The top two floors of Disora's building were transformed right before Perrie launched the pharmaceutical products. The top floor was her lab, conveniently near the helipad; while the floor below it, she turned into an apartment, mostly because she stayed in her lab for more than a month.
She didn't think much of it and had two extra bedrooms in the studio-type space open for her employees who wish to stay the night while working on the lab with her.
All that effort into modifying the two top floors didn't go to waste after Caitlyn passed. She now used it as their safehouse right after the recent attack. Jesy and Anne-Marie were staying in one of those rooms, while Leigh-Anne and Jade were staying in the other. And since Taylor doesn't sleep at all, she chooses to stay on the rooftop as their protector every single evening.
They were all working that night, experimenting on different kinds of substances that will serve as their weapon against demons or whatever type of creature that may come their way. It won't kill their enemies, but it can be lethal to them.
Perrie's directing everyone since she knows the formula and composition of the bombs. Jade can't help but be amazed at how Perrie's passion is shedding light into the darkness.
Jade and Leigh were working together on a different table opposite Perrie, Jesy, and Anne-Marie when Leigh noticed the burn mark on Jade's wrist that the demon left behind.
"That doesn't seem right." Leigh comments, her eyes fixated on the brunette's wrist.
"What?" Jade asks without looking at Leigh-Anne. She's so busy with the task she was given that she thought nothing of Leigh's remark.
"You don't get burned. You're fireproof. How did you get that burn on your wrist?" Leigh quizzes her.
Jade stopped whatever she was doing to look at her friend. Leigh was being suspicious so she grabbed Jade's wrist to take a good look at the burn.
"Uh–"
Jade just let Leigh examine the burn. When her friend was done, she looked at Jade with a concerned look on her face.
"I know this mark." Jade withdrew her arm and continued what she was doing. "Please tell me you have a plan – a good plan."
Jade shrugged. "Don't worry. I'm trying to think of one."
Leigh sighs. "Does Perrie know?"
Jade briefly glances at Perrie then returns her attention to Leigh-Anne. "No. But...I'll tell her."
"You better." Leigh says, in a tone where Jade understood that if she didn't follow what she said, she'll get an earful of it. Jade resumed her task as if the burn mark meant nothing. But Leigh knows just by observing the brunette that there was something else that she's hiding. "Promise me, you won't do anything stupid."
Jade stops for a second to look at her worried friend and slightly nods at her.
The night, unlike most nights, was far too exhausting for most of them. That's why Jesy, Anne-Marie, and Leigh retired to their beds early. But Perrie couldn't sleep, so she was left in her lab. While Jade decided to get some fresh air on the balcony.
It didn't take long before Jade heard footsteps coming from behind her. She could also hear it stop a few feet away from her. And she knows exactly who it is.
"Sorry to invade your privacy..."
Jade slightly turned her head when she heard Perrie spoke. It was sort of Perrie's cue that it's alright for her to stand next to Jade.
"I just wanted to give you this..." Perrie took out what she'd been holding and showed it to the brunette. It's the crimson jade dagger – the very weapon Perrie created that could kill Jade. And to be perfectly honest, Jade is surprised that Perrie wanted her to have it. "I uh–I don't think this is going to be safe with me. The demon who attacked me wanted this, and I don't want them to have it. If only I can destroy this–"
"No, you can't destroy it." Jade said. "You can destroy its form, but the stone..." Jade gently holds the dagger and points at the gem that Perrie affixed in the middle of the cross-guard. "This stone is indestructible. They're not after the weapon, they're after this stone."
"To kill you...isn't that right?"
Jade takes a deep breath and looks at the vast expanse of the horizon where she could almost see half of the city.
"That stone is too powerful. However, its power is still unknown to any kind – humans, demons, angels...even to my Father. Legend has it that when that stone falls into the hands of the unworthy, terrible things will happen. They could control demons and angels, turn them against their God. And that would be the downfall of all the human race across all universes."
Perrie was speechless for a long time. Her eyes widened in horror at Jade's words. All these years, the stone was just locked up in a vault in her lab, not knowing the true power it possesses. It left Perrie wondering if it was ever a mistake creating the dagger in the first place.
Jade scoffed, which brought Perrie back to the present. "Killing me would be the last thing they would do."
"W-Why didn't you tell me before?"
"You didn't exactly give me the chance to explain everything to you," Jade said. "You shut me out...completely." Jade turns to look at Perrie.
This was it, this was the conversation that they were supposed to have. The one where Jade tells Perrie the real reason why she hid her identity – why she never told her that she was Scarlet Venom.
Perrie casts her eyes to the floor. All the guilt that she felt, seemed to have surfaced altogether. And it's way more intense than she anticipated. Then she looks at Jade in the eyes, and Jade sees right through Perrie's eyes her regret. All the things that were left unsaid.
