-Chapter 53-
As soon as I woke-up, I reached out to touch Niall, but found nothin. My eyes flicked open and I found that where Niall had previously been lying, was empty.
It wasn't until I found that a yellow post-it was stuck to my head that I figured out where he was.
'Gone for a shower.' Was written across the post-it in Niall's handwriting. I smiled at the gesture and crumpled the post-it into a small ball.
I then tried to throw it into the bin next to the television set, and I say tried because I failed miserably as the post-it landed a good 5 inches away from the bin.
I groaned and got up. I picked the ball up and dropped it into the bin. I went over to my bag and turned my phone on. It was one o'clock in the afternoon.
Thank God I didn't have anything planned for today.
I was about to get up and go to the kitchen to find something to eat, when my phone vibrated in my hands causing me to jump in shock.
I looked down at the screen and saw it was Perrie calling me. Yes, Perrie Edwards, the girl who's 'fiancé' I caught kissing another girl.
I answered the phone and pressed it to my ear. "Perrie?"
"Hi Cora. I'm sorry to disturb you, but I was just wondering if you were doing anything this afternoon?" She asked.
"I'm not. Why?"
"I was hoping to talk to you face to face about what you saw that night." She said nervously.
"Sure. Where?" I asked.
Truth be told, as much as I didn't want to leave Niall's side, I really needed to talk to Perrie about Zayn kissing another girl and what she had said about it being the end of Little Mix if I told anyone else about what I had seen.
"Somewhere private. I'm actually pulling up outside your house..." She trailed off and I started to panic.
"I'm actually not at my house right now, but I can be in half an hour." I explained as I started to gather all my stuff and put it into my bag.
"Oh ok... I'll just wait for you then." Perrie murmured.
"Sure. I'm leaving right now, and I'll drive straight back." I said, running over to the front door, my phone balancing in between my ear and my shoulder. I tugged my shoes on, and pulled my coat off the hanger.
"No problem. I'll see you soon then." Perrie said, and I hummed in acknowledgement. She then hung up, and I pushed my phone into my pocket.
It wasn't until I was half way down the front steps that I remembered I had forgotten to tell Niall that I was leaving. I cursed under my breath and ran back inside, shutting the front door with my foot.
"Niall." I called out as I ran up the stairs.
"Niall!" I yelled, as I reached the bathroom door. I thumped my fists against the door and I heard the water stop.
The door opened to reveal Niall with only a towel around his waist and water droplets running down his toned body. "Cora?" He said in a questioning tone when he saw I had my shoes and coat on.
"I have to go. It's really important." I informed him, forcing myself to keep my eyes on his face.
"Ok..." He trailed off.
"But I'll be back this evening. I promise, we can watch all the Jaws films like you said you wanted to last night." I offered, feeling bad about leaving him, especially after last night.
"Sounds great, but you hate Jaws." Niall pointed out.
"I know, but that way you can hold me..." I hummed, leaning in to kiss him on the lips.
He kissed me back, but as soon as things started to get heated I had to force myself to pull away.
"I really have to go, but I swear I'll be back!" I groaned, stepping away from him and towards the stairs.
"I believe you. I'll order in tonight, what do you want?" He asked me as I started to run down the stairs.
"Chinese take-away." I shouted from the bottom of the stairs.
"But you hate Chinese food!" He shouted after me.
"But you don't!" I called back.
"It's a date." Niall said just as I ran out of the front door, car keys in hand.
"Sounds perfect." I said to myself as I opened the driver's door.
---
I pulled up outside my flat building and saw Perrie sitting on the doorsteps.
"Hey!" She waved when she saw me walk around the corner.
"Hi. I'm sorry to keep you waiting." I said as I typed the code in to the key pad.
"It's no problem. Are you ok?" She asked me, letting her eyes run up and down my body taking in my appearance.
It wasn't until then that I realized I was still dressed in the clothes I had worn yesterday. My hair was probably a tangled mess and I probably smelt really bad.
