yes i fear the title is true :( i love riha very much and am very sad but i am trying to fix a case of Life Burnout and in being really honest with myself about what is and isn't good for me right now, i think this is the best decision. i would love to bring her back in the future when i'm more on top of my mental health and time management!! but for now i need to focus on making more space for myself to breathe, and i'm afraid writing for riha usually takes more of my energy than gives me energy. i also want to give nayoung the attention she deserves with sr's new project, and i think downsizing to two wannabe muses will help with that, too.
thank you so much to everyone who threaded with, plotted with, and loved riha during her time here!! i'm sorry for any disappointment this causes anyone :( but like i said, i'm hopeful i can bring her back at a time that works better for me. as far as ic goes, riha will still be around like nothing has changed, so if you ever want to plot anything with her as an npc just let me know <3
i'll still be around on nayoung and joomi too, and hopefully a bit more active now that i'll have less to worry about. thank u in advance for understanding! and goodbye to ms riha for now 🫡
usually, riha is good at avoiding negative emotions. she stays busy, she distracts herself, and she forces herself to focus on the good.
but apparently, there are some times when you can't avoid grief. she learned that last year – the first christmas without her mother. she thought this year would be better, maybe. time heals all wounds, as they say, but it feels the same as it did last year.
in some ways, it might even feel worse, because this time, she realizes she hasn't really healed at all.
christmas lights remind her of when her family used to walk around seoul, searching for the best light displays, her mother always in charge of the whole ordeal.
last year, they skipped a christmas tree, but this year, in an attempt to return to normalcy, bought one again. every ornament she put on felt like a stab to the gut. she could still hear her mother's voice in her head, telling the story of each one: this is the first ornament your dad and i bought after we got married and doha made this when he was three years old, isn't it cute? and i bought this keychain when your father and i went to los angeles for the world cup and we decided it would work better as an ornament.
riha still does what riha does, and tries to busy herself this season. she makes plans upon plans, and after about a week of it, is so exhausted from trying to appear like her usual self that she cancels half of her others.
riha still doesn't like staying home and staying still, though, and being with claudine usually puts her in a good mood, so she still goes to the christmas market with her as planned.
she hates that she's quieter and more subdued than usual. she's sure everyone can tell, including claudine, but she still does her best to cover it up regardless, because she doesn't know what else to do.
"okay, where should we go next?" she asks her friend, taking a sip of the hot chocolate that they just bought – which is still way too hot. she winces and sticks her tongue out a little. the cold air will make it burn less, right?
unlike what most may suspect, jo is not one of the most patient people in the world, even though he tries really, really hard to be. it's not out of any sort of sense of self-entitlement (although his somewhat high self-esteem probably does lend to that), but merely a 'nothing moves fast enough for me and i'm trying to maintain composure politely but i'm slowly going insane' kind of way.
he's never rude about it to the source of the waiting though; as uncivilized as he can be sometimes, jo does have manners and respects the time it takes for small businesses, made to order food and drinks, and other various concessions, but god it feels like time is slowly creeping along and yet getting slower and slower by the millisecond. he tries to quell the urge to bounce on his feet, as if that will make the line move faster (spoiler alert, it never does), but the food wafting from the stall in front of him smells divine, and he swears that his stomach is mere moments away from climbing out of his body and making its way there itself- despite not actually know what kind of snack they're even in line for.
so, jo does what jo does best and looks for a way to entertain himself. this time, it just so happens to be chatting to the girl just in front of him, goofy grin and all as he tucks his hands inside his jacket pockets to warm them again. not only is he being friendly, he thinks, but it's a good excuse to 'practice' his korean, as everyone keeps telling him. (if jo is honest, he's starting to get annoyed about being identified as a foreigner the moment he opens his mouth too, so he's made a promise to himself to get better for the new year(s).)