"I'm sorry..." Perrie said in a cracked, pained but soft voice. But Jade heard it.
Jade averts her eyes back at the view while Perrie leaned over the balcony, standing a few meters away from the love of her life.
"I'm just glad nothing bad happened to you. Normally, a hybrid of Warlock and Demon won't leave their victims alive."
"A hybrid?" Perrie repeats. Jade hums and nods at her. "Well–I...I knew she wasn't the real you."
Jade cocks an eyebrow in question and briefly glances at the blonde.
"I mean...I had doubts. The moment she told me that she would break the guy's neck at the bar...I had this gut feeling, telling me that the woman driving me home wasn't you."
"And why is that?"
Perrie thought about it a lot. Even as she was busy formulating bombs and such, the feeling she felt that day, never left her mind. "You punish people. You don't kill them. That's...that's the Jade I know."
"But you were still unsure. It was just your gut feeling–"
"She kissed me." Perrie said. Jade's head snapped in the blonde direction. "She kissed me and that's when I knew..."
Jade was gripping hard at the marble slab of the balcony. "I'm gonna kill that bastard the next time we cross paths."
"Oh–I thought you wouldn't kill–"
"I don't kill people...a human kind of people," Jade said in a low growl that made her sound extra possessive and territorial almost. "That bastard isn't human at all. He's an exception to the rule." There was a faint red that appeared in Jade's eyes, and Perrie's sure she also saw the brunette's eyes changed into predatory slit-shaped eyes.
Jade then averts her gaze, closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. Keep your cool, she reminds herself. Although she and Perrie have separated for six years, that doesn't mean she stopped caring for the blonde. However, she can't help but feel rage at the thought of the hybrid kissing Perrie's lips.
They stayed on the balcony for quite some time. Neither of them uttered a word. Just enjoying each other's company without having to say anything at all. For the first time in a long time, the silence that they shared wasn't awkward nor was it full of tension. It was a comfortable kind of silence that they used to share in the past.
Perrie hasn't seen the mark that the warlock demon left on Jade's wrist because the brunette was wearing a long-sleeved silk robe. Jade's debating in her mind how to break the news to Perrie about the mark and her plan to get rid of it. Her musings were only interrupted when Perrie spoke.
"Will you ever forgive me?"
Jade didn't answer right away. There have been countless times she has pictured this in her mind. Has she forgiven Perrie? After knowing she's created the very weapon that could destroy her? After being shut off entirely from her life? After all that's been said and done? After all the things that they've been through?
"I...I know I made a lot of mistakes, but loving you isn't one of them." Perrie was careful with her choice of words. They have made so much progress over the course of a few days, she doesn't want to scare the brunette away. She gently rests her hand on Jade's shoulder, causing the brunette to look at her hand before turning to look at Perrie. "Jade...I won't ask you to love me again...because I know that's too much to ask, and I know that would be too selfish of me. All I want is your forgiveness..."
Jade stared at Perrie for a while. She's always done this in the past, staring into those ocean blue orbs of hers. The very eyes that haunt her dreams and make her heart flutter in ways she could never imagine possible. The unmistakable shade of blue that makes her think of the crystal clear skies that greets her in the morning. She could see everything in Perrie's eyes – guilt, shame, regret, honesty. It's just one of the many reasons why she fell in love with the blonde. And the reason why she's still in love with Perrie.
"You need to forgive yourself, too...because I already have."
Perrie couldn't believe her ears. I must be dreaming, she thought to herself and pinched her arm. When she did feel the stinging pain, she came to realize that this is real. Jade has indeed forgiven her!
She smiled and almost didn't notice that joyful tears were streaming down her face. She couldn't contain her happiness from hearing those simple words from Jade. And as though her arms had a mind of their own, next thing Perrie knew, she was hugging the brunette. It didn't take long for Jade to hug her back. With their eyes closed, just feeling the warmth of each other's embrace.
It had been so long that you'd think a hug is just a simple gesture, but it's not. Their hug was something much more special because finally, Jade has forgiven her. Perrie couldn't wish for anything less than to be forgiven by the love of her life.
They stayed a little longer on the balcony, talking about the most random things like they used to back when their relationship wasn't strained yet. It was refreshing for both Perrie and Jade to be able to talk normally again without feeling scared that the other might go away.
It was getting late when they decided to head back to their respective rooms so they could be ready to face whatever may come their way the day after.
They stopped by Perrie's door since Jade's shared room with Leigh-Anne was on the far-end of the floor, next to Jesy and Anne-Marie's room.
"Good night, Perrie." Perrie smiled at the brunette before opening the door of her room.
"Good night, Jade." Jade smiled at this and watched Perrie enter her room.
