A week after the tour wrapped, and the excitement from the final shows had begun to settle, Jade and Cat found themselves still inseparable. It had become second nature—waking up together, having breakfast, spending the day exploring, talking late into the night. They had slipped so seamlessly back into each other's lives that they'd forgotten what it felt like to exist without one another.

Every day felt like an extension of the tour, but now there were no more shows, no more interviews, no more pressures from a tight schedule. Just the two of them, enjoying the kind of quiet normalcy they hadn't had in years. It was like they were constantly orbiting each other, both of them needing the other more than they realised.

Jade had never meant for it to go this way—she'd thought, when the tour ended, they might finally take some time apart, just to recalibrate. But here they were, day after day, together, not really talking about anything, just existing together in Cat's house. And honestly? Neither of them seemed to mind. They were in their own little bubble.

It was during one of their lazy afternoons on the couch, the two of them sprawled out under a pile of blankets, that Jade's mind started to wander back to something she'd promised Cat years ago—a trip to Milan during Fashion Week.

"Hey, remember that time I brought you tickets to Milan?" Jade asked, looking up from her phone, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled between them.

Cat raised an eyebrow, pulling herself up from where she'd been half-asleep, the sunlight streaming through the window catching her features in a soft glow. "Milan? Yeah, of course I remember, for Fashion Week."

Jade smiled, the memory of the conversation coming back to her like it was yesterday. It had been so long ago—before everything had gotten complicated, before tours, before all the public chaos and personal shifts. But now, it felt like the right time. "Well, I think it's finally time we do it," Jade said with a grin. "I still owe you that trip."

Cat blinked, her face softening into a mixture of surprise and joy. "Wait, really? You want to go?"

Jade shrugged, her excitement building. "Why not? We'll both be free, won't we? No tours, no commitments for a little while. Just us, in Milan. Fashion Week. We've got the time."

Cat's smile widened, and she kicked off the blanket in a burst of energy. "Really?! You're, like, serious?"

Jade laughed. "Yeah, absolutely. Shows, fancy villas, seeing all the designers you want. Just us. Like I said we'd do. Hell, actually it'll probably be better than I said because they'll let you in anywhere now."

Cat was practically bouncing with excitement as she began to talk a mile a minute. "I can design outfits for us. We could—oh! We were going to dress up, go all-out, and make a statement." Her eyes gleamed as she started sketching out ideas in her head.

Jade felt like time had folded in on itself—like they were right back at the beginning, at that first spark of inspiration. It was as though no time had passed since Cat's 18th birthday, when she'd brought the first set of plane tickets. The world had changed so much in those years—Cat's career, the media, their personal journeys—but the foundation, their knowledge of each other, hadn't faltered. If anything, they had only grown stronger.

"I'll get my sewing machine out! I have so many ideas. You'll love them."

Jade was flipping through some papers in the living room, half-heartedly scrolling through a few emails that had been piling up over the past few days. She'd still yet to leave Cat's house since the tour ended. Cat wouldn't really let her now as she 'needed to keep showing her outfit ideas', just an excuse to keep her there really, but Jade didn't want to argue it. She liked being there. The quiet hum of the house surrounded her, a peaceful contrast to the chaos of the past few weeks. She was used to the sound of the sewing machine from Cat's room next door, the familiar rhythm of fabric being stitched together. Cat was often singing to herself while she sewed, sometimes talking. But suddenly, the noise was pierced by something that stopped her dead in her tracks.

It was a scream—loud, sharp, and full of pain. It wasn't like any scream Jade had ever heard before. It wasn't playful or teasing like the times Cat had made fun of her or jokingly screamed during a movie night. It wasn't one of frustration or surprise. This was a gut-wrenching, raw, primal cry of pure agony.

For a split second, Jade's heart froze. Her first instinct was to stay still, her body locked in place as if the sound itself might somehow pass by without further consequence. But then, her legs moved without thought. She was on her feet before she even realised it, adrenaline surging through her as she ran toward the sewing room. The sound of her footsteps was muffled by the pounding of her heart, each beat faster than the last.

The door to Cat's room was slightly ajar, and Jade barred into it to push it open.

The scene before her hit her like a punch to the stomach.

Cat was sitting on the floor, her knees pulled up tightly to her chest, her face buried in her hands. Her body was shaking with violent sobs, her entire form trembling with an intensity Jade had never seen before. There was no composure, no bravado—just pure, unfiltered grief radiating from her in waves.

The room around her looked disordered, her sewing supplies and fabrics scattered like they'd been thrown carelessly aside. But it wasn't the mess that caught Jade's attention, it was Cat. The complete collapse of the woman who, only last she checked had been her usual lively, energetic self.

But now… now, she was a broken shell of that person, curled in on herself as if she were trying to hold onto something, anything, to stop herself from falling apart entirely.

"Cat?" Jade's voice was barely above a whisper, unsure of how to approach the situation, unsure of what had caused this raw, sudden outburst. She couldn't even find her footing in the room, everything seemed to spin around her as she tried to make sense of the chaos. "Cat, what happened?"

