Please Stay Alive || NI-KI ✔

two

Being sixteen years old put a lot of pressure on Riki and also being a k-pop idol in a famous boyband, well that was even worse. He was from Japan, so sometimes he would get mixed up with the languages and the cultures. He tried his best a lot and the only thing that connected him and Korean culture together was music and dance.

Dance was what mended his heart when he did something wrong, or felt horrible inside. He could rely on dance always... unless he was injured or overworked himself. Usually he didn't overwork himself because he was smart enough to stop, since he listened to his body a lot. He did not want to let down his family in Japan or his k-pop family here.

Riki was humming Go Big or Go Home while watching a TikTok in his bedroom when Jay hyung stormed into the room, glaring down at him.

"Hi hyung?"

"Nishimura Riki." Riki sat up, his body tensing, knowing that if his hyung used his full name, something was wrong. Hopefully he didn't do anything bad but lately he was messing up so much that he probably did something wrong... again.

"What did I do?"

"What did you not do?" Riki's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, tilting his head to the side, looking at Jay, trying to figure out why his hyung was upset.

"What's wrong, hyung?"

"Don't you act innocent," He spat rudely.

"Hyung, I don't know what you're talking about."

"You pranked Sunoo, and now he's bleeding,"

"I- I didn't!" Riki protested, fully sitting up, almost ready to get on his feet.

"His forehead is bleeding. He screamed so much, he fell back- Your pranks are so annoying, you little rat," Riki's eyes watered. Why would Jay call him names? He hadn't even pranked Sunoo hyung.

"Is Sunoo okay?"

"Yes, he is, no thanks to you." Riki got to his feet and started to walk around the older boy but Jay grabbed his arm. Even if Riki was slightly taller than Jay, he was still a bit intimidating- especially when he was angry and annoyed at Riki.

"I didn't do it, hyung!"

"Then who did it?"

"I don't know! Maybe Sunghoon hyung! Or Heeseung hyungie!"

"They are not childish," Jay snapped sharply, almost adding "not like you". It felt like Riki had been slapped. Oh, it really hurt him.  It dug deep and began a root inside of him. All of his insecurities had risen to the surface again. Why was Jay hyung so mean right now? Why didn't he believe him? Why why why?

"Hyung," Riki gritted his teeth, "I am not lying, someone else did a prank."

"I'll ask the others then." Riki breathed out, wiping his forehead and walked out of his bedroom, once realizing that Jay had let his arm go.

"Hyungie!" Riki exclaimed, seeing Sunoo on the couch laying down quietly, with an arm over his stomach and a hand being held by Sunghoon.

"Shhhh," Sunghoon whispered, giving a stern look at Riki who bowed his head and said Sunoo's name quietly. Sunghoon sat next to him, holding ice to his forehead.

"How are you feeling?" Riki asked softly, looking down worriedly making sure if he was really okay.

"I'm fine, Riki, absolutely fine,"

"Oh,"

"So... Heeseung didn't do it," Jay said, coming into the living room. "Neither did Jungwon,"

"Oh." Riki felt heat creep into his neck. Everything pointed to him, this made him feel even worse. He would never want to hurt his hyung on purpose.

"Ni-ki," Jungwon put his hand on Riki's shoulder firmly and told him to go the kitchen so they could talk about the prank that he supposedly pulled on Sunoo. "Let's go to the kitchen,"

This was scaring Riki. He didn't like being trouble, he was always trying to be perfect and make everyone happy. So so much pressure on him, it pounded in his ears, pounded in his head, it pressured him. Perfection. Too much pressure.

He followed his hyung into the kitchen and shuffled his feet against the floor, looking down at his feet.

"All right, so did you do it?"

"No, I didn't do it,"

"Then who did it?"

"I don't know,"

"You don't have to lie, Ni-ki,"

"I didn't do it, hyung," Riki replied softly, eyes tearing up.

"...Well then, if you say so,"

"Hyung! You must believe me. Don't you believe me?" He lifted his head, eager with hopefulness.

"I don't know, Riki, I don't know," His heart sunk and the hole he had fallen into, he slipped further into it.