Chapter 449: Chapter 449: Passed Away at the End of Last July
Hilary and Brother Gus inwardly agreed with what Renee Jennings said.
âShe really is spoiled. We canât even talk to her without giving her a gift? Unbelievable!â
Sasha had a bit of a temper, and Renee Jennings didnât want to waste too much effort on her. "Hilary, let me try communicating with Layla first."
"Okay," Hilary replied, walking over to Laylaâs side. "Layla, would you like to chat with the lady on the phone?"
Layla had heard what Sasha said earlier and mimicked her. "No chatting, no chatting. Sasha said we only get to chat if we get presents."
Renee Jennings: "..."
Hilary: "Host, what did Layla say?"
"Layla, do you want a jujube?" Renee Jennings had to resort to luring her with a snack. Layla wasnât as strong-willed as Sasha; she was most likely just being led along by her.
"Jujubes!" Layla was a glutton. At the mention of food, her eyes instantly lit up, and she nearly started drooling. "Yes, yes, yes! Layla wants jujubes!"
Sasha was too busy entertaining the tourists to notice what was happening with Layla.
"Okay, Layla gets a jujube," Renee Jennings said with a light chuckle.
Hearing her, Hilary cooperatively took two jujubes from her work bag. "Layla is being a good girl, so hereâs a reward of some jujubes for Layla."
But when Layla got the jujubes, she did something surprising.
The first thing she did after getting the jujubes wasnât to eat them, but to give them to Sasha.
The key point was, she didnât just share one with Sashaâshe gave both of them to her.
[Uh, this kind of looks like sheâs handing over tribute...]
[Sashaâs authority is way too strong.]
[Why would Layla give both jujubes to Sasha?]
The tourists watching at the scene, however, had a different take.
"Aww, Layla loves Sasha so much!"
"Such loving little sisters! How sweet!"
"You can tell Sasha is usually very good to Layla, thatâs why Layla gave both jujubes to her!"
"..."
Sasha took the jujubes from Layla, tossing aside the green beans she was holding. She took a big bite of a jujube before asking, "Whereâd you get this?"
Layla explained where the jujubes came from.
Sashaâs expression immediately turned sulky. Her nostrils flared slightly as she bared her teeth and glared at Hilary.
Hilary met Sashaâs gaze and suddenly felt a sense of unease.
Sasha was no longer in the mood to entertain the tourists. She stormed up to Hilary, grabbed her bag, and started digging through it.
"Why did you give Layla a snack and not me? Why does Layla get one and I donât?"
She turned Hilaryâs bag completely upside down, its contents spilling all over the ground.
Seeing this, Brother Gus immediately scolded her, "Sasha, donât be rude!"
Sasha didnât listen. She jumped to the ground, gathered up the snacks she liked, and then ran off to hide.
[This Sasha has a really bad temper.]
[This goes beyond just being haughty and mischievous. Watching this makes me want to smack her!]
[Sheâs a Class I nationally protected animal. Who would dare smack her...]
Brother Gus quickly crouched down to pick up the things on the ground and put them back in Hilaryâs bag. "Joy, I feel like that girl Sashaâs temper is getting worse and worse."
Hilary pressed her lips together and said nothing.
Renee Jennings spoke up again. "Layla, didnât you want to eat the jujubes? Why did you give them to Sasha?"
Layla blinked and replied, "Sasha said I have to give her any yummy food first. Thatâs the only way sheâll play with me."
Renee Jennings: "Do you like playing with her that much?"
"Yes." Layla nodded her furry head. "Sasha says I have to listen to her."
Renee Jenningsâs brow furrowed. She then asked, "Why do you have to listen to her?"
Layla: "If I donât listen, things will get really bad!"
"How bad?"
"As bad as what happened to Sparkle and Bonnie!"
Renee Jennings knew Bonnie, but who was Sparkle?
"Hilary, is Sparkle an orangutan?"
At her words, Hilary froze. A moment passed before she snapped out of it. "Sparkle was an orangutan too, but... sheâs not with us anymore. Host, why are you suddenly asking about Sparkle?"
âNot with us anymore?â
Renee Jennings asked, "Where did Sparkle go?"
Hilary pursed her lips, a flash of sorrow in her eyes. "Sparkle passed away at the end of last July."
âIf only we had met Renee Jennings back then,â she thought. âMaybe Sparkle wouldnât have left us.â
[Sparkle... I used to love playing with her when I went to Caelus!]
[Just mentioning Sparkle suddenly makes me want to cry!]
[It makes me so sad thinking about how emaciated she got toward the end.]
[Was Sparkle sick? How did she pass away?]
[Sparkle was the star of the Orangutan Pavilion. I think she got sick and killed herself by ramming her head into a tree.]
Renee Jenningsâs expression grew more solemn as she read the comments on the bullet screen. Her intuition told her that Sparkleâs death wasnât simple, and it might even be related to Sasha.
"Layla," she said gently. "Why did you say that not listening would be as bad as what happened to Sparkle and Bonnie?"
Just as Layla was about to answer, Sasha, who had been hiding, shot out from nowhere, grabbed Layla, and dragged her away from the crowd.
With both orangutans gone, the surrounding tourists grew very dissatisfied and started blaming Hilary for showing up.
"We were having a great time watching the orangutans perform. Whyâd you have to come and interrupt?"
"Seriously, you ruined our chance to watch the orangutans!"
"Sheâs so incompetent. The zoo should just fire her already!"
"I canât believe this. What a mess she made..."
Hearing these words, Hilaryâs cheeks burned hot, as if sheâd been slapped. It was a humiliating feeling.
Brother Gus quickly tried to placate them. "Itâs alright, itâs alright! There are other orangutans up ahead, everyone can go see them! You can also go check out the other animals. Caelus Wildlife Park has many other interesting animals!"
Hilary turned and walked away dejectedly. She crouched down by a large tree, her voice filled with helplessness. "Suddenly, I feel a bit lost. I donât know what to do."
"Hilary," Renee Jennings said gently. "Focus on taking care of Bonnie for now. Iâll find some time in the next few days to make a trip to Lyris."
Hearing this, Hilaryâs eyes suddenly lit up, her voice filled with delighted surprise. "Really?"
"Really," Renee Jennings said. "We have to find a way to resolve Bonnieâs situation."
Otherwise, Bonnie might become the next Sparkle.
Hilaryâs eyes instantly reddened. She said gratefully, "Thank you! Host, thank you so much!"
"Youâre welcome." Renee Jennings smiled slightly and encouraged her, "Hilary, keep your spirits up."
"Okay!" Hilary nodded vigorously, breaking into a wide smile. "Host, Iâll be in the best possible shape to welcome you!"
[The smart ones among us are already pre-ordering tickets!]
[Aaaah, Iâm so jealous of you people in Lyris, I could fight you!]
[I hate that I live so far from Lyris...]
Hilary didnât take up any more of the livestream time. After going offline, she used her own salary to gift three Angel Wings.
Renee Jennings took a sip of water from her new cup before continuing, "Alright, letâs connect to the next person."
"Iâm a security guard in Zenvia" connected to the stream.
A face with a mask appeared on the split-screen. He had a pair of slender phoenix eyes that looked both exquisite and affectionate.
[A hottie???]
[I hope he doesnât look like an orangutan when he takes off the mask...]