One // Leigh-Anne Pinnock

Chapter Twenty-Three

The girls were well into the Glory Days/Summer Shoutout tour. They were halfway through the first leg of the tour. So far it had been successful in the sense that mixers came out every night, the energy had been high throughout each concert, fans knew the words to each song and sung them back to them, etc.

While that was all well and good, Leigh couldn't help but feel empty inside; like something was missing. She had the girls and her baby girl but it didn't feel like it was enough. She had to put those feelings away and focus on the day ahead.

That morning Leigh woke up with a dull, burning sensation in her temples. She checked the time on her phone. It wasn't time to be up yet so she took an aspirin and went back to sleep.

An hour later she was being shaken awake by Jesy. She groaned and mumbled something incoherently.

"You have to get up. Pez is up already and that's saying something."

"I-I'm coming." She said. Her voice was a bit raspy. She tried clearing her throat and ended up in a coughing fit.

"Woah! You okay?" Jesy asked.

Leigh replied with the two words she found herself using a bit too often.

"If you say so." She said then left the room.

Leigh sat up a bit too quickly. Her head spun and her vision blurred for a split second. She closed her eyes and tried to compose herself. When she was sure the spinning ceased, she re-opened her eyes. She slowly climbed out of her bunk and went to the cot. She peered inside. It was empty.

'One of the girls must've taken her out,' she thought.

The raven-haired girl went into the bathroom to get ready for the day. She showered and brushed her teeth then threw on the first outfit she could find. She didn't bother with makeup because she knew Adam would do it for her when they get to the interview they were scheduled for.

She went into the kitchen to see the girls eating breakfast. Chloe sat on Perrie's lap babbling to herself. She slipped in unnoticed and fixed herself a cup of tea. When it was done she leaned against the counter, sipping the hot beverage. It burned as it slid down her throat and not because it was hot. She looked down as she silently winced in pain.

She felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked up to see everyone staring at her. "What?" She mumbled, shifting her weight on her other foot.

"You okay?" Jade asked. She nodded avoiding eye contact.

"Are you sure?" She nodded again.

A tickling sensation began in her nose.  Suddenly, she began to sneeze. Jade took the cup out of her hand and placed it on the counter. She rubbed Leigh's back in small circles until the sneezes subsides.

"Maybe you should take today off. We-"

"No! I'll be fine." She said, adamantly.

Jade looked back at Jesy and Perrie and they shrugged.

"Just take it easy, please."

"I will."

...

Throughout the day Leigh began feeling a lot worse. Her throat was raw, coughs, that she tried her hardest to conceal, rattled her chest and her nose was blocked and she was running a high fever. She felt completely awful but she didn't say anything.

She was curled up on the couch on the verge of sleep when they were called for the interview. She internally groaned. She slowly got up to avoid a dizzy spell and walked with the other girls down the corridors. They left Chloe with the guys on their bus. Perrie linked hands with Leigh only to pull away.