line running down the sidewalk.

"Holy shit," Ashley says when she gets out of the car. "It'll be last call by the time we even get in."

"Yeah, this looks bad," Mary says, shutting the door after the twins get out. "Do you really think it'll take that long?"

Ashley furrows her brow. "Not if I have anything to say about it." She leads the seven of you to the head of the line. "Hey!" she says to one of the bouncers. Ashley is friendly, but that's by far the most friendly 'Hey' you've ever heard pass through her lips. She taps the huge guy on the shoulder, and he doesn't look terribly happy about it. "I know Jacob, he works here?"

If the bouncer knows who Jacob is, it doesn't seem like it changes his mind at all. "And?" the guy says, his deep voice booming even over the heavy music spilling out the doors of the club. "What do I care?"

"I know he's working tonight," Ashley says. "Would you mind calling for him?"

"If he is," the bouncer says. "He ain't letting you in."

Ashley returns to you guys. "Well," she says. "I'm officially out of ideas."

"I'll see what I can do," you say, grabbing one of the twenties from your back pocket. You desperately hope that this is going to work. "Hey," you say to the man at the door. He looks down at you with a withering glare. "Would we be able to get in if we gave you this twenty?" You present the bill to him, holding it a little bit away.

The bouncer rolls his eyes. "Are you kidding me, man? Do you know how much I make at this job?"

You gulp. "A lot?" you say.

"No," he says. "But more than twenty fuckin' bucks."

"Fair," you say. You glance back at your wallet. Are you really willing to hand over more than twenty bucks to get into this place? Maybe waiting in line isn't so bad.

"Here," the bouncer says, his determination softening a bit. "Come with me for a sec." He puts out a firm flat hand to the people that are at the head of the line, and none of them dare move from where they're standing.

You follow the guy away from the door, standing a little ways away from the crowd. "Look, man, I don't want your money," he says. "Your friends are pretty hot, though. If you're ****, you can send them out back and I can meet them there... maybe I can do something to help you out, then."

You sigh. Yeah, not exactly a surprise. You return to your friends, eager to hear what the bouncer has to say. You know that the guy is watching over your shoulder, equally eager despite his expression to see what happens with your group.