"soooo... do you wait here often?" he questions, gesturing towards the stall ahead of them, "and followup question... uhhh... what is this line for?"
it's cold. this is now her second winter after returning to seoul, previously spending four years in california. you'd think it wouldn't be enough to get used to warmer weather, but apparently it was, because she can't tolerate the chill nearly as well as she used to. she might have to go ice skating by herself after this, if only to warm up. the friend she was enjoying the market with today had prior obligations she completely forgot about and had to run, leaving riha alone. and rather uncomfortable, as she often is if she's alone and not doing something active to clear her mind.
eating also usually makes her feel better, and she could use something hot to drink to shake off the chill, so here she is, in line for street food. she didn't anticipate the line moving so slowly, and she also underestimated how freezing it would be to stand still.
thankfully – well, maybe thankfully – the guy in line behind her strikes up a conversation, providing the opportunity for a distraction. the problem is, he might be hitting on her. to his credit, it's in a slightly more endearing way than many other men would, especially because...he apparently doesn't even know why he's standing in line. riha almost laughs, but figures that would be rude. it would also be rude to question where he's from, even though he clearly as an accent, and it makes her curious.
instead, she just flashes a smile. "ah, sometimes," she answers his first question with a light laugh. then, she adds, "odeng! and i heard they're serving really good hot ginger tea, too, which is honestly the main reason why i'm here. but i might be able to warm up faster if i just go on a run," she considers aloud. she is hungry, though, and eating is important, so she'll just have to endure.
changmin feels a sort of closeness towards riha. though he isn't quite sure how to frame it – riha reminds him of his older sister. which makes sense, really. she's a good four years older than him, and changmin finds himself comfortable around her presence.
comfortable enough to invite her out for a quick shopping trip. some clothes to buy for school, and to spruce up his rather sad and empty room.
he waits by the gym ( not having enough confidence to enter on his own either ), eyes perking up whenever a particularly attractive person walked by – wow... he's handsome! changmin blinks, attracted and slightly envious. could he perhaps look that way one day as well?
he doesn't let the thought linger for long though, when he spots riha coming out of the gym. "noona!" he beams, waving the older girl over. "i'm here!" he smiles, excited to see his friend. "how was work!"
riha likes her job. it does, unfortunately, require her to be objectified by men at the gym, but she's used to it by now. she thinks it's honestly easier because she isn't attracted to men. maybe that's weird, and she should be even more disgusted by how often gross dudes stare at her ass, but she knows her only option if they make any weird advances is to shut it down. she doesn't have to worry about potentially finding them attractive, or anything. it's not like she tells strangers she's a lesbian. usually she says she has a boyfriend if anyone tries anything, and so far that's worked. she is also confident she can kick the ass of half the men that come here, so that helps.
but she still likes her job. she likes being active, and helping other people with their own physical fitness. she knows exercise is hard for some people, but she tries to make it fun so it doesn't feel like as much of a chore.
it's also nice to do things other than hang out at the gym, or go on runs, or play sports, though – and that's why she agreed to go out with changmin today. also because how could she ever say no to claudine's little brother if he invites her to anything? she's honestly touched that he chose her of all people to go on a shopping trip with him.
changmin yells for her once she's outside, and she finds him, grinning. "it was good!" she replies once she's beside him. "nothing too exciting, but sometimes that's a good thing. how was your day?"
honestly, claudine kind of feels like she’s dragging riha along to her whims. she has a hunch that riha isn’t that easy to pull around though, so she thinks riha would have said something if claudine is being a bit too pushy. besides, it’s not her fault that the two of them looked incredibly good and match each other so well in their costumes? then again, it’s in the nature of the characters they’re cosplaying to match. still, it’s fun.
“oh, absolutely! that’s a wonderful idea!” claudine readily agrees, already picturing the kind of backdrop in her head that would be fitting. if they can’t find something like the one she’s imagining though, she’d be slightly disappointed. but surely there’s an array of decorations and a wallpaper that wouldn’t be too far off the mark! this is halloween, after all!
so, she decides to loop an arm around riha and bring her along to search for the perfect backdrop. a hunt; if you will.
“i remember you crying your eyes out when you watched the series… and the movie.” claudine points out suddenly, giggling a little at the memory. “but look at you now! are you kind of embarrassed? that only makes you look even more like madoka. she does eventually become something like a goddess… so does that make you my goddess right now?” she hums, thinking aloud.
eventually, they do come across something good enough. the background is slightly eery, with a circus sort of theme reminiscent of the magical girls’ encounter with walpurgisnacht. all they’d need is a miserable city to complete the look. “this is good! hmm… now what, i wonder? should we pose like you’re my saviour?”
claudine puts an arm around her and riha has to take a breath that is equal parts deep and subtle, though how likely is claudine to think anything of her taking a deep breath, really? she takes a few deep breaths, like she would if she was doing yoga, and then she feels a bit less insane. they are just two girls being friends. gal pals, you could say, but without the...homoerotic association that term has become attached to in recent years.