"I just woke-up." I explained as I opened the door and started to walk up the steps that led to my flat door.
"It's half one..." Perrie pointed out.
"I was up all night." I added and she nodded. I opened the door to my flat and stepped in. My suitcases were right in front of the door and I nearly tripped over them as I stepped into the house.
I moved them out of the way and went over to the windows, where I pulled all the curtains open, so that sunlight could flood into the room.
"I'm just going to change, I'll be right out. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen." I said and Perrie nodded.
I smiled before heading into my bedroom. I opened the curtains and then my wardrobe's doors. I didn't have lots of clothes hung up since they were all in my suitcases still, but I managed to find an outfit without too much of a problem.
I put on a pair of blue, skinny jeans and a knit sweater. I slipped a pair of grey, knitted slipper/socks onto my feet and then sprayed my vanilla and lavender deodorant on. I brushed my hair and tied it up into a ponytail before putting some cherry chap-stick onto my dry lips. Once I was done, I opened my bedroom door and stepped out.
Before I went into the kitchen where Perrie had boiled the kettle, I flicked on heaters in the main rooms of the house.
"How do you have your tea?" Perrie asked.
"Milk and two sugars please." I smiled, walking over to Perrie who was pouring the milk into my tea. I found my sugar pot and plopped two sugar cubes into the cup.
Perrie handed me my cup and took her own in between her hands.
"Zayn knows that you saw him." She started, not beating around the bush which was very much appreciated.
"Ok..." I trailed off as I wasn't sure what to answer. "Are you guys still together?" I asked.
Perrie looked rather uncomfortable, so I took that as a yes.
"It's complicated." She said.
"Why does everything have to be so complicated?" I sighed, sipping at my tea.
"Tell me about it." Perrie laughed slightly, and also took a sip of her tea.
"I have one question that I really want you to answer." I told Perrie who nodded.
"Go ahead."
"You have to promise me that you will answer it truthfully." I continued.
"I will, but on one condition: You have to answer my question." Perrie proposed, and I thought about it.
If she asks me about what happened with Bradley, I don't think I'll be able to answer her truthfully. It's not that I don't trust her, but the less people who know is better.
Then again, I need to know the answer to the question I am going to answer Perrie.
I'm pretty sure that if it's about Bradley I can tell the truth without saying all of the truth, if you know what I mean.
"Deal." I said, out stretching my hand for her to shake in agreement. Perrie shook my hand firmly, before pulling hers away to the warmth of her cup.
"I understand why you wouldn't want me to tell anyone about what I saw, but what I don't understand is why it would be the end of One Direction and Little Mix?" I interrogated.
Perrie stayed quite for a couple of seconds, almost like she was thinking carefully about what to say.
"What I am about to tell you, you can't tell anyone. And when I say anyone I mean anyone. If this gets out it's the end of Zayn's and mine careers. Nobody can know a word of what I am about to tell you." Perrie said, setting her cup down on the counter and walking over to me.
I nodded to let her know that I understood. "I promise I won't tell anyone." I swore and Perrie smiled nervously.
"Not long after Little Mix started, the management at Syco thought it would be a good idea to pair one of us with a member of their biggest asset- One Direction." Perrie started, and I knew where this was going. "They were originally going to do Jade and Harry, but then decided Zayn and I would be better so Harry could keep up his player status."
"When the idea was proposed to me, I thought it would be a good idea. I couldn't see any bad side to it and all I could think about was the publicity it would bring the girls and me. I accepted, and a couple of days after, so did Zayn. We we're called in for a meeting where we were explained what would be expected of us, and so on. It seemed like a fair deal, date Zayn for six months and then we could call it off. Little did I know that six months would turn into four years." Perrie stopped to take a breath.
"We were handed the contract papers right there and then and told to sign. I was about to start reading it when the lady in charge told me that there was no point as it regrouped everything I had just been told. Being the naive girl I was back then, I took her word for it and signed. Zayn and I were then told to come back in a couple of days to finalize the contract. Before we left we were told not to tell anyone, so I didn't." I noticed Perrie's hand as shaking, so I took it in mine and gave her a comforting squeeze.