But Cat didn't seem to hear her at first. She just stayed there, silent except for the gasps of air between the sobs. Jade could see the tears running down her face, the tremors of her body, and her mind raced, trying to comprehend the gravity of the moment.

Jade's heart twisted. She had never seen Cat like this, not even close. She was used to Cat's strength, her resilience, her playful energy. She wasn't used to seeing her so broken, so completely destroyed by something.

She reached out, carefully placing a hand on her shoulder. "Cat, talk to me," she pleaded, her voice cracking under the weight of concern. "Please… what's going on? What happened?"

Cat slowly looked up, her face a mess of tears and disbelief. Her eyes were wide, red, and unfocused as if she hadn't quite processed what was happening. She let out a soft gasp, and then, through the broken sobs, she managed to choke out a few words.

"My brother… Jade… he's gone. Matteo… he killed himself... Mom... messaged me."

Jade's breath caught in her chest, the words hitting her like a wave, crashing down over her, but still unable to break through the shock of the moment. For a moment, she couldn't even process the information. She felt her own pulse quicken, her stomach dropping as the realisation hit her with full force.

The weight of Cat's loss, the depth of it, was something Jade hadn't been prepared for.

Jade didn't know what to do. She wasn't prepared for this. She wasn't sure what the right thing to say was, but she knew that this wasn't about words. It was about being there.

Without saying another word, Jade reached out, gathering Cat into her arms, pulling her close as if trying to shield her from the pain. She felt Cat's body shaking against hers, heard the soft, broken cries that were spilling from her. Jade didn't know how long they stayed like that, but time seemed irrelevant. All that mattered was holding onto Cat, making sure she wasn't alone. She knew all about Cat's brother—how he had been in and out of psych care for most of his life, how Cat had been distant from him for years.

Her brother had been struggling for as long as Jade had known her, in recent years it seemed he was getting better, always a step away from the next breakthrough. The updates Cat received from her parents had given her some hope. But now, seeing Cat's devastation, Jade understood the crushing reality of it all—despite those moments of optimism, Matteo had never truly been okay.

"Cat, I'm so sorry," Jade whispered, her voice thick with emotion. Her heart ached, not just for what Cat had lost, but for the years of pain Cat had kept hidden, years of unresolved guilt.

Cat shook her head violently, as if trying to shake the reality of it. "I wasn't there, Jade. I haven't seen him in years... not since I was seventeen. I couldn't... I couldn't face him. I was too scared to see him. And now he's gone. I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye."

Jade's heart broke even more as the weight of Cat's words sank in. She understood now the layers to this. Not only his dead, but the distance, the guilt—Cat had been carrying this around for so long. She had stayed away, unable to face her brother, even as the years passed and her life evolved. Cat had been working up to seeing him again, trying to reconcile the past with the present, but that chance had been stolen from her. The grief she felt wasn't just for the loss of her brother, but for the years lost and the words unsaid. The last time she'd seen him he attacked her, of course she needed time to heal.

"Cat, it's not your fault," Jade whispered, her voice breaking as she pulled Cat closer. "You didn't know, okay? You couldn't have known this would happen. You weren't ready, and that's okay."

But Cat couldn't seem to hear her. She was lost in her own world of guilt and grief, her tears streaming uncontrollably. "I should've tried harder, Jade. I should've gone back. I should've made it right. I should've been there."

Jade held her tighter, pressing her cheek against the top of Cat's head. "Cat, listen to me. You loved him. You never left him. And you weren't ready. You couldn't have known this would happen. You're not to blame."

Cat pulled away slightly, her tear-streaked face searching Jade's for some sense of comfort, some reassurance that the weight she was carrying wasn't entirely hers. "I thought... I thought he was getting better. I thought he was stable, and that I could come back when I was ready. I never... I never thought this would happen."

Jade wiped a tear from her own cheek, her heart shattering for Cat, for the years of unresolved pain she had carried in silence. "You didn't know, Cat. You can't blame yourself for this."

But Cat shook her head again, her hands trembling as she wiped at her face. "I just... I feel like I failed him. I should've been there when he needed me most."

Jade didn't know what to say to that. She could only hold Cat, let her cry, and be there for her in a way that didn't need words. Sometimes, there was nothing more you could do except let the other person feel the full force of their grief.

They stayed like that for a long time, the silence heavy between them, broken only by Cat's soft sobs. Jade held her, her mind racing with all the things she wanted to say but couldn't find the words for. She just wanted to ease Cat's pain, but she knew that wouldn't happen—not now, not this quickly.

"We'll fly to Idaho to see your parents. Right now." Jade whispered softly, brushing her hair back from her face. "I'll go with you if you want."

Cat nodded weakly, though the guilt still lingered in her eyes. "Please."

"Okay. Let me sort tickets out-"

"No, take my card- we'll go private. I need to be there now."