claudine makes fun of her, though, and then keeps yapping, and calls her her goddess. riha thinks that is very gal pal of her. "a little embarrassed..." she admits. it was not her strongest moment, that's for sure. "i literally had no idea what i was signing up for," she laughs.
she figures she could say something smooth in response to the goddess comment. maybe it's the yoga breaths that give her the clarity of mind to say, "i can be if you want?" and smile, opposed to turning into a puddle of gay goo on the spot. riha is kind of dumb, and she knows that, but she's not stupid enough to think claudine meant anything by the comment. she's just saying shit – not in a bad way, though. if anything, riha is glad she feels comfortable enough with her to ramble like this.
the background they eventually stumble upon certainly looks apocalyptic enough, in a clown way, which is a terrible way, as far as riha is concerned. in this case, though, it works. should we pose like you're my saviour? claudine asks. oh lord, here we go, riha thinks. "what would that look like?" she laughs instead.
"what if we pose like this." she jumps into a goofy pose, making the sign of the horns with both of her hands. she's just kidding, of course. she ends up laughing. "i mean, i don't know. whatever you think? you did this a lot more than me."
yuji is done for—she has no business lining up for the zombie run with riha. she should have said no, put her foot down more. its going to be embarrassing for yuji, who is not at all really athletic in the sense that the zombie run calls for. she’s going to get caught, or worse— completely humiliate herself by tripping over her own feet.
but riha had been so earnest in asking, so much so that yuji couldn’t even consider the idea of turning her down. or maybe yuji is a little pitiful, pliant under the idea of a pretty girl wanting her company.
which brings her to now, her chest heaving from running in a way that exercising hasn’t felt like. yuji hates her— mostly how she can feel the sweat stick to the back of her neck. every breath she takes in feels like sandpaper against her lungs.
“i think,” yuji says in a wheeze, leaning against a wall as she catches her breath. her eyes dart around for any sight of the ‘zombies’. “i think i need a second,”
riha has really gotten the most out of the halloween festivities this year. she's done just about everything she wanted to – except for the zombie run.
why yuji was the person she asked to go with her, riha does not really have an answer to. she simply followed her heart when picking out a potential companion for this excursion.
maybe riha shouldn't have pushed so hard for yuji to do the zombie run, though. they would've had a perfectly good time just wandering around and shopping, or doing something else, but riha has really wanted to try this and they're running out of time before the events wrap up, so – she whipped out the puppy dog eyes. and it worked.
she does feel a little bad though, because yuji doesn't seem very athletic, and riha thinks, wow, i know so many people from the gym, maybe they would've had more fun. yuji is being such a good sport, though, and riha always has fun when she's with her, so it's not like she regrets it. hopefully yuji doesn't regret joining her either?
riha just nods when yuji says she needs a break, practically skidding to a halt. riha is honestly barely tired, but considering she goes for a run of about 3km every day, it makes sense. "okay," she agrees. she doesn't have any water with her. that's probably a mistake on her part. she underestimated how long this might take them. sometimes she forgets this stuff is a lot harder for other people.
thankfully, they seem to be in the clear for now, at least as far as the zombies go. the hallway they're in now is pretty long, too, so unless one springs out of one of the doorways they'll pass, they should have a decent warning of when one of them approaches.
riha gets an idea, though. "do you wanna jump on my back?" she questions. "like – a piggyback ride. you can rest for a while but we can also get closer to finished with this thing so you can get some water," she laughs. is it ridiculous to ask?
riha wouldn't say she's easily distracted, but that doesn't mean she's not.
more importantly: she wouldn't say she's easily frightened, but she is.
she really likes halloween, though. it was especially fun during her university years back in california, but korea is starting to catch up as far as the festivities go.
she's wanted to enjoy as much around the city as she can – and the ghost tour was one of her last boxes to check off (aside from going to lotte world, but all of her friends were busy and she felt weird asking acquaintances to do something like that with her.)
thankfully, seira agreed to keep her company this time, and riha is very glad she didn't go alone, because walking around the city at night while a strange man is telling scary stories is not for the faint-of heart. riha feels a little better because she knows she's strong and thinks she could kick a ghost's ass, probably, but still...it's unsettling. it is a little fun too, though.
it's fun until she hears a sound in the alleyway beside them. it's probably just a trashcan lid falling or something – but why? why is a trashcan lid falling in the middle of the night!!
she swears she hears something else. she freezes. part of her considers just staring straight ahead, focusing on the tour, and ignoring whatever likely harmless movement is happening in the alleyway, but then she's like – what if someone is going to kill me? she needs to know if a killer is there so she can run or knock them out!
so she looks. and then she sees a pair of eyes in the darkness. she manages to not scream, thankfully, but she does grab onto seira's arm far too tightly. "seira am i hallucinating or are those eyes?"
thankfully, she is not left to wonder for long. they are indeed eyes, but the eyes of a cat who emerges from behind a dumpster. "oh!" riha chirps excitedly. "you scared me!"
the cat doesn't seem scared of them at all. for a second, riha wonders if this is some evil spirit disguised as a cat, preparing to pounce on them, but she thinks that's silly. the cat is very cute and harmless. probably.
