Bass Case

Chapter 6: Results

December approaches slowly. The fall winds have ceased and the snow has made its journey to the ground below. Sarah's sister moved in with us about a week ago. It's remarkable the resemblance she shares with her sister: the dark wavy hair, the radiant brown eyes, the tan smooth skin, and the soft tender smile. She was a good companion to have in the apartment whenever her sister was out buying groceries or buying new equipment for her instrument. Like Sarah she is also very talented. She's a violist like me. Though she is far greater than I. She'll have no problem getting through the auditions for sure next semester.

I sigh, thinking about all the people I met and all the people I've lost at this school. The results will be coming in soon, and I'm preparing myself for the worst. It won't be bad leaving the school. I can maybe audition for Phoenix West Performance Academy if they reject me. From what I saw it wasn't that different from our school anyways. I could go somewhere else, pursue a real job, but for that I would need to leave Sarah which I am unwilling to do.

Angelica cocks her head, looking at me with a playful grin, "So what's it like?"

"Hm?"

"Going to the best school in the country." She replies.

"Oh," I utter, "Well it's...interesting. It's intense to say the least."

"I bet." She smiles, "Maybe you can give me a few pointers for my audition!"

A loud spur of laughter sprays from my mouth. Angelica furrows her eyebrows in confusion, likely thinking that I rejected the suggestion. I wave my hand in front of me to erase her assumptions, "Sorry, I'm not against the idea or anything. It's just you're a lot more talented than me from what I've heard. As for me, I don't even know if I'll make it through this last audition."

A sign of relief falls over her expression. "Really?" She says, scooting closer to me, "You're really good though. Probably the best violist that I've ever heard."

"Well you must have never heard good violists." I retort, turning my head back towards the window.

"You're passionate," she says, "it's obvious in your playing which only makes your portrayal of the music even stronger."

I hear the struggling jingle of the door, and I rush to aid the girl at the door, but the door bursts open before I can even reach. Her face is buried in the fur of her thick red coat. Her hands look as though they are about to collapse from the mountain of groceries she's supporting. "Let me get that." I say, prying the frozen groceries from her grip, "I could have gone with you."

"Yeah, well you know me." Sarah replies, placing the last of the groceries on the table. Her sister hungrily pops her head into the bags searching for something to satiate her hunger. She reaches in slyly, pulling out a large frozen pizza from one of the white bags. She tilts her head towards her sister, shaking the box. It's almost like they have a secret code between the two of them. Sarah laughs and nods her head, "Yes, you can make the pizza." A bright smile spreads across her face as she rushes to the kitchen, tearing the pizza out of its frozen home.

I laugh and approach my girlfriend with a loving smile on my face as I pull her hood off her head to reveal her beautiful face and plant a kiss on her lips. She hums with approvals and pulls me into a hug. "Now you're like a marshmallow." I laugh.

"Haha. Yeah." She replies, pushing herself further into the warmth. We stand there for a while, soaking into the calming presence of the other. Sarah then pulls away looking at the time. "Hey, audition results should be out."

I blink at her a few times and then pull her back into a hug. "Can't we just stay like this?"

"Come on Daniel." She groans, inching her way towards the computer, slowly dragging me behind her. She logs in as I stand behind her with my arms crossed. I bite down on my cheek. My heart pounds within my chest. Then the green list appears on the screen. I search through Sarah's section first to see that she still remains principal player of her section. That was to be expected. Then I see the violas. I scan and scan until finally I come across Daniel Mue. A wave of relief takes over me, and I fall back into my chair. "See honey what did I tell you? You even moved up a few seats." Sarah smiles. I say nothing and simply smile back at her and embrace her once more.

Angelica enters the room to find our excited expressions. "So you guys passed I'm assuming."

"Yes." We both reply in unison.

"That's great! I'm so happy for you guys." Angelica exclaims, rushing in to join the hug. Everything for the first time in my life felt absolutely perfect. No stress, no worry. Just bliss.
***
    The school is finally reopening after over a month. Josh is still fighting his side in the trial. I wish that I could help, but what can I do really? I didn't see anything. I just pray that enough evidence is gathered to prove his innocence. I've been visiting Josh weekly. They're still investigating the crime scene, but not much has been found so far. They found a few strands of hair on the floor they said, but several hairs of the students lay in the room. Nothing could be taken in account for that. Though despite all this Josh carries an easy going facade. "Yeah, looks pretty bleak my situation, but hey I'm getting use to it in here. Made a few friends. I don't have to pay for anything. I'm pretty set for life."

    "Glad you're enjoying it." I tease, "If it's so good maybe I'll join you."

    "Nah, can't leave your precious girlfriend behind." He smirks.

    Heat rises to my face. "Yeah."

    "How'd you come to like her anyways?" Josh questions me, leaning back in his squeaky chair and holding the phone with his shoulder.

    I blink at him a few times as though he had just spoken a foreign language or something. I shake my head and smile sheepishly. "I don't know. I mean, I guess I've always likes her a bit. It's just not until we started living together that I really noticed how amazing she is." Her perfect image comes to mind. Her curly dark hair that drapes right over her chest. Her smooth perfect skin that's soft to the touch. Her brilliant amber eyes that make the light even more radiant than before. Not to mention that she's extremely talented and fun to be around in general. I smile to myself at every perfect thought about her. A static muffling comes into focus, and I shake my head, returning myself to reality. Josh looks at me with his eyebrows furrowed, repeating my name like a broken record. "Oh, sorry."

    Josh sighs. His hair drifts in front of his face, and he takes but a moment to shoo it away. "You're really into her. That's good." Then he leans forward, his eyes piercing through the glass like a laser. "But don't forget, there's a psychopath still on the loose." I can feel my heart rate pick up thumping rapidly against my chest. He's right. It's been so long that I've been treating it almost like a bad dream or rather trying to drown myself out from the reality of it all. Two of my friends died, and Josh is being accused as the murderer. I must seem like a pretty crappy friend not even trying to help solve the puzzle. Who would do this? And why? Nothing has happened much yet, but what was I expecting? For this to all just blow over as though nothing happened? Unless if Josh is lying to me somehow, which I doubt he is, there is still someone out there. Waiting. For the opportune moment to strike.