Perrie's leg is shaking of nervousness as she she seats in the cab on her way to the airport. Her luggage crashes into the walls of the trunk with every turn, and the sound of it only adds to her anxiety. Just this morning, Perrie was excited to go on the week long trip to Japan. However, things took a trun for the worse after she scrolled through social media only to find out that there are rumors about Zayn dating an American model Perrie has never heard of. Perrie has definitely moved on from him; she rarely thinks about him nowadays, but when Zayn does make his way into her thoughts, it is through memories. Luckily, these flashbacks are not connected with any emotion. On these rare occasions, Perrie plays the scenes back in her head, but stays indifferent.

This past relationship feels distant now, but the news of her ex seeing someone new do hurt a bit. Perrie would have liked to be able to completely ignore these rumors, but understands that it is only natural to have a hard time letting go of someone who meant so much to her for so long, and she cannot change that.

Perrie could handle these rumors - it is the text she woke up to this morning from Jesy that made her so stressed. Jesy wrote saying that she is not feeling well, and will not be joining her bandmates on this trip. There were no further details, because this is obviously not the truth as to why Jesy is not coming. Perrie, Jade, Leigh-Anne and most of the people who are a part of Little Mix's team know that Jesy is going through a tough time right now, and it is better if she stays home. Perrie was upset to hear that Jesy will not make it, but she was mostly worried. She tried calling Jesy a couple of times, but her phone is off.

"We're here, Miss," the driver says as the vehicle come to a stop. He exits the car and pulls Perrie's suitcases out of the trunk, and Perrie walks over to accept them. She pays for the ride, but makes no effort to move as he drives off. She knows that fans are probably waiting for her at the airport, and would rather have a quiet moment before she has to take photos with them. With every second that passes, Perrie feels more uncomfortable. She does not want to go on this trip like that, with emotional baggage and without Jesy. She has been standing near the front entrance to the airport for a few minutes now, and decides to finally go in, with hopes of meeting one of her bandmates inside. She drags her suitcases towards the automatic doors but stops when a familiar voice calls her name.

Perrie turns around to find Jade with a genuine smile on her face. She is wearing her green parka coat and casual sunglasses. Her hair is straightened but messy, and she drags a black suitcase behind her. Perrie cannot take her eyes off of Jade as her girlfriend walks towards her. She studies her body a few times, but her gaze is drawn to Jade's smile every time. This grin is enough to silence all of Perrie's worries. Jade embraces Perrie in a warm hug, and after they let go, their eyes meet. No words are needed to be said to express how they feel. It is only a few seconds later when Perrie remembers her worries.

"Did you get a text from Jesy too?" She asks, and can see how the light in Jade's joyous brown eyes dims. It is a silent positive answer. "I'm worried about her, Jade, but I don't know if we can help her now. We can't cancel the trip, but it feels terrible leaving her behind like this."

"Pez, don't worry," Jade says with a soft smile as she lightly strokes Perrie's arm. "I talked to her right when I woke up, and she sounds okay. I mean, she's not okay, but it's not as bad as it was in the past. She just needs some time off to relax a bit and forget about everything. She's going to spend the next few days with her mum, and she turned off her phone so she could disconnect from everything. I promise you that she's fine. All she needs is a little time."

"You said she's with her mum, right? So she's not alone?" Perrie asks, and Jade nods in response.

"We can call Jan anytime we want," Jade assures Perrie and squeezes her hand. The two women walk inside the airport, where they meet up with Leigh-Anne and her boyfriend Jordan. There is an extra plane ticket now that Jesy is not coming, and Leigh-Anne gave it to her boyfriend after making sure it was okay with everyone else. They take pictures with the fans waiting inside and head towards the initial security check.

"I guess that this like a couples' trip, now that Jordan's here," Jade tells Perrie a few hours later as they are boarding the plane. They find their seats, which are close to Leigh-Anne and Jordan, and take them. They carry on their conversation while the plane is still on the ground and more people are coming in.

"We already know that time abroad is the best time for us," Perrie agrees with a knowing smile. "And speaking of which, I really want to take a vacation sometime before tour. I want to go somewhere exotic, and far, far away. So I was wondering if you want to come with me. Just the two of us, all alone, on an island in the middle of nowhere."

There is nothing more tempting than these words. Jade can almost feel the cold touch of the ocean's water on her bare feet, which are standing on shells on the ground. She can picture Perrie's arm held strongly in hers and her soft kiss on Jade's cheek. They would be completely alone, with no one to bother them and no cameras to hide from. It could be a time Jade would never forget.

"Do you have specific dates?" Jade asks with shining eyes.

"It has to be on January, because that's the only time we have off. I have the dates written down," Perrie explains and takes out her phone. She opens the notes app and quickly looks back up at Jade. "So, the best time is going to be from around January ninth until the fifteenth. Does that work for you? Or are you in South Shields then?"

