Chapter 3
Jade immediately clicked on the heart when she saw Perrie posted a picture of her and Alex in Instagram. Perrie in a black dress and Alex in a tuxedo. They looked great.
“Whacha looking at?” Perrie appeared out of nowhere and snatched Jade’s phone. “Hmmm.” She found herself looking at her own post. “Boring,” she said as she gave Jade’s phone back.
“Boring?” Jade laughed. “You two really looked good together.”
“You really think so?” Perrie asked as she sat beside Jade.
“Yes. You’re so lucky you found Alex. And he’s luckier, he found you.”
Perrie hummed again. “Does this mean, I have your seal of approval?” She asked trying to sound casual.
Jade laughed again. “It’s not like you need mine.”
“But… but if I do?”
“If it’s important to you… then yes, of course.” Then Jade’s eyes widened in realization. “Oh my God! Did he ask you to marry him?”
“What? No, no, no. We’re not there yet.”
“Okay, that’s kindda good. Leigh-Anne will never forgive you if you get married before her.”
“Well, there are apparently a lot of thing that Leigh-Anne will never forgive me for.” Perrie muttered under her breath.
“Huh? What was that?”
“Oh nothing,” Perrie answered. “Anyway, maybe we should go. The girls are already out there.”
***
“I had a weird conversation with Pez earlier.”
“Hmmm…” Leigh-Anne forced herself to slowly turn towards Jade. “What did you talk about?”
“She was asking if I approve of her relationship with Alex.”
“Really? Well that’s normal. You want to know what your friends think of your significant other.”
“I don’t know. It’s in the manner that she asked. She made it sound so casual but it feels like it’s very important to her.”
“That sounds weird.” Leign-Anne agreed. “But maybe she has other things on her mind and was just making conversation at the same time.”
“Yeah, maybe.” Jade shrugged. “I did tell her that it was totally fine with me.”
“That’s nice.” Leigh-Anne replied in a slightly higher tone.
“Now you’re the one sounding weird.”
“No… it’s just… I don’t know. I didn’t like their relationship at the start, that’s all.”
“Honestly, I can barely remember when they started dating. Must have been a lot of things going on at that time.”
“Must be.”
***
“Did you see him in Tucked? He is absolutely amazing.”
Perrie watched from a distance as Jade gushed over the guy she was seeing to Leigh-Anne and Jesy.
“And it’s not all acting. He’s really open-minded. We can talk for hours about anything under the sun.”
“Really?” Perrie commented as she walked over to where the three were talking.
“Yes. Come sit, Pez,” Jade grabbed Perrie’s arms and pulled her beside her. “And he’s not afraid to speak up his mind. In fact, we’re going over to join one of the BLM rallies.”
“Maybe he’s just trying to impress you.”
“Give the lad a chance,” Leigh-Anne said while eying Perrie suspiciously.
“All I’m saying is that she hardly knows the guy.”
“We’ve been on several dates.” Jade reminded her.
“Zoom dates. That hardly counts.”
“That’s why we’re seeing each other in the rally. Really get a feel for each other. I like what he stands for. I like how his mind works. Now it’s time to figure out if there is some spark there physically.”
“I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“I think you’re wrong, hun,” Jesy said to Perrie. “It’s about time Jade gets out. Have fun.”
“Not you, too.” Perrie frowned at her best friend.
“Yes, me too. I want us all to be happy, to be all loved up especially at this time.”
“You don’t have to worry, Pez. Holly will be there. Zack will be there. I’ll be fine.”
“Maybe Alex and I should join you.”
Jade started laughing. “You? I’m sorry, Pez. You hardly have any political bone in your body. You’ll just feel out of place and uncomfortable.”
“Fine.” Perrie stood up and without saying another word, walked out of the rehearsal room.
“What’s the matter with her?” Jade asked the other two.
“She must be on her period.”
***
“What the fuck is the matter with you?” Leigh-Anne asked when she and Jesy confronted Perrie after the rehearsal.
“I’m just tired of her acting like that, like we were never together, then constantly telling people how different Jordan and I from each other, how she’s happier now that she met him.”
“I thought you’d be happy. She’s practically giving you a way out without all the awkwardness, without fights, without any guilt trips.” Jesy calmly said.
“I am… I’m glad, I’m happy,” Perrie said in a tone that is far from happy. “I don’t know… Don’t confuse me.”