“we look so good!” claudine exclaims the moment she sees the two of them—and their outfits—reflected in one of the windows along the shopping districts. always the encouraging person, she pulled @rihabe with her to be her matching partner today too. claudine doesn’t mind doing a lot of the heavy lifting, in regards to costume and make-up, she never found it a burden. more of a personal project, something she loved doing and was wholly passionate about—that extends to whenever she’s cosplaying with a friend.
“it’d be a waste if we just go home without taking any pictures!” claudine states, not taking no for an answer, no matter what. “you’re okay with that, right?” even though riha might be apprehensive, claudine is confident enough that she can convince riha otherwise. “and our poses—we can’t just pose for giggles. it has to be… you know, dramatic, and close.”
to show riha what she means, she wraps her fingers around riha’s wrist and tugs her in closer—she takes out her phone and points the camera towards the two of them. with a smile and no warning at all, claudine takes a candid photo just like that. “something like this, but a lot more postured. it’ll be fun! we should find some place with a good background though.”
she turns to the other girl, a rather excited smile on her face. “look at yourself!” she says, showing riha the screen. “you look beautiful, really. pink hair suits you, you know? now all you need to do is smile.”
riha is an easily-excitable person, especially around people who are also excited. claudine seems very proud of their matching costumes, so naturally, riha is happy too. she looks in the window too, and grins. they do look really nice!
riha does have a tiny problem, though. she agreed to be the madoka to claudine's homura before she knew the context of the anime. since watching it, she now knows homura essentially dedicated her entire life to saving madoka and that it was pretty gay. riha is also pretty gay, and claudine is just pretty, so she's a little flustered. she knows very well that it's not that deep, but she doesn't want anyone to misunderstand, and she also doesn't want to start thinking anything delusional.
claudine seems so excited, though, so riha just smiles, and nods, and really, she does agree. they definitely have to take pictures, or else it would be a waste of claudine's hard work.
dramatic and close, claudine says. oh dear. riha is only slightly prepared for claudine to pull her in close and snap a picture. she can feel her stupid little heart beating at the speed of light in her chest and she probably looks so stupid.
riha looks at the screen when claudine tells her to, though, and honestly, it's not bad. honestly, it's kind of in character, if anything. she can take comfort in the fact that madoka herself was also a bit of an awkward loser. hopefully it isn't obvious that she isn't just acting.
you look beautiful. oh dear (2). claudine is very mean and cruel, actually. she is both pretty and kind to her. yes, those two statements contradict each other, but – whatever. riha does agree, though. she likes the pink wig too. "thanks," she somehow manages to say like a normal person. she can't help but smile anyway, regardless of what claudine says.
"okay, where should we go?" she asks, honestly eager to move on. "should we find a backdrop that looks kinda like walpurgisnacht?" she grins. she's joking, but it would be cool if they could.
( cw: minor spoilers for madoka anime and rebellion story movie lmao 😭 )
claudine is a terrible friend. claudine LIED to her!
riha was happy to be part of claudine's group costume when she mentioned it, even though she didn't know the anime it was from. she looked at a picture of the cast of characters and said the pink one was her favorite, and claudine ran with it.
when riha mentioned potentially watching the anime – madoka, but with a longer name that riha always forgets – for research purposes, claudine said it was a cute magical girl anime. great! riha thought then. that sounds fun!
it was not fun. in fact, it was terrible and awful – so terrible and awful that she should've stopped watching, but no. riha saw the series through until the end, getting invested in the characters and story, and hoping the conclusion was a happy one.
so wouldn't necessarily call the ending of the anime happy, but she was content with it.
she should've stopped there, but nooooo. claudine mentioned watching the movie sequel to the series with her and riha agreed, because she's terrible at telling people no especially if they're cute girls and she'd be lying if she said she wasn't curious.
curiosity killed the cat, as they say. just like this movie killed...something inside of her. by the time it ends, she's in equal parts shock and misery, and cannot stop crying.
