I arrived at her comfortably-looking cottage exactly thirty minutes later, knocking on the door once, twice, until she stands in front of me sporting her blonde waves that cascaded all over both her shoulders, white t-shirt, and what seems to be women basketball shorts (incidentally, I successfully suppressed the urge to ask her if she's an athlete).
"Jade Thirlwall." Her smile flashed before me.
I expected a bit of confusion along the way on her part, knowing that it has been awhile since our last talk - even though it was less than an hour ago, it was enough for her to forget who I am. But her facial expression defied my usually accurate expectations, and piqued my curiosity.
"Aren't you supposed to forget me?" I asked, dumbstruck.
She flashed me a shy smile. Did my eyes deceive me or was I really watching her cheeks turn red? "When someone plans to visit me, I'd write it down on a post-it in case I forget about it so I won't be confused, or, in your case, weirded out by the fact that the Jade Thirlwall is at my doorstep."
I snorted at the last sentence. "The Jade Thirlwall? You make it sound like I'm a force to be reckoned with."
She shrugged her shoulders lamely, a lopsided smile resting on her lips. "Cait loves you too much."
"I saw her poster of myself in her room." My smile widened. "I know she does."
Then in an instant her grin disappeared, followed by her perfectly-trimmed eyebrows that knitted together, her expression showcasing disorientation. I was about to tell her what happened but the transition of her confusion to epiphany prompted me to stay quiet instead.
"Ah, I remember that," she snaps her fingers as she says so. "Cait told me that awhile ago, I remember."
I let out a nervous chuckle, scratching the back of my neck and letting my hand fall beside me. "Thank God for your little sister, right?"
She beams at me. "Thank God for Caitlyn."
Perrie led me in, and I find myself inside her home for the second time. Perhaps this morning I was too preoccupied with the desire to go home, or perhaps it was the fact that there was still some residues of mortification for staying inside a stranger's house that I hadn't fully surveyed Perrie's home. But whether it was the latter or the former, all thoughts have vanished when I took in the living room.
It was as simple as it can be - a brown couch on the right with a polished-to-look-modern wooden coffee table in front and two other polished-to-look-modern wooden, cushioned chairs on each side of the table. And a flat-screen T.V. sitting in front of all of them, the blackness of its screen reflecting me.
Two rows of shelves, filled with DVDs, lined up on the walls, its height enough for a person to reach. My eyes caught sight of What A Girl Wants. Caitlyn must really love me in that movie, that's for sure. My character was the protagonist, and everyone loves the protagonist, so for sure Perrie does, too.
But why the hell would I care if Perrie loves me - my character?
"I'll get you a glass of water and some snacks for the both of us," Perrie announces, disappearing inside the kitchen before I could even respond.
I plopped myself down on the couch, having nothing to do but skim through my phone. Just when I was about to turn to my purse, my eyes landed on a picture frame, installed on a plank just underneath the coffee table, facing upside down.
My eyebrows rose in curiosity, and I look over at Perrie at the kitchen. She still seems to be pretty busy, so a part of me wanted to observe the picture. But another part of me didn't want to intrude. This is her home, after all. And I literally just met her and had just become friends with her.
So I decided to leave it alone. At least for now.
Perrie peeked her head out around the corner and flashed a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry, but what was I supposed to get for you?"
I bit my lip to suppress a wide smile, but it was to no avail as a giggle rips through my lips.
"You can get me anything, love."
XXX
"I can't believe I flirted with you!" Perrie bent forward, her elbows on both her knees, burying her profusely blushing face. I have never seen her cheeks evolve into a deeper shade of red, but I'm not complaining.
I smiled in amusement as I lean back on the cushion of Perrie's couch, folding my arms over my chest. I just finished telling her our story, so right now at probably 9 in the evening, I have never felt so awake and ready to tease the blonde more.
"It was ... very bold, actually," I remarked, nodding affirmatively at my own comment after. "I've had experiences with fans who were too straightforward so don't think you're the only one. If anything, you're the first person who was embarrassed about it."
