A Marshmallow's Guide to Loving a Complete Idiot (Inanimate Insanity)(Marshple)

20. Have High Standards

"Gelatin froze, uncertain. His feelings were-"

"Hmm... No. Nah. Nooope..."

"His feelings were realized by him with alarming clarity now... The question was of what to do next."

"Ugh! No."

Marsh was interrupted for the umpteenth time that morning, due to the very same interrupter: Bow, on her phone, clicking away. She mentally debated asking her what she was doing - and maybe asking her to go to the next room while she was at it.

'Would that be rude? I was here first... But I also killed her, so...'

She didn't get to make a decision, as Bow spoke first, without looking up: "Marsh, do you think dating is a waste of time?"

"...Huh?"

"I'm trying to find someone to match with on ghost Thimble or whatever," Bow explained. "It's a dating website for ghosts! But all the people who've hit up my profile so far are either weird, boring, really old, or don't use emojis."

"...I don't know anything about dating. Ask..." 'Well, Apple's probably clueless, and nobody in their right mind would go out with Dough.' "...Eh. But thinking about it rationally, if it's a dating website for dead people, most of them will be old anyway. They say only the good die young."

"...Yeah, but that doesn't really answer my question. Is dating a waste of time, or isn't it?"

"Heck if I know."

Bow looked up from her phone. "Wait a second, are you telling me you've never been on a date before?"

Marsh crossed her arms. "M-maybe I am. Is that a problem?"

"No, it's not, I'm just surprised. You're a fan favorite with celebrity status, and so cool. Doesn't hurt that you're super cute and popular, too. You're missing out on some real catches with those traits."

"I don't really care about love, to be honest. If I did care, I wouldn't exactly be living in the middle of nowhere where I couldn't find it."

"Aww, you're so cyoot when you're lying!"

"I'm not lying, though."

"Of course you are; that book right there's a romance novel, Marshy!" She flew in super close and motioned to the page.

A blush rose to her face. "I-I just felt like reading something different for once! I want to save the mystery novels for Halloween, i-is all! Anyway, you use emojis in judging who to date?"

"Marsh, I'm not in the market for a, like, square." Bow was smirking.

Marsh looked away. "...A-alright. Fair enough." Bow moved back away again with a tiny aerial backflip. Then she returned to her mumbling and typing.

Marsh knew she wouldn't have a chance of focusing as long as Bow was there, so she slumped in the couch and thought.

'I haven't thought about that in a good... five years,' she admitted to herself. 'It's not really something I care about much, but... having someone love me might be really nice. Then again... chances are my fame would have a bearing on it, whether it meant dating a celebrity or someone who heard of the show... well, just about anyone who hasn't lived under a rock for eight years. Someone might only care about my fame.'

'In fact, there's a chance that someone somehow has a crush on me from the show... if they're tasteless, that is.'

She let that strange thought stew in her mind for a moment, then crossed her arms. 'Dating a fan would be way too weird. He'd know too much about me, which could be... Really creepy.'