Penny’s overly expressive eyes were as wide as ever, an empty stare somewhere in Reese’s direction. Had she just volunteered to go someplace that might be crowded? While sober? Not only had Penny volunteered, but she had invited someone else to go along with her. That meant she couldn’t back out now. She was so wrapped up in this thought that when she suddenly found herself in front of the bar with a bouncer demanding she swipe her ID ring beneath the scanner, she couldn’t quite remember how they had gotten there.
Her stutter reared its ugly head, forehead wrinkling in confusion as she did as she was asked, “S-s-sorry.” Whether the statement was directed at the bouncer, or an apology to Reese for being such bad company on the walk over was unclear. Teeth tugged her lower lip into her mouth once she had finally managed to get the word out. Yep, there was that nervous, twitchy, fidgety, quiet girl Reese had met a few days before.
At least it was dark inside. Less crowded than she had imagined, too. Of course, Penny had spent the whole walk over convincing herself that she was going to be shoulder-to-shoulder with a crowd of hundreds of gigantic people. Hundreds of gigantic people, all of whom wanted to kick her ass; any reality was less intimidating than that.
In reality, the bar was relatively dead, populated mostly by grad students and young professionals who crowded in groups at the tables that dotted the space. There was a platform up front that appeared to be semi-permanent serving as a stage and a full bar along the wall closest to the door. Four emo looking boys were just plugging into speakers that had seen better days, whispering about something. It wasn’t too loud at the moment, but Penny was still having trouble managing the whole talking thing. She stood on her tip toes so she was closer to Reese’s ear and raised her voice what she hoped was just high enough for him to hear her.