Jade continued to walk towards her room while Perrie was left leaning against her door with a wide smile on her face. She still can't believe that Jade and her are now okay.
It's a start, she assures herself. She's willing to get Jade back even if it means they have to start from the very beginning. One step at a time. What's important is Jade has forgiven her.
She feels as though she was a teenager, leaning on the door, feeling like she's on cloud nine after her crush had finally noticed her. When Perrie noticed what she was doing, she chuckled at how silly she looked and decided to head to her bed to get some rest.
Perrie wasn't even three steps away from the door when she heard a knock.
When Perrie opened the door, it was Jade. At first, Perrie was startled but then she saw something familiar in the brunette's eyes. Jade's eyes were no longer the bright mahogany that showed cool emotions and carelessness, but darker more passionate amber that were aflame with lust, love, and overall insane need. All of that was directed towards her, Perrie Edwards.
She inwardly thanked whatever gods that were in their respective heavens that all of their friends were staying in two separate sound-proof rooms. Perrie wouldn't know what on earth she would do, except be extremely mortified and humiliated, if their friends heard her cries of passion, and occasional pleads for a little more spanking. Flushing, Perrie inwardly wondered what she had done to deserve someone so deliciously, and strikingly beautiful.
Scratch that. Jade was gorgeous – with her sun-kissed skin and her luscious brunette locks that fell over her shoulders. The way the silk robe was tied seemed to hug her curves perfectly and instantly Perrie felt the urge to run her fingers over the roundness of Jade's backside.
Perrie's heartbeat quickened and when she finally managed to bring her attention back to Jade's face, she was sure that her cheeks had already turned into a traitorous crimson color. It didn't help that Jade's gaze was still the same. The kind of gaze that makes her knees go weak. The kind where she always ends up panting for more, underneath the brunette, naked.
They were so close. So dangerously close that Perrie could hear the beating of her heart so loud, Jade could probably hear it, too.
Perrie leans forward, watching Jade do the same. This time when their lips touch, it feels right. On instinct, Perrie brings her hand up to Jade's neck and pulls her in for a much more passionate kiss. Jade rests her hands on Perrie's hips. And Perrie felt coolness run through her spine at the touch of the brunette..
Perrie wasn't sure who closed the door but she was certain she wanted this. She wanted Jade. And she would do whatever it takes to get her back.
As they continued kissing, Perrie felt Jade's tongue on her lower lip, teasing her. Jade knows very much how the blonde gets turned on by it. Perrie opened up her eyes and saw the brunette smirking. She raised a brow and smiled playfully, thinking she can also play this game. She bit Jade's lower lip that made the brunette moan louder. Perrie instantly teased Jade's lower lip with her tongue, and Jade was more than happy to allow the blonde entrance. But Perrie ignored it and continued teasing and smirking, who was getting more turned on than she was.
Soon, Jade's tongue entered Perrie's mouth, and their tongues battled, tasting each other eagerly as their hands touched each other's body.
Jade loses it seconds later and gently pushes Perrie on the bed. She follows soon after and straddles on top of the blonde. She was taking off her silk robe to reveal that she was wearing nothing but her sexy black lace lingerie, and that alone made Perrie's throat go dry. Though it wasn't hard for Jade to undress Perrie, leaving her with only her show-stopping red lace bodysuit.
Perrie could swear she heard Jade made a low growl. That alone aroused her more than ever. She could feel her core grow wet from anticipation and desire.
Jade traced her tongue along Perrie's neck down to her cleavage, enough to make the blonde squirm in delight and pleasure. She rubbed the hardened nipple under the lace, and Jade made sure to trace circles around each nipple. It wasn't long before she slipped the obstructing material to the side, gently licking and sucking Perrie's hardened buds from time to time.
The brunette made open-mouthed kisses from the blonde's breasts up to her neck, tracing her tongue through Perrie's collar bone and stopping at the pulse to suck on it.
Each time Jade explores parts of Perrie's body, the blonde's heartbeat quickens. Her breathing was laboured as well, her moans filling Jade's ears. Eyes closed, one hand grasping the brunette's hair, her mouth was slightly opened as a deep moan escaped her lips.
Before long, both women matched pace quickly, each of them speeding up as they felt each other's walls clenching around their fingers. Jade knew Perrie was close, almost as close as her in fact, and added a third finger, driving all three digits in, hard and fast. At same time Perrie twisted her hand, moving her thumb so it was free to rotate in Jade's bundle of nerves as she continued to push her fingers in and out.
It was Perrie that climaxed first, her body going limp on the bed as her walls clenched around Jade's fingers and the orgasm shuddered through her.
Long after their shouts ended and their breathing had returned to normal, Jade pulled Perrie close to her and allowed the blonde to rest her head on her chest with a very content sigh.
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♫ Fallin' All In You - Shawn Mendes