Hm, it is an enjoyable read and I was definitely hooked. There was direction, basis, and a setup for something good. The ambience is nice, I'm oddly calmed by it. Especially the music.
Also, is it me or do the character portraits feel a bit.. masculine? I don't know if I'm being ignorant or sexist with this so bear with me lmao. Regardless, the art was pretty.
The cutting out you mentioned you had to do is pretty apparent, yes. But such are jams, I think. We learn :)