A bloop rudely crashed the trance that Larisa's singing had put me in. I was thoroughly enjoying this precious time with Larisa, and this stupid device ruined it! Although I had recently experienced a surge in popularity on eBunnee, I found myself strangely indifferent. I rarely bothered reading the comments anymore. There was a time when I craved a large number of followers to appear impressive.
I should have been thankful for what Ashlyn did. Oh, Ashlyn! Yet, as I thought about it, a rush of guilt and dread flooded over me. "Uh-oh! What if that alert was a message from Eliza?" I pondered, realising I left both Eliza and Ashlyn waiting outside. I didn't believe they would have messaged me on my phone since there was no need to do so. They were right outside and could have simply knocked on my door instead, but knowing Eliza, you never know. I feared they might have left without me. I really wanted to join them on that journey, even if it was just to see a stray cat.
"Boingity-blip! Blarrrrng! Wobble-wobble-crunch!" Another alert from my phone, this time from the Trash Panda. I listened to all the "Snuggle Noodle Trash Panda" announcements. These were very useful, telling people which songs 'they' were placing in the top 20 that week, so we all knew what to listen to and enjoy. It also helped people get a head start on buying all the merchandise for said singer or band, so they could make videos and take pictures of it for eBunnee.
Watching talented individuals lip-sync to famous songs with quirky expressions was a cherished pastime for many. I watched all the announcements in the hope of seeing a new song from Kassy, with my fingers crossed. I watched it just to see the cute raccoon voicing it. Whenever the raccoon spoke, my attention was completely captivated.
The adorable panda not only tracked your location at all times, providing a sense of constant protection, but it also proved invaluable in finding the best restaurants effortlessly, eliminating the need for painstaking research. The panda acted as your guide, recommending ideal places to shop and dine, alleviating the pressure of doing it all yourself. This way, you could relax and focus on other aspects of enjoyment.
All this nonsense was popping up in my face, but not a message from Eliza or another human being (stupid). Enough of this!
"Priorities," I shouted to myself.
"Priorities," Larisa parroted my words, seemingly unaware of why I had said them in the first place.
I really needed to stop speaking out loud. I was certain I'd blurted out many embarrassing things in my lifetime without even realising it.
"La-Larisa, I have a new... friend... umm, acquaintance who would love to meet you and hear you sing."
With boundless excitement, Larisa sprang to her feet and exclaimed, "Oh my gosh! I absolutely adored all your friends! Eeeek! I couldn't wait to meet another one! Was it the Mr. Creepo guy? Teehee, I am simply dying to meet him!"
"Mr. Creepo"? Who is she referring to as Mr. Creepo? Does she mean Jess or someone else? Ah, she must be talking about that shady contractor guy, the old man whose house I got stuck in BECAUSE OF HER! I jokingly called him Mr. Creepo when talking to her since it is taboo to say his actual name out loud. But why on earth would I want to be friends with him? Pee-ew! I don't recall ever speaking about him in a positive way.
"Close, but the friend I want you to meet is..." I felt a bit reluctant to say her name to Larisa. Ashlyn isn't really a friend per se, but I'm starting to like her despite our initial encounter. She helped me with my eBunnee channel, so I felt inclined to repay her kindness. I thought of showing her my own amazingly beautiful, wonderful singing ghost, hoping it would make her happy. Considering that she seemed to have literally everything, I felt a bit limited in my options for what I could offer her. Nonetheless, I continued, determined to find a way to connect with her. After a brief pause, I proceeded with what I wanted to say: "The friend I want you to meet is Ashlyn Stark... Starr! Ashlyn Starr!"
"Ah, yes, Miss Starr! I do remember her. I was totally Starr-Gazing at her, you know? And then, OMG! I saw her beautiful hair, like, woah! I was like, Is it, like, CGI or something? I had heard about this CGI stuff online, but it turned out her hair was all real. I confirmed this by touching and sniffing it thoroughly while you were distracting her at the archway. We had quite the teamwork thing going on there."
"La-Larisa! Waaaay TMI there. There are some things you really, really need to keep to yourself. Anyway, let's go outside. Hopefully, they're still waiting for us. We had wasted over an hour talking nonsense! Ashlyn and Eliza were probably going to be furious! That was assuming they were patient enough to wait for us for so long."