"Two days later we came back and were told to sign another unread document. We signed and there we go, we were a 'couple'. Anyway, at first it went smoothly. Zayn was a decent guy and when we went out we actually had fun with each other, it wasn't until I started to develop feelings for him that everything started to go pear shape. It turned out that Zayn also had feelings for me, and he asked me to be his girlfriend. I said yes and we went to see management to declare our relationship. The seemed happy, and by then our six months were up. It wasn't until the day before the This Is Us movie premier that things started to go really wrong." I interrupted Perrie.
"The engagement." I murmured and she nodded.
"We were called in for a meeting and we were told about our engagement. You can't even begin to guess Zayn's reaction: he went absolutely insane. He started to shout and scream at the people, telling them no. As it turned out, the contracts that we signed said that after our six months were up, management could add more time without telling us or getting our agreement, they could even force a fake engagement/marriage. Both of us demanded to break the contract, but we were told that if we did we would be forced to quit our bands. Of course, neither of us wanted to do that to our band mates, so we stayed quiet and announced the engagement." Perrie finished.
"So are you guys really getting married?" I asked.
"No. We broke-up not long after that day, but... Oh God. The truth is that I still love him with everything single part of my soul. I love him more than anything else on this earth, but there is nothing I can do about it because he is too scared to feel the same way." Perrie said, breaking down. "He hates me, he hates being around me and is just rude. I know he is stuck and he blames it all on me."
"Oh Perrie." I said. I am shocked. I truly love Zerrie together, I think they are perfect for each other and whenever they are around us, they seem so in love.
"Last night I confronted Zayn about him kissing another girl. I know he has sexual relationships with other girls, but I have told him over and over again not to do it in public places. If he gets caught, it's the end of everything I have ever worked for." Perrie cried softly.
"But something happened to him as I was shouting at him, he turned into the old Zayn. The Zayn that I fell in love with in the first place. I feel so cross with myself, last night I gave myself to him again, even after all he has put me through." She announced, and I was a tiny bit shocked.
"You guys..." I trailed off, not really sure how to put it.
"Had sex. Yes, and it was absolutely amazing, but he left this morning to go see Niall and said he would be straight back, but he isn't. I'm too afraid to call in case one of his f*ckbuddies picks up. I'm scared that he's in a bar, drinking away his pain." Perrie admitted, and dropped to the floor in floods of tears.
I have never seen Perrie cry, not even on YouTube videos. She seems like such a strong woman, and I admire her because of that, but seeing her like this makes me realize that she is just like every other girl out there.
"Do you want me to call him? Or do you want me to ask one of the boys if they know where he is?" I offered, crouching down to sit next to her on my kitchen floor.
"No. It's better if he is just left alone... I'm sorry I'm such a mess. I don't normally let myself get like this." Perrie apologized, wiping away her tears with the back of her hand.
"Don't worry about it. I swear I won't tell anyone." I winked and she laugh softly.
We sat there in silence for a good couple of minutes: I was absorbing all the information I had just been given, and I think Perrie was trying to adjust to this new situation. I can't imagine being stuck in a fake relationship for three years and not being able to tell anyone... she must feel like a huge weight has been lifted off her shoulders.
After a good five minutes I turned my head to face Perrie. "So what did you want to ask me?" I asked.
Perrie half smiled. "Are you and Niall together?" She asked.
I don't know if I should feel relieved that it wasn't about Bradley or shocked that she would even ask me that question.
When I didn't answer, Perrie explained some more. "I know that Barbara and Niall are in the same situation as Zayn and I. He told me this morning, and I see the way you look at each other."
I nodded.
"Yes. We are together." I grinned, and Perrie smiled back.
"Niara is real." She concluded.
I nodded. "Yes, Niara is real."
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I hoped you enjoyed this update!
Thanks again for 7K, and I hope you enjoyed this update!
Love you guys,
-BW
Xx
P.s: Cora's outfit in the media