"it ends like that?! it just ends like that?" she bawls. "how could they do that..." they, meaning the show and movies' writers. "you lied to me!" she wails. "you said it would be cute...claudine i'm so sad...how could they do that to homura..."
to be fair...is this really an audition? she's auditioning for an audition, right? well...that's kind of what they all are, right? aren't most auditions multiple rounds?
she doesn't really know. all she knows is that if she's serious about accomplishing her mom's dream - her dream, by extension - then she needs to do more than take dance lessons and practice singing and rapping by herself. in the worst case, they'll tell her no, or won't say a thing to her, and she would've taken one important step toward her goals.
so she sits down against the wall in her local dance studio, and turns the camera on.
"hi, i'm hong riha," she greets the camera with a tiny wave and smile, "and i guess i'll just...get into it?" she giggles.
DREAM COMPANY:
"when it comes to companies...i don't really mind? i think they're all nice, and have their charms. i would feel bad picking one over the other." as if the companies themselves have feelings, or anyone working there would take having a preference personally. she almost said i don't think i have enough skill to be picky anyway, but decided that was better left unsaid. "maybe lime? lime's artists are very skilled, and i heard that they don't mind teaching people...i forget where, but i heard it," she laughs lightly again. "yuna sunbaenim was also really nice on next gen. and i like her songs."
PREVIOUS MUSICAL EXPERIENCE:
she smiles, nervous. "truthfully...i don't really have musical experience. i take dance lessons, and i've been in sports my entire life. music has otherwise been a hobby up until this point," she admits. "oh!" she remembers suddenly. "i can play guitar! and i've been practicing both singing and rapping. but that's all."
SKILLS: here
OTHER TALENTS:
"well...like i said, i play sports. i'm really good at volleyball, and football, and swimming, and tennis. running too! my dad is hong minjun, the football player. i'm also a black belt in taekwondo, but i'm a little rusty now. i can also bench press 58 kilos! that's really good for a women of my size," she nods sagely, "and i'm working to do better every day! i'm also a personal trainer. i went to school for kinesiology, so i know a lot about staying in shape." do any of those actually count as talents...? "i'm not sure how well that translates to becoming a kpop idol, but i think i'd beat everyone else at the idol star athletics championships, which is a fun bonus!" she grins. then suddenly, she remembers something very important: "oh! i went to university in california, so," she switches to english, "i'm pretty good at english now!" she gives the camera two thumbs up.
FAVORITE ARTISTS:
she hums. she did think about the question ahead of time, but she already forgets what she wanted to say for this part, and she doesn't really want to retape everything now. she could probably do better in general, sure, but - she doesn't really have time for that, either.
"i really like kehlani and tinashe," she recalls, thankfully. "i've liked tyla a lot these days, too. rina sawayama, conan gray..." she realizes this list of artists is very, what the kids would call, 'queer-coded,' and quickly pivots to kpop, since that's more relevant anyway. "and yuna sunbaenim," she smiles, a little shy once more. "and nana...nana is wonderful. i also really admire a.maze's performances. they're, um...for lack of a better word...amazing?" there was definitely a better word. she should probably re-record this.
instead, she lets out another nervous laugh and shakes her head.
"okay, i think i answered all the questions! this has been hong riha. thank you!"
the look in riha’s eyes makes maya laugh. riha has this uncanny ability to look like a deer in headlights for about point three seconds at a time, and it’s the most endearing thing in the world. “ah, i should have known you would drag me into it too”, she stomps lightly, feigning annoyance. riha’s indecisiveness has the upside of making her a great person to just go along with things sometimes, and they have many fun little adventures under their belts as a result.
“i’ll feel bad for them. i guess i can try underdancing... fine, fine. let’s do it. it’s something to do before the next show, anyway.” and with that, there’s a spark of playfulness in her eyes as she takes riha’s hand and pulls her over to the crowd forming.
they haven’t missed much. there’s an official staff member holding a phone camera up on a selfie stick, as others in the front go over the simple choreography from the challenge. apparently their best take will be posted on the official event’s tiktok account, and maya would be lying if she said that didn’t make her competitive side wake up. after all, any exposure is good exposure, whether it’s for her dance studio or for her own personal dreams of stardom.
