Lily lies awake in her bed. She had napped through the whole evening and now she can't even fall back asleep. At first, she wonder if she should just sleep next to Heeseung but it seems like he's hogging the whole bed so she left her room to fetch herself some chamomile tea. "Nuna? Why aren't you asleep yet?"
She turned around to see Ni-Ki who weirdly just got home at 3 in the morning. "Can't fall asleep. By the way, where have you been? It's three in the morning, Ni-Ki." The shirt he's wearing is drenched to the core and his hair is wet too. That's probably because of the heavy rain. "I can't sleep too so I went for a walk at the park. I didn't know that it was going to rain, that's why I'm drenched." The elder girl hummed and made two cups of chamomile tea.
"Take a shower and drink some tea before going to sleep." Ni-Ki nodded his head but he didn't move which had Lily wondering if there's anything wrong with him. Just as she's about to ask him, he walked away to take a bath. Lily frowned, finding that gesture super weird but she ignored it, thinking that the maknae is just tired.
She picked up the cup filled with hot chamomile tea as she sat down on the chair and blow on it. After a while, Ni-Ki walked out of the bathroom with a new set of outfit. His hair is still wet nonetheless and it's wetting his grey hoodie, leaving wet patches on it. "Can you dry my hair, nuna?" His eyes looked everywhere but at Lily. She took the towel from him and grabbed his hand as she led him to the living room.
The room is warm, just how it's supposed to be on the cold night. Ni-Ki sat facing Lily on the floor with her sitting on the couch. Mind you. Ni-Ki is a big boy so even though he's sitting on the floor, it's still pretty hard for Lily to do her work as he's too tall but she still managed to do it somehow. She wrapped the towel around Ni-Ki's head and gently ruffle it. The boy is awfully quiet that day and after a while, she finally felt it.
Ni-Ki is having a fever. His face, now that she has a clearer look at it, is red. He rested his head on her lap, too tired to lift it up. "Ni-Ki. When did you start having this fever?" He shrugged his shoulders. "It's been a day or two, I guess? It was fine before but it hurts so bad right now."
She knows something is wrong from the beginning. "Get up, Ni-Ki. Lay down in your bed and I'll go to you later, okay?" The maknae nodded his head and struggled to get up so Lily helped him. Considering how big Ni-Ki is, she had some trouble helping him because he doesn't have the energy to get up at all. This is like taking care of Jungwon all over again. Despite her hardship, she managed to tuck the sick boy in bed.
"I'll be back, okay?" She pushed his hair back to reveal his forehead before laying a kiss on top of it. She left the room to find the medicine needed for Ni-Ki. At times like this, Lily usually feels helpless. She doesn't know what to do to make Ni-Ki feel better and that made her want to cry. Still, she put on her strong facade and went back to take care of the maknae.
She placed a cooling gel pad on his forehead and made him eat the medicine, whether he likes it or not. His whole body is hot to the touch so she called their manager to tell him about Ni-Ki's condition. After that phone call, Lily sat on the ground, next to Ni-Ki. "Nuna. Don't go, please. I need you." He cried out with tears escaping his eyes. "I'm not going anywhere, Riki. I'm right here."
Lily gently caressed his hair to let him know her presence. After all, no matter how big Ni-Ki is physically, he's still a young person who needs someone to take care of him and it must have been so hard for him without his mother. One could only wonder how much the young guy had to suffer just to achieve his dream. She could see him crying even more, probably from the muscle pain he's experiencing.
"Would you like me to get you a doctor, Riki?" He immediately shook his head. "Just you. I need you. Only you."
Even though she knows for a fact that she doesn't know anything when it comes to aiding a sick person, she knows that someone will get better quickly if they're taken care by the person they love. "Alright. I'll be here." She caressed his hair once again, not stopping until the maknae falls asleep. "Go to sleep, Riki. I promise I won't leave."
His soft whines goes on for a few more minutes before they dies down and all she could hear is soft snores. "Thank goodness." She took off the dried gel pad and changed it with a new one. Lily tried to change her position but couldn't. That's when she realized that Ni-Ki had already grabbed her hand and placed it on his chest, more like hugging it. And even though Lily knows that she's going to have a backache and leg cramps in the morning if she doesn't move, she still let it be.
To her, nothing is more important than Ni-Ki's comfort, even if it means that she has to forgo her own comfort. With a gaze adoring the boy, Lily smiled and landed another kiss on the boy's cheek. "Don't hide your pain anymore, Riki. You know you have people who are willing to go through hell for you so don't hide your pain. Even if no one is there to hold you, I'll be there. Nuna will be there for you, my sun. Always."
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ꜱʜᴏᴜᴛ ᴏᴜᴛ _ ᴇɴʜʏᴘᴇɴ 8ᴛʜ ᴍᴇᴍʙᴇʀ
Fanfiction"BAE YOUNGWON!" Who knew that this is what life had in store for her? She never thought that she would debut at all, what's more to debut in a boy group, being the only woman in it. It was such an eventful experience for her. There's hardship, tear...
