The Silver Key

The day had started early in a bath of golden morning light streaming in through the window of the house Wolfsheim had let him borrow. He lay in bed with one arm under his head, lazily staring up at the ceiling. Once he realized what day it was, he hopped out of bed and rushed about the room, getting ready for the wonderful day that lay ahead. After getting dressed in a cream white suit with a rose pink shirt underneath, he hopped in his car and drove towards West Egg.

The drive was exhilarating all on its own with the wind whipping through his hair as he drove at a leisurely pace, so that he could take in all the beautiful sights and sounds. His knowledge of the destination served to make the trip even better. He made one quick stop on his way to his new house. When he walked out of the pastry shop that smelled of sugar and happiness, his smile had grown, by some odd magic, and he placed the white box on the passenger seat before climbing in.

He pulled up at the house exactly when he had planned on meeting the builders. They all stood around in a circle, talking loudly with each other, but the words jumbled together and got mixed up before landing on Gatsby's ears, so he couldn't make out what they were talking about. His blue eyes twinkled with excitement, but his smile was a tight and controlled. He walked towards them in a single line like a sailboat sailing gently on the water. The white box poised in his hand as if it contained precious metals.

The house that stood before him was magnificent. It was so tall that it looked like it and the sky were a single unit fused together. He approached the group of men slowly as he was staring up at the house the entire time he was walking towards them.

"Hey!" The head builder called. Gatsby continued to stare up at the house as if in a trance. "Hey!"

Gatsby blinked and smiled over at the head builder. His facial hair and the way he talked gave the impress of hard working and rugged at the same time. They shook hands quickly and introduced themselves before getting down to business.

"Here," Gatsby said as he handed the head builder the white box. "I took the liberty of stopping and picking up some doughnuts. I hope you all are hungry."

The men cheered and thanked Gatsby as they passed the box around to one another. After everyone got their fair share, the tour of the house began. The head builder led Gatsby in and the other workers trailed behind because they hadn't gotten a good look of the inside yet and were curious. Each room impressed them more than the last one had. The rooms were made out of the finest materials and the builders had put them together, but the inside still took their breath away.

After a few hours, the tour was finished and the workers all headed out to their cars. The gravel crunched under their feet loudly as they walked, so they talked even louder to be heard by one another. Some drove off as soon as they were done because they wanted to get home and some took their time heading off. Some even stayed and talked to Gatsby. But soon, the only people left were the head builder and Gatsby.

"Here," The builder reached into his pocket. "This is for you."

Gatsby held out his hand and the builder dropped a shiny object that flashed in the midday sun. He looked down in interest to find a silver key in hand.

"That's the key to the house. I don't have another one, but you can easily have another one made if anyone comes to live with you."

Gatsby was so happy that he smiled at the builder and invited him in for a drink. They spent the next two hours talking and laughed before the head builder stood up and announced that he had best be going. They walked to the door together and Gatsby stood in the doorway until he couldn't hear the car anymore.

It was all over. All that waiting and stopping by to check on the place. This magnificent house was finally his and his alone. He pulled out the key and turned it over in his hand. Everything he had to do to get here had been worth it. He finally had a place to call his own.

He walked down to the dock and stood on the end with his hands in his pockets. His hand was clenched around his key as he stared out across the water to the East Egg.

Now for the next part.

His house was beautiful and it was his, but he still couldn't help but daydream about the house across the water.