"How come?" Perrie finally lifted her head to look at me. Her eyes glimmer in confusion and her eyebrows furrowed.
I stopped myself from telling her that she looked adorable. Instead, I shrugged my shoulders and hummed in response.
Perrie scoffed, "They're complete idiots if they think they can woo you."
"What, and you think you can? You flirted with me, too, you know?" I teased, smirking at how flustered she's becoming. God, it's really difficult not to tell her how cute she is.
Finally, she broke eye contact and let out a nervous chuckle. "Of course I cannot." She tried to look me in the eye, but tore her gaze away immediately, making me snort at that. "You're gorgeous. There's no way I can successfully woo you."
"I mean, you can try ... " I drawled out, looking away with my lips pouted as if to look innocent.
When I hear her giggle, I glanced at her.
And before I could process what was happening, her face is a few centimeters away from mine. My breath hitched for a moment when I suddenly find myself lost in her deep blue irises, only to successfully extricate myself from whatever daze I was in.
"Do you want me to try, Jade Thirlwall?" she queried, eyebrows raised teasingly.
I cleared my throat and looked away, "Go ahead. Nobody's stopping you, anyway."
For crying out loud, I have no idea what was wrong with me! Why was I suddenly so flustered and how did I become a blushing mess? I was the one who made the first move anyway ...
Taking advantage of this opportunity, I grab my glass and guzzle it, feeling all hot what with the burning of my cheeks. When I placed my glass down, I noticed that I unknowingly finished my water. Hopefully Perrie doesn't notice it, though.
In my peripheral vision, Perrie's eyes are still fixated on me. So I try not to be too obvious when I slowly gain back my breath that she unknowingly took away from me and muster up whatever courage I have left to peer into her dazzling blue orbs.
Pretend like this doesn't bother you. Pretend like she wasn't the reason why you're flustered. Just fucking pretend!
"So," I started, trying very hard not to let the ocean of her blue eyes drown me. "Since when was Caitlyn a fan of mine?"
"Five years ago," Perrie replied. Her eyes twinkled and the edges of her lips curved up with awe at how adorable her sister must be.
I beamed at her. "How cute. And what about you?"
"What about me?"
I tilted my head. "Don't tell me you weren't at least a fan of any of my works ... "
She shrugged her shoulders. "Eh. Your characters are not my cup of tea."
I scoffed, feeling slightly offended if not indignant. I leaned closer to her, pretending not to notice the fact that she smells good. "And what's your type, huh?"
A smirk skulked its up onto her face as she stares me down. "The antagonists."
I drew my head back, raising an incredulous brow. "You serious?"
Perrie nodded with a tight-lipped smile. "Yep. I like the badass ones. Yours were just a bunch of goody-two-shoes, typical ones."
"And what's wrong with that?"
Perrie's eyes rolled up toward the ceiling. She hummed in thought before looking back at me. "I just ... I get annoyed by them."
"And you don't get annoyed by villains?" I was being so inquisitive right now. But I can't help it when this woman in front of me triggers something within me that I cannot fathom.
She shrugged once again. "I mean, some villains get on my nerves. But I understand them."
"Understand them?"
She nodded. "Yep. Because I know why they're like that, and it's because the main character was too much."
"Too much?" I scoffed and rolled my eyes. "And how am I too much?"
"Woah, there," Perrie said, hands raised in faux surrender, a teasing smile playing at her lips. "I didn't say that you were too much, Jade Thirlwall. No need to take things personally."
I stared at her, and blinked a lot of times, as if she woke me up from some sort of epiphany. I scoffed and mumbled, "I know."
Perrie was silent for a second, her gaze raking over me, her lips still smirking teasingly before snorting. "I'm just saying," she reasoned out, "Your characters — take note, your characters — are simply not my type. But that doesn't mean the person who plays them isn't ..."
I cast a look of disbelief her way. "One second you were all ashamed because you flirted with me, then the next you're just straight-up doing exactly that."
Her smirk seamlessly transitioned into a coquettish grin. She playfully winked at me. "I can be unpredictable."
It was me who snorted this time. "Well, no shit, Sherlock."