pov: your feelings for ni-ki grew each day you caught a glimpse of him and every time you two were together. your families have been friends ever since you were young, and you developed a crush on him even though he just gives you a tiny bit of his attention. your mom and his always tease you with him. they say that you two look good together and should date. while you just smile at their statement, ni-ki rolls his eyes and shoots his mother a glare. you never confess your feelings, but it's obvious, and he's fully aware of it by the way you act towards him. because of it, he acts distant and cold, as if trying to push you away. but the way he acts towards you is actually the opposite of how he feels. he fell for you when he first saw you laugh at one of the jokes during a family dinner. it was a laughter that is bright and genuine, that broke through his defenses and made him realize that he had never admired someone like this before. with each gathering, he watched your kindness and warmth drawing him in. the reason why he acts distant towards you is he's scared—scared of what it would mean to let someone in, especially someone like you, who makes his heart race and his thoughts scatter. he keeps running on the truth when all he can think about is you. it's the first time that he felt this towards anyone, and he can't figure out if it's just a small crush because he's falling too every time he looks you in the eye. one time at school, your mom asked him to drive you home. you are chatting and laughing with your classmate when you see ni-ki from a distance outside your classroom glaring badly at you like you've done something bad. when you approached him, he said that your mom asked him to drive you home. the whole ride was quiet and heavy with unspoken tension. you could feel his eyes flicking to you every now and then, but every time you turned to meet his gaze, he quickly looked away. the silence was deafening, filled with the weight of words neither of you dared to say. as you pulled into your driveway, you took a deep breath, summoning the courage to break the silence. "thank you for driving me, ni-ki. i really appreciate it." he turned to you, his expression hardening slightly. "next time, just ask that friend of yours to take you home." as you stepped out of the car, you couldn't shake the weight of his words. you wanted to call him back, to explain, but instead, you simply closed the door and walked inside, your heart aching from the painful realization that maybe he is uncomfortable being around you and really hates being with you. that night, you promised yourself that you would keep your distance from him to avoid the awkwardness that had begun. you convinced yourself that it was for the best, that you could find ways to distract yourself. weeks had passed, and you continued being like that. ni-ki, on the other hand, felt confused, and he could clearly feel your avoidance. as much as he hates to admit it, he felt jealous when he saw you chatting and laughing with your friend because he doesn't have the courage to be like that around you. one night, it was his mom's birthday. you told your mom that you won't go because you're feeling sick. it's not just because you're avoiding ni-ki, but you're truly feeling sick. you just want to rest on your bed and sleep. now, you were left alone, staring at the ceiling and thinking of ni-ki. even though you keep your distance from him, you still think of him constantly. you don't know why you feel like there's something behind his cold behavior towards you, like there's something deeper than that. you didn't realize that you fell asleep while thinking of it. you just woke up by the sound of knocks on your door. "mom?" you called. you watched as the door opened, and to your surprise, ni-ki stepped inside, a worried expression etched across his face. "hey," he said softly, his voice barely above a whisper. (comsec++) #enhypen #enhypenpov #ni_ki #NI_KI #nishimurariki #NISHIMURARIKI #fyp #FYP - @jayaein_