Little Mix star Perrie Edwards has largely been mum following the split with ex-fiance Zayn Malik. Until now, or at least that's what the entertainment sites are speculating.

The whole issue started when Perrie Edwards posted on Instagram where he posed before a while wall while dressed up as a cheetah. She captioned the image, "Cheetahhhh! @heidiunlik3ly You're insane! Thanks for painting ma bodeh!"

Of course, it sounds like a reach but "cheetah" is supposedly a play on words for "cheater" which was what Zayn Malik was accused of while One Direction was performing in Thailand and he was photographed getting cozy with a beautiful blonde.

"Some now believe that Edwards' use of "cheetahhhh" is meant to be a slight dig at Malik," said E! News.

Zayn Malik later denied the rumor that she cheated on Perrie Edwards with another girl in Thailand as he tweeted, ""I'm 22 years old... I love a girl named Perrie Edwards. And there's a lot of jealous f--ks in this world I'm sorry for what it looks like x."

All thoughout, Perrie Edwards stood by Zayn Malik's side amid the controversy... from the cheating rumors to his decision to quit One Direction. Later, the couple announced that they ended their engagement.

The fun shoot where the Little Mix star was dressed as a cheetah also turned ugly immediately as the fan comments started attacking her and calling her names from the way the split with Zayn Malik turned out.

One fan defended Perrie Edwards, "Okay, I'm really fed up with all the people who think it's okay to call her things like bitch, ugly and many other nasty words."

"Message to the haters: F**king think before you do, you don't know her enough to judge her, you don't know anything about her. Tell me, would you want to be called what you call Perrie? If you want fucking respect, earn it, and you give it to earn it."