"No, I'm not, but... I don't think I can make it. That's when I'm supposed to go to Paris with Jed," Jade says as she turns her gaze down. Her fantasy was just ripped apart for the worst reason. Perrie stays silent, and Jade can easily tell that she is a bit disappointed. Then, Jade moves her gaze to her girlfriend's eyes again with an amused smile on her face. "I just need to cancel the trip to Paris, so I can go with you. I already told you that I've decided to not go on this date with him." Jade takes out her phone, and just when she is about to tap on Jed's contact to call him, Perrie's hand is laid on hers. There is a concerned look in Perrie's blue eyes, and Jade immediately stops her actions.

"Are you going to do it over the phone?" Perrie worriedly asks. She would much rather to be able to not care, but cannot stay indifferent. She has already had a tough reminder of Zayn today and how he hurt her, and this feels close to home. She feels sorry for Jed, who seems to be really into Jade and thinks that she is single. He wants to take her on an amazing date, but she is simply going to cancel everything over the phone.

"Oh," Jade whispers when she understands where Perrie is coming from. There are a few moments of silence before Jade arranges her thoughts and is capable of wording them. "Jed's never here, Pez. He's signed in America. We're not going to see each other until January, and that's why we scheduled Paris so much time in advance. I would've done it differently if he was here. But he isn't."

Perrie does not seem completely convinced just yet, but she gives Jade an assuring nod to go ahead and call Jed. Jade makes the call, although she knows that due to the time difference between the UK to America, Jed probably is not awake. To her surprise, she hears his voice just a few seconds later, as he picks up.

"Jade! How are you? It's so nice to hear from you," Jed says. Perrie is able to hear every word, and listens to the conversation even though it is definitely too much for her. Her heart is aching for Jed, because she knows exactly how terrible and worthless he is going to feel, but it also breaking for Jade, since Perrie would hate to see her with anyone else.

"I'm good, how about you?" Jade politely replies. She tries to make this conversation not a second longer than it has to be.

"I'm great," Jed answers. Before he has the chance to keep talking, Jade speaks.

"I need to talk to you about Paris," she says, a bit insecure.

"I wanted to do the same! I was just about to text you. I got us plane tickets today!" Jed enthusiastically infroms Jade. Perrie cannot stand it anymore. She cannot be the reason for someone feeling the same horrible way she did just a couple of months ago. She knows that she cannot really compare a four year relationship to a third date, but it feels too similar. She cannot let Jade hurt Jed like this, let him down so deeply over the phone. Perrie shakes her head as a sign of telling Jade to not say anything about a cancelation.

"Yeah, that's... great." Jade manages to reply after long moments of silence.

"You don't sound too sure," Jed says and fakes a laugh.

"I'm just a bit distracted now, sorry. I'm actually on a plane to Japan and we're about to take off," Jade explains. The plane probably will not move anywhere in the next twenty minutes at least, but she has to make some sort of excuse.

"Then I guess we'll talk later? I'll text you the details of the flight and everything. Have fun in Japan!" Jed wishes Jade. She mumbles a few words in response before hanging up the phone. She does not know how what just happened is going to affect her relationship with Perrie, but cheers up when Perrie places her hand on her thigh.

"Jed's only relevant if we decide he is. And I decide that he isn't, so none of this matters," Perrie tells Jade. "Alright? We're going to have the best time in Japan, just like we said, and we're going to have the best time when we come back to the UK. This doesn't change anything. Just tell him in Paris that it's not going to work. You must have the dignity to do it face to face."

"Okay," Jade agrees and sends Perrie an understanding smile. Leigh walks over to them from her seat and suggests that they would take a photo to post for the fans. Jade and Perrie agree, but as the photo is being taken, neither of them can hide her disappointment from the phone call that just occurred.

×××

Jade thanks her makeup artist for beautifully painting her face, stands up, and walks outside of the hotel room while Leigh-Anne takes the seat which was previously occupied by Jade. Four days have passed since the girls have landed in Japan, and Jade is having a great time. It would have been perfect if Jesy was here too, but Jade texts Janice daily to make sure that Jesy is doing well. Jade meets Perrie in the corridor, and she, like Jade, is already completely ready for today with her hair and makeup done.

The two women embrace each other in a long hug, even though they hardly separated after spending the last couple of nights in the same bed. The corridor is empty except for the two of them, so Perrie allows herself to lightly kiss Jade's lips. They let go as Jade wears a shy smile while Perrie is wearing a proud one.

"Do you want to take a walk? It's so pretty outside," Perrie suggests. Jade nods and leads them both to the lift. They exit the hotel together a minute later. Jade cannot hold herself back from taking Perrie's hand in hers, and silences her worries with the thought that she holds hands with many of her female friends, too, and there is nothing odd in the way that other people see it. This gesture comes off as plainly platonic to others.

