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Sunghoon noticed it first.
Not because he was looking for it. Not because he cared. Obviously.
It was just that during dance practice, when they were running the chorus of “Bite Me”, Ni-ki had stumbled slightly when Jungwon’s fingers brushed too close to his side during a formation change. It was barely there, just a twitch, a tiny jerk of his shoulder and a flash of wide eyes before he masked it with a scoff.
“Hyung, focus,” Ni-ki had said, voice low and cool, already stepping back into position.
Sunghoon had narrowed his eyes.
Suspicious.
Very suspicious.
Ni-ki prided himself on being unbothered.
As the maknae of Enhypen, he had worked hard to grow into someone dependable. He was tall now, taller than most of the members, and his sharp dance lines and deep voice had settled into something confident and magnetic. Fans squealed when he smirked on stage.
He had perfected the art of looking composed.
Which is why absolutely nobody could ever know that he was horribly, devastatingly, embarrassingly ticklish.
Especially not Jay.
Jay would never let him live it down.
It had started when he was little. His sisters had been relentless. A poke to the ribs, a squeeze at his waist, and he’d dissolve into helpless laughter, limbs flailing and dignity gone. He had sworn, when he debuted, that he would bury that weakness six feet underground.
He had done a pretty good job.
He avoided sitting too close on couches. He instinctively twisted away if someone reached near his sides. When the members were being playful and grabby, he kept his guard up, posture straight, arms crossed like a fortress.
No one had noticed.
Until Sunghoon.
“Ni-ki.”
He froze.
The others were in the dorm living room, scattered around after dinner. Heeseung was lying upside down on the sofa, humming softly. Jungwon and Jake were arguing about a game. Jay was passionately explaining something about seasoning levels to absolutely no one who had asked.
Ni-ki kept his eyes on his phone.
“Yes, hyung?”
Sunghoon leaned against the wall, arms folded. “Come here.”
That was already suspicious.
“Why?”
“Just come here.”
Jay looked up instantly, sensing chaos. “What’s happening?”
“Nothing,” Sunghoon said smoothly.
That was worse.
Ni-ki stood slowly, walking over with careful nonchalance. “What?”
Sunghoon stepped closer.
Too close.
Ni-ki subtly took half a step back.
Sunghoon’s eyes sharpened.
Ah.
“Why are you moving?” Sunghoon asked casually.
“I’m not.”
“You are.”
“I’m not,” Ni-ki insisted, and then Jay appeared out of nowhere at his other side.
“Is this an interrogation?” Jay demanded gleefully.
Ni-ki’s survival instincts screamed.
“Hyungs,” he warned, looking at them dubiously.
“Why does he look nervous?” Jake called from the couch.
“I’m not nervous,” Ni-ki snapped a little too quickly.
Jungwon tilted his head. “You look nervous.”
Heeseung sat up. “Wait. What’s going on?”
Sunghoon’s lips twitched.
And then, traitor that he was, he reached out and lightly poked Ni-ki’s side.
It was barely anything.
But it was enough.
Ni-ki jolted like he’d been electrocuted.
“YAH!” He jumped back, eyes wide, face instantly red.
Silence.
Six pairs of eyes locked onto him.
Jay gasped dramatically. “Oh my god.”
Jungwon blinked. “No way.”
Jake’s mouth fell open. “You’re ticklish?!”
Ni-ki straightened immediately, forcing a scoff. “I’m not.”
Sunghoon raised a brow. “You jumped.”
“I was startled.”
“You squeaked,” Jay said.
“I did not squeak!”
“You did,” Heeseung confirmed, smiling in that soft, devastating way that meant he found this adorable.
Ni-ki crossed his arms defensively. “I’m not ticklish.”
Jay grinned slowly.
“Oh, we’re testing that.”
Chaos.
Pure chaos.
Ni-ki bolted.
He made it three steps before Jake tackled him around the waist from behind with a shout. They both crashed onto the carpet in a mess of limbs and laughter.
“HYUNG!” Ni-ki protested, trying to pry Jake’s arms away.
“Hold him!” Jay yelled.
“Don’t you dare!” Ni-ki shrieked, composure officially gone.
Sunghoon grabbed one wrist. Jungwon grabbed the other.
Heeseung hovered nearby, laughing but not intervening—yet.
Jay crouched down with villainous glee.
“This is for all the times you’ve smirked at me on stage,” Jay declared.
“I don’t – JAY – NO -”
Jay wiggled his fingers menacingly.
And then he attacked.
Ni-ki lasted approximately three seconds.
Laughter burst out of him uncontrollably, high, bright, completely unfiltered. He twisted violently, trying to curl in on himself, but they had him pinned.
“STOP – HYUNG – HAHA – NO - ”
He kicked uselessly, face flushed pink, eyes squeezed shut.
“He’s so ticklish!” Jake wheezed.
“This is insane,” Jungwon laughed.
Jay targeted his sides mercilessly, fingers scribbling along his ribs.
Ni-ki’s laughter turned breathless and helpless. “I HATE YOU – HAHA – PLEASE - ”
Sunghoon stared down at him, stunned.
He had never seen Ni-ki like this.
Not the cool performer. Not the smug maknae.
Just Riki.
Small and bright and giggly.
It did something strange to his chest.
“Okay, okay,” Heeseung finally said gently. “You’re going to kill him.”
Jay gave one last squeeze before withdrawing.
