ᴡʀᴏɴɢ ꜱᴇɴᴅ ┆|| ┆ni-ki

~fifty three~

The next day, the house felt different. Niki had woken up early, taking care of Eunha as she rested.

The cold had settled in overnight, leaving her exhausted but slightly better by morning.

She was still asleep when Niki heard the sound of a car pulling into the driveway. He quickly checked his phone, it was the group.

One by one, they came tumbling in. Hana was the first to knock, her bright smile a clear contrast to the quiet morning.

Behind her, Eunji followed, arms loaded with snacks, while Jungwon, Heeseung, Jay, Jake, Sunghoon, and Sunoo walked in, talking and joking amongst themselves.

It was a rare occasion for everyone to be free at the same time, but they had all agreed to spend the day together at Niki's place.

"Where's Eunha?" Hana asked, glancing around the living room as she set down a large bag of chips on the coffee table.

"She's still sleeping." he said.

Hana frowned, worry evident in her eyes, but she didn't push further. "Well, we'll make sure she rests today. But we're still going to have fun, right?"

"Of course." Niki replied, his lips tugging into a small smile. "Let's not be too loud, though."

Sunghoon, sitting on the edge of the couch, stretched his arms. "I brought some movies, so we can chill for a while."

Jungwon immediately brightened up, grabbing the remote. "Perfect! I've been dying to watch something good. Maybe a horror film?"

Hana and Sunoo groaned simultaneously. "No horror!" they both protested, almost in sync.

Jay laughed. "It's either horror or some cheesy rom-com. You guys know the rules!"

As everyone started settling in, Heeseung sat down beside Niki, lowering his voice. "You sure she's okay? You said that she was sick yesterday."

Niki gave him a reassuring nod. "Yeah, she's just exhausted. I'll keep an eye on her."

Before they could continue, the door to the guest room creaked open slightly.

Eunha peeked her head out, looking tired but awake. Her hair was a mess, and the oversized sweater she was wearing made her look smaller than usual.

"Am I interrupting something?" she asked, her voice still hoarse.

"Eunha!" Hana rushed over to her side, gently steering her toward the couch. "You should be resting, not walking around."

"I'm fine." Eunha replied, but her weak smile didn't convince anyone.

She sat down beside Niki, leaning into him slightly as he wrapped an arm around her protectively.

"We're about to start a movie." Niki said quietly, making sure she was comfortable. "You can rest while we watch."

Eunha nodded, letting out a small sigh. "Okay, but no horror."

As the movie started, the group gradually fell into their usual rhythm, trading jokes and laughter between scenes.

"You seriously think this is a good movie, Sunghoon? You have zero taste." Eunji snorted, throwing a popcorn at him.

Sunghoon crossed his arms, feigning offense. "Please, at least I didn't pick some boring, predictable rom-com."

"Well, at least a rom-com wouldn't put me to sleep!" Eunji shot back, rolling her eyes.

"Maybe it's not the movie, maybe you're just boring." Sunghoon retorted with a smirk.

Eunji gasped dramatically. "Excuse me? You're the boring one!"

And they continued like this, neither wanting to give in. But as the minutes passed, their voices started to die down.

Sunghoon slouched further into the couch, while Eunji's eyelids began drooping despite her earlier protests.

As the movie played on, the rest of the group noticed that the bickering duo had gradually gone quiet.

Eunji's head had somehow ended up resting on Sunghoon's shoulder, while Sunghoon leaned his head slightly against hers. Both of them had fallen asleep, their soft breathing almost in sync.

Sunoo was the first to notice. He stifled a laugh and quickly pulled out his phone. "Oh, they're gonna love this when they wake up." he whispered to Hana.

Hana leaned over, giggling. "We have to take a picture."

The group snapped a few photos, struggling to hold back laughter as they planned to tease the two later.

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