The view is absolutely beautiful. Tall trees and patches of fresh grass are lit by sunlight. A small waterfall creates a little river, and the sound of the running water is relaxing, and only adds to the whole experience. A bridge with its railing painted red crosses the water, and both women are fascinated by the sight.

"There's a bridge in here! Just like the one in your house!" Jade enthusiastically says. Perrie's laughter fills the air as she watches Jade walk towards the bridge.

"There's actually water under this bridge here so they're not really alike," Perrie replies with a wide smile on her face. Jade does not show any indication of even hearing Perrie, and she continues getting lost in the heaven she is currently in.

"I already told you that I have a thing for gardens," Jade reminds her. She turns around to face Perrie again, and fixes her posture so that she stands tall. "I declare this garden as ours. Jade and Perrie's." She formally says as Perrie walks over to her.

"If you say so, babe," Perrie agrees and laughs as she wraps an arm around Jade. They stand in comfortable silence for a short period of time, only enjoying each other's company and the contact of their skin. They let go when Leigh-Anne comes into sight as she exits the hotel and walks towards Jade and Perrie. The three women take photos of each other, laugh and hug for no reason in the next ten minutes. Jade posts a picture of Perrie and her on Little Mix's account, and it takes no longer than a few seconds for the fans to comment all about how cute they are together. Jade reads the comments with a smile on her face, and is only interrupted by an incoming phone call.

"It's Sam," Jade informs her two bandmates.

"Don't pick up!" Perrie says and rushes over to Jade. She silences the ringtone and stands in front of Jade.

"Why not?" Jade asks with a soft frown on her face.

"Because she's only going to tell us that you and I need to chill the fuck out. That's why she's calling. I think she might want us to take that post down, too. So if we just ignore the call then we won't have to do anything," Perrie explains with a satisfied smile.

"Pez, I really think that we should tell her everything before it gets too hard to handle on our own," Jade says in a slightly insecure tone. "I mean, I don't care about this specific phone call, but... We can't hide this for long. Sam will be easier on us once she knows what's truly going on."

"I'm with Jade on this one," Leigh-Anne agrees. She knows that the future of the group will be strongly affected by whatever is going to happen between Jade and Perrie, and thinks that it is better if they have it under control. Perrie figures that Jesy probably thinks the same, and it might be the right thing to do, so she agrees as well.

"Let's just casually tell her when we're back in the UK," Perrie says.

"No, she's going to freak out if we just drop it on her like that. We need some sort of plan," Jade tells her two bandmates. She opens the calendar app on her phone and goes through her schedule. She sighs in disappointment before looking back up. "I don't think we're going to be able to schedule a meeting with Sam, we're working literally every day now."

"Jade, babe, we don't need to have a meeting with her. We'll just tell her when we feel like it," Perrie says with a soft smile. "I'll let you write down things for me to say and learn by heart for this chat if that's what you want to do. Seriously, I'll do anything. I'll shut up the whole time if you want to do the talking. Just don't stress about it." Perrie's kiss on Jade's cheek makes them her slightly blush under her makeup.

×××

"That might have been the best show we've ever played," Perrie says and laughs. She embraces Jade into a loving hug, and Perrie is hardly able to feel her girlfriend's body beneath the costume she is wearing. "You are the prettiest Christmas tree in the whole wide world," she continues and strokes Jade's hair.

"I don't think I'm going to do this ever again," Jade replies with a smile as they let go. She turns around for Perrie to unzip her costume for her, and is soon left wearing a crop top and a pair of shorts. "We need to change into the onesies Claud got us for karaoke night," she reminds Perrie. Jade goes over to the bed in the center of the hotel room and picks up the two clothing items. She hands Perrie the Mario onesie while keeping the Pikachu one to herself.

"Hey, Claud got the Pikachu for me!" Perrie says and playfully tries to snatch it from Jade's hands.

"Well, it's mine now," Jade replies with a laugh. "You always go on and on about how much you love Pikachu, so I figured that I should just be him for one night and you won't be able to take your eyes off of me." She teasingly smiles as she walks over to the bathroom and changes into the onesie.

About two hours later, Jade, Perrie, Leigh-Anne, Jordan and the dancers are all sitting together on a couch in front of the screen which projects the lyrics to the songs. They are all squeezing on the couch, which is too small for so many people, and Jade chose to sit on Perrie’s lap. Jade had decided to get properly drunk tonight, in honor of it being their last night in Japan, and she is surely getting there. She orders two more drinks for herself as Perrie giggles at her actions.

"Stop! I don't want you vomiting all over me at night," Perrie says. She only realizes what she said when a few pairs of eyes turn to her. Perrie is not sure how much about Jade and her the dancers have figured out already, but she just let it slip that they sleep in the same bed at night. She does not want to worry Jade right now, so she decides to not give it much thought. A waiter arrives with their drinks, and a wide smile spreads on Jade's face as she pulls two tall cups towards her on the table.