Ni-ki immediately rolled onto his stomach, burying his burning face into the carpet.
Silence.
Then…
“He’s red,” Jake whispered.
“Shut up,” came the muffled reply.
It took a full five minutes before Ni-ki would look at them again.
He sat cross-legged now, arms wrapped tightly around himself.
Jay leaned forward with shining eyes. “I cannot believe we didn’t know this.”
“It’s not funny,” Ni-ki muttered.
“It’s very funny,” Jungwon corrected sweetly.
Sunghoon crouched in front of him. “Why were you hiding it?”
Ni-ki hesitated.
Because I’m the maknae.
Because I don’t want to look weak.
Because I want to be cool.
He shrugged instead. “It’s embarrassing.”
There was a pause.
Heeseung’s expression softened.
“Riki,” he said gently, “laughing isn’t embarrassing.”
Ni-ki looked up at him.
Jake nodded. “It was cute.”
“Very cute,” Jay added dramatically.
Ni-ki covered his face. “Stop saying that!”
Sunghoon reached out, slowly this time, and flicked his forehead lightly.
“You’re allowed to have weaknesses,” he said.
“It’s not a weakness,” Jay interjected. “It’s entertainment.”
“Jay.”
“Fine, fine. It’s endearing.”
Ni-ki peeked through his fingers.
“You won’t… use it against me?”
All of them looked at each other.
Jay opened his mouth.
Heeseung slapped a hand over it.
“We won’t bully you,” Jungwon promised.
Jake grinned. “Unless you deserve it.”
“JAKE.”
They laughed.
And something warm loosened in Ni-ki’s chest.
The teasing didn’t completely stop.
Of course it didn’t.
Jay occasionally wiggled his fingers at him from across the room just to watch him flinch.
Sunghoon would sometimes lean in like he was about to poke him, only to smirk when Ni-ki braced himself.
But it was different now.
It was lighter.
Kinder.
And Ni-ki found himself laughing more easily.
One evening, after a long day of filming, they ended up piled on the couch together, too tired to care about personal space.
Ni-ki was wedged between Sunghoon and Jake.
He could feel Sunghoon’s shoulder warm against his. Jake’s arm was draped lazily over his legs.
He would have moved before.
But he didn’t.
They were watching a movie, lights dimmed, the room quiet except for occasional commentary from Jay.
Halfway through, Jake shifted slightly, his fingers brushing absentmindedly against Ni-ki’s side.
Ni-ki tensed.
Jake froze.
“…Sorry,” Jake whispered.
Ni-ki hesitated.
Then, softly, “It’s okay.”
Jake smiled.
And this time, when Sunghoon’s hand rested briefly at his waist as he adjusted their position, Ni-ki only squirmed a little.
No panic.
No running.
Just warmth.
Weeks later, during a behind-the-scenes shoot for “Fever”, the staff asked them to film a playful group segment.
“Act natural,” the director said.
Which was dangerous advice.
Within seconds, Jay had grabbed Jungwon into a headlock. Jake was clinging to Heeseung dramatically. Sunghoon had an arm around Ni-ki’s shoulders.
Ni-ki glanced at the camera.
And then at Sunghoon.
A slow grin spread across his face.
Sunghoon’s eyes widened. “Don’t you dare—”
Too late.
Ni-ki jabbed his fingers lightly into Sunghoon’s side.
Sunghoon yelped.
Actually yelped.
The staff burst into laughter.
Ni-ki blinked.
“…Hyung?”
Jay gasped louder than necessary. “YOU’RE TICKLISH TOO?!”
Sunghoon flushed deeply. “I am not.”
“You absolutely are,” Ni-ki said, eyes sparkling.
Confidence surged through him.
Power.
He lunged.
Sunghoon tried to dodge, but Ni-ki had grown taller, stronger. He wrapped an arm around his waist and poked mercilessly at his ribs.
Sunghoon broke.
Laughter spilled out, bright and uncontrollable.
The members stared in awe.
“This is the best day of my life,” Jay declared.
Ni-ki laughed, freely, openly.
Not embarrassed.
Not hiding.
Just happy.
Sunghoon eventually retaliated, of course. The two of them ended up wrestling lightly on the studio floor, laughing so hard they could barely breathe.
The staff kept filming.
Fans would later call it one of the cutest behind-the-scenes clips they’d ever seen.
That night, back at the dorm, Ni-ki lay in bed staring at the ceiling.
He could still hear faint laughter from the living room.
He thought about how hard he had tried to seem untouchable.
And how unnecessary it had been.
A soft knock came at his door.
“Come in.”
Sunghoon peeked inside.
“You started that,” Sunghoon said.
Ni-ki grinned. “You exposed me first.”
Sunghoon stepped into the room, leaning against the wall. “You’re not embarrassed anymore?”
Ni-ki thought about it.
He shook his head.
“No.”
Sunghoon nodded once.
“Good.”
A pause.
Then Sunghoon added quietly, “You don’t have to act older than you are all the time.”
Ni-ki swallowed.
“I know.”
Sunghoon flicked the light off as he left.
“Goodnight, Riki.”
“Goodnight, hyung.”
In the dark, Ni-ki smiled to himself.
Maybe being ticklish wasn’t a weakness.
Maybe it was just proof that he trusted them enough to let go.
And maybe, just maybe, that was stronger than pretending he didn’t.