When the Violin Sings

Chapter 1

Piper Watson swung her legs back and forth on the edge of her dorm bed, listening to how the wood squeaked under her weight. The furniture in Barnes Hall hadn't been replaced in fifteen or so years, and it showed.. Her mind was less distracted on the faulty furniture though and more on her roommate, Julia Bautista, who was gazing into the cabinet mirror on their pale wall while she applied a fresh coat of pale lipstick.

"If you don't like this girl that much, then why are you bothering to go on a date with her?" Piper asked out of curiosity.

Julia smacked her lips together with a pop.

"I feel bad for her, you know? She asked me out and everything. That takes bravery. We'll enjoy a nice coffee, and then I'll let her down slowly," Julia explained. She rummaged through her blue make-up bag for her mascara wand before slowly applying it to her dark lashes.

Piper watched her roommate quizzically and held back a sigh. Paired randomly together freshman year, she and Julia had remained close, and now they were living together for their third year in a row at St. Ignatius University. She had been there through it all, from when Julia had finally become a political science major after remaining undeclared for two semesters, to when Julia admitted to her that last day of their freshman year that she was a lesbian but was too afraid to tell her mom, to helping her create a dating profile at the end of their sophomore year, to the romantic advice Piper had offered as Julia started going out on dates during their present junior year, all of which usually ended after one date.

When Piper had first met Julia on move-in day freshman year, when the summer air of Massachusetts was hot and humid, Julia was, to her, a shy and timid Filipina who liked to keep to herself, study hard, and live quietly. However, the longer she lived with Piper, the more Piper had seen Julia break out of her shell and grow more bold. After she had officially become a political science major, it was hard not to imagine Julia becoming a loud-spoken politician one day who would make her voice heard and make the world a better place. She realized that Julia was funny, charming, and intimidating when she wanted to be. Slowly, Piper realized she was falling in love with her roommate, even though Piper was under the assumption that she was straight up until about half a year ago. She still had not yet told Julia that the reason for her recent break-up with her two-year-long boyfriend, Henry, had been because of her questioning her sexuality.

"I'm heading off, and then I'm going to Mass with my mom afterwards. Do you want to come?" Julia asked.

Piper shook her head.

"Well, my mom's making pancit afterwards. You're welcome to stop by for dinner," Julia said. Her mother lived locally, just a few minutes down the block from the university. With her mom being a single mother after Julia's father passed away when she was young, Julia liked to stop by often, and Piper found herself frequently going over for Sunday evening meals, though it was becoming increasingly more difficult to go the longer Julia went without telling her mom that she was dating women, especially when Julia's mother would pry Piper for details about her daughter's romantic life.

"I can't. I have to go over to the Howard Apartments, remember?" Piper asked.

"Oh, right. To help with that murder case thing. It's still so sad that happened," Julia murmured. "I hope they catch who did it. Or well, I hope it's at least not the girl Professor Murphy assigned you to help."

"I'm honestly just surprised Professor Murphy let me help with the investigation," Piper admitted.

"Well, he's probably tired of you always asking for work. He already gave you a teaching assistantship, but you still wanted more," said Julia.

"Maybe he's finally seeing the potential in me. Plus, this way I'm bound to get a letter of recommendation from him for law school."

"Don't speak so soon," Julia said. She paused to look at herself in the mirror one last time before giving a wave to her roommate. "I'm off. See you later this evening."