silent sparks, nishimura riki

yeri woke up to the sound of soft laughter. for a moment, she was disoriented, the brightness of the room blurring her vision. it took her a second to realize she wasn't in her bed. instead, she was on the couch, a blanket draped over her shoulders.

"morning, sleepyhead."

she turned her head to find jiwoo sitting on the floor, munching on a piece of toast. riki was stretched out on the other side of the couch, his phone in hand.

"what time is it?" yeri asked, her voice still groggy.

"almost 11," jiwoo said. "we didn't want to wake you. you were out cold."

yeri blinked, slowly piecing together the events of the previous night. she remembered the late-night conversation, the weight of exhaustion pulling her down, and... riki. she glanced at him, her cheeks heating up slightly.

"did i...?" she started, unsure how to phrase the question.

"you passed out on me," riki said casually, not even looking up from his phone. "literally."

"oh my god," yeri groaned, burying her face in her hands. "i'm so sorry."

"it's fine," riki said with a shrug. "i've been a pillow before. no big deal."

jiwoo snickered, clearly enjoying yeri's embarrassment. "it was kind of cute, honestly."

"can we not talk about this?" yeri muttered, grabbing the blanket and pulling it over her head.

"too late," riki said, smirking. "it's already part of group history now."

jiwoo nodded solemnly. "it'll go down in the archives. 'the time yeri fell asleep on riki.'"

yeri groaned louder, but despite her embarrassment, she couldn't help but smile a little.

"anyway," jiwoo said, standing up and dusting crumbs off her hands, "we've got rehearsal in an hour. you should get ready."

"rehearsal?" yeri repeated, her smile fading. she suddenly felt the weight of everything she had to do—dance practice, vocal training, another performance coming up. her schedule was as packed as ever.

"yeah," jiwoo said, her tone gentle. "but don't push yourself too hard, okay? take breaks if you need to."

yeri nodded, though she wasn't sure how much she could actually slow down.

once jiwoo left the room, riki finally set his phone down. "you good?" he asked, his tone unusually serious.

yeri hesitated before nodding. "yeah. just... tired."

"if you're tired, you should say something," riki said, his gaze steady. "no one's gonna think less of you for needing a break."

"easier said than done," yeri muttered, pulling the blanket tighter around her shoulders.

"trust me, i get it," riki said. "but you're not doing anyone any favors if you push yourself too far. not your members, not your fans, and definitely not yourself."

yeri looked at him, surprised by the sincerity in his voice. riki was usually all jokes and teasing, but in moments like this, she was reminded of how thoughtful he could be.

"thanks," she said quietly.

riki shrugged again, a small smile tugging at his lips. "anytime."

rehearsal was as grueling as ever, but yeri found herself feeling a little lighter. maybe it was because of the extra sleep, or maybe it was because of riki's words earlier. either way, she managed to get through the day without completely exhausting herself.

by the time the evening rolled around, solstice and enhypen found themselves in the same building again, preparing for another joint event. it was a more casual performance, one meant to celebrate the collaboration between various artists.

"you're not allowed to pass out this time," riki said, nudging yeri as they waited backstage.

"very funny," yeri said, rolling her eyes. "that's not happening again."

"good," riki said, smirking. "because i'm not carrying you off stage."

"you didn't carry me last time either!"

"details."

jiwoo and jake watched the exchange from a distance, both of them smiling knowingly.

"they're getting closer, huh?" jake said, leaning against the wall.

"yeah," jiwoo said. "but they're just friends. i think they both need that right now."

jake nodded. "riki's not always the best at showing it, but he really cares about the people around him."

"yeri too," jiwoo said. "she just... doesn't always know how to lean on others."

"they're good for each other," jake said simply.

jiwoo smiled. "yeah, they are."

the performance went smoothly, and by the end of the night, everyone was in high spirits. the lighter schedule seemed to be doing wonders for both solstice and enhypen, and their growing friendship only added to the positive atmosphere.

as they all piled into the vans to head back to their dorms, yeri found herself sitting next to riki again.

"so," riki said, breaking the comfortable silence, "are you finally gonna admit i'm your favorite person in this group?"

yeri snorted. "not even close."

"ouch," riki said, clutching his chest dramatically. "that hurts."

"you'll survive," yeri said, smirking.

riki shook his head, but he was smiling too. "you're lucky i like you, jang yeri."

"yeah, yeah," yeri said, leaning back in her seat. "you're not so bad yourself, nishimura riki."