I am sorry to hear that you are still having this issue!! Since I have not heard from you in last couple of days, thought everything became normal!! I sincerely apologize
Let me inform this to the Community Manager right away and get back to you by end of the day!
Great News! I am very happy to inform you that the Community Manager has added all the characters you have gained before. Please check and see!
If you don't see them, force close the App --> Clear the Cache --> Restart the device --> That will do the trick and you will see all your friends back in your game 🤗
Have fun again with your Candy Friends! Have a wonderful day/evening!