Free Web NovelChapter 71: Chapter 71: Wanted on the Hot Search
—AHHHHHHH!!!
—I love you!
The surprise was so sudden that Sonia Quincy had no idea how to thank Mina Jennings, so she could only resort to a blunt confession of love.
Mina Jennings: Don’t love me. The best way you can thank me is by doing a good job on the design and not tarnishing my name.
Sonia Quincy replied with a grin: Don’t worry! I definitely won’t ruin your reputation! When is your classmate free? I need to meet her in person to create a custom design.
Mina Jennings: It’s Monday tomorrow, and she has a photoshoot. If you want to meet, it’ll probably have to be Tuesday or Wednesday. No rush. I’ll let you know when we set a time.
Sonia Quincy was too excited to sit still. She pushed her chair back and stood up.
—No problem! Thanks, Ms. Jennings!
Mina Jennings: By the way, Bloom Preston, you haven’t updated Spudster in five days. What, have you given up on your fans?
Sonia Quincy quickly denied it.
—I haven’t! I’ve just been a bit busy lately and haven’t had time to post.
Mina Jennings: You have to post even if you don’t have time! Your account finally has some momentum. You can’t let laziness make you miss the chance to blow up. Being a content creator is a side hustle these days. Your finances are already tight, and now you’re carrying an unborn child. Wouldn’t another way to make money be good?
Sonia Quincy: Okay! Thanks for the reminder, Ms. Jennings! I’ll go post something to connect with my fans right now!
Mina Jennings was giving Sonia Quincy some serious advice.
—I think you should go the comedy route. When you don’t have design drafts to promote, just post some random, funny things. The surrealist humor niche is really hot right now, and you’d be a good fit for it.
Sonia Quincy: That was my plan, too.
Mina Jennings: Well, if you’ve planned it, then do it. Don’t be lazy! Get moving!
Sonia Quincy: Okay!
If Mina Jennings hadn’t reminded her today, she might have waited another couple of days to update Spudster. But since Mina was willing to take time out of her busy schedule to worry about her, Sonia had to get moving right away, no matter how tired or lazy she felt.
Felix Preston was still on his phone call, and Lynn Preston had just taken Mrs. Preston to the restroom. Sonia was all alone, which meant she could safely open Spudster and post an update.
—During the days I wasn’t posting, I wanted to live a good life, but sadly, there are too many bitches out there who blew my life up into a pile of dogshit! Attaching a pic of the Wind Language Necklace.
Surrealist captions were second nature to Sonia Quincy. So as not to affect her main business, she posted the initial draft of the necklace, plastered with watermarks, along with her rant.
It was Sunday, a day many fans were spending in sweet intimacy with their phones. The moment Sonia Quincy’s post went up, a dozen fans flooded in to like and comment.
meme_myself_i: It’s you! The slacker designer who likes to draw on her watermarks!
Poor_I_Flee_Rich_Debauchery: Holy crap! You really drew the Whisperwind necklace! It’s this gorgeous even as a first draft! I’m floored. Are you sure you’re not some big shot’s alt account?
OneMoreBadPullAndIJump: You guys are all focused on the design, but I’m the only one who smells a hint of gossip!
HotWaterIsTooCold: I smell it too! There’s tea, spill it quick!
Sleeping_River: Tea? In that case, I’m moving into this thread.
Mina Jennings was no slower than the fans. Sonia had just clicked to see the comments and saw that Mina had already rushed to the front lines.
"..."
Since everyone loved gossip so much, she might as well slip some in while posting her art.
Bloom Preston: I can start coloring the Whisperwind necklace tomorrow. [Let me tell you, I’m speechless. In just a few days, I’ve run into no less than eight bots!]
She was handling her main hustle and her side gig at the same time, neglecting neither.
The fans were very cooperative, following her lead with their replies.
With everyone chiming in one after another, in less than ten minutes, the post had warped into a bizarre state with thirty likes and one hundred twenty comments.
"I’m back."
Sonia Quincy was right in the middle of her rant when Felix Preston finished his call and walked over.
She had no choice but to leave the gossip hanging at the most exciting part and temporarily exit Spudster.
"Who were you on the phone with for so long?" she asked casually, slipping her phone into her bag.
Felix Preston sat down across from her and answered with a smile, "That was Evan Yates. We were talking about the investment pitch on Monday."
"Oh..." Sonia Quincy nodded. "Is your game finished? Will you be okay for the pitch?"
Felix Preston: "The game is only half-done, but Evan Yates and I have already worked overtime to finish the complete design concept and programming framework. Barring any surprises, I’m confident we’ll be fine."
"That’s good." Sonia Quincy felt a little more at ease. "Good luck tomorrow! If you succeed, I’ll grant you one small wish."
"A small wish..." Felix Preston adjusted his glasses, his eyes glinting. "What kind of small wish?"
Sonia Quincy: "Whatever you want, I’ll grant it."
"...Really?" Felix Preston raised an eyebrow, the smile on his face suddenly turning suggestive.
Sonia Quincy, completely oblivious, nodded innocently. "Really. As long as you want it, I’ll grant it."
"Alright." Felix Preston’s lips curved into a meaningful smile. "You have to keep your word, you know."
Sonia Quincy: "Of course!"
"Brother! Sonia!" Lynn Preston emerged from the restroom with Mrs. Preston on her arm, walking straight to the ticket check and waving at the two of them in the corner.
"We can go in now! Hurry up!"
Felix Preston rose from his chair, naturally stepping forward to take Sonia Quincy’s hand and enveloping her small palm tightly in his own.
"Coming."
Two hours later, the movie was over. Sonia Quincy never got a chance to check Spudster, so she had no choice but to leave her gossip story hanging in the comments section.
They were staying at Mrs. Preston’s place that night. After getting home and taking a shower, Sonia finally dared to sneak a peek at Spudster while Felix Preston was washing up, hoping to continue the unfinished gossip.
But to her surprise, though she had only been gone for a few hours, half of Spudster’s users were issuing an all-points bulletin for her across the entire platform!
She was just a gossip-mongering artist with a little over two thousand followers, yet she had somehow started trending for leaving a story on a cliffhanger!
—[Where did you go, Bloom Preston? Did your slipper actually hit that bitch’s face or not? What color are you going to make the Whisperwind necklace?]
’Has the world really gotten this surreal?’
BUZZ BUZZ—
As Sonia Quincy was staring at her phone, at a complete loss, a WeChat message from Mina Jennings suddenly came in.
—What did you do? Why is half of Spudster hunting you down? Even my studio’s account has been dragged into this. Everyone is telling me to get you to post the follow-up??
"..."
Sonia Quincy was stunned for a long moment before typing out a line with trembling hands.
—I don’t know either! I just left a story hanging in the comments, I never thought they’d be so insane about chasing down the rest of it!