“i changed my mind,” she turns to whisper to riha, already rolling her ankles discreetly to warm them up for more fluid movements. “forget underdancing. we should be the main attractions here, without a doubt.” she purses her lips defiantly, and stares at her friend. “what do you say, hmm?”
riha just grins. of course she would drag maya into it, and yes, she should have known. when maya expresses her sympathy for the innocent people trying to apparently record a dance challenge, riha laughs a little. "it wouldn't really hurt to make them look bad..." she points out, and then feels a little bad. she probably could've said that more nicely, at least.
she still lets maya tug her along, happily following now that she won't be alone. she watches the people for a moment, processing the scene in front of her. the choreography looks really simple, actually. she can definitely do that. she does a few quick stretches, because it would be incredibly embarrassing to hurt herself doing this.
when maya decides she doesn't want to underdance, riha is honestly relieved. she's not really sure she knows how to do that. it'll be much easier to go with what feels natural, even if they do make everyone else fade into the background.
maya looks at her expectantly, and riha laughs again. "okay," she agrees with a nod. it'll be fun, right?
maybe claudine’s decision to straight up cosplay under the scorching sun in a festival that’s themed around water is finally starting to bite her. still, she’s stubborn, and while she knows her hair is going to hate her for the choices she made today she isn’t going to regret it. obviously it’s hard, touching up every now and then as well as being careful with all the food she’s consuming so that it doesn’t stain her all-white outfit.
what she’s worried about most is her wig though, and the horns that are attached to it. she wonders if she should still have a mini photoshoot after all, trying to think of the best place too, before she hears a familiar voice call out to her.
“hi, riha!” she chirps, a smile on her face as she reunites with a friend. “the fact you could tell it was me means my make-up is slowly falling apart… i should touch it up again soon.” she lets out a sigh, but she wants to enjoy the popsicle she has in hand first. so she will, taking her time before she was to worry about her possible wardrobe malfunctions.
“this is a wig, actually. but it’s cute that you thought it was real despite the hard styling i did on it!” she laughs a little, letting riha know she isn’t offended in the slightest. “what do you think, though? do i look good with red hair? i do think about dyeing my hair that colour sometimes… or maybe a darker red.”
riha almost says something stupid like i would recognize you anywhere, but that is both kind of a lot and also probably not even true. maybe if claudine's makeup was in perfect condition she wouldn't be able to recognize her. she's sure she'd still think she's pretty, though. "you still look really pretty," she assures her, and at least she sounds like a normal person this time – not over-excited.
claudine then reveals that the red hair is actually a wig, and riha blinks in surprise. she definitely wouldn't expect someone to wear a wig to an outdoor music festival, especially when it's hot outside, but why not, right? as long as claudine is having fun. claudine sort of indirectly calling her cute is making her dumb little heart beat too fast, so she tries to subtly take a deep breath. so she can continue to be a normal person.
when claudine asks if she looks good, riha thinks it's almost cruel. claudine must know she's having a major lesbian moment to asks something like that, right? claudine must know she's pretty. "of course!" riha chirps anyway, smiling once more, but not quite as brightly as before. "but i think you'd look pretty no matter what. even if you dyed your hair shrek green." be a normal person challenge failed.
maya shakes her head as they walk past a particularly aggressive water hose, laughing as her wet hair contributes to the splashing all around.
it’s a little annoying, if she’s being honest, but she can’t complain too much. she did pay for the ticket and everything. “but do they need to be firing those things everywhere?”, she complains anyway. she’s not even sure why she brought sunglasses to begin with.
as they reach safety near a merch stand - surely no one would be crazy enough to shoot water guns near overpriced t-shirts, right? - she sighs in relief, and checks her phone. “ah, the next act won’t be for a while... what should we do next?” she turns to riha, her lips pursing. “i’m kinda hungry, i guess...”
her eyes dart around the venue, looking for anything interesting to pass the time with, as otherwise trying to decide what to snack on would take them ages. it’s then that she spots a group forming in the middle of the crowd, and it catches her attention. “oh, what is that? are they... dancing?” maya vaguely remembers there was something about a dance challenge for the festival. she does her best to keep up with social media trends, but there are some days she can barely find the time to pick up the phone.
“wanna give it a shot?”, she pokes the other with an elbow and bites down on her lower lip. the more she thinks about it, the funnier it seems. “you can like, easily outdance them. i bet you’re gonna be made center and everything. and it would be great free advertisement for my studio”, she winks.
"it's part of the fun," riha laughs as she's sprayed with even more water. she's personally having the time of her life. she's never been to waterbomb before, but with how much fun she's had this weekend, she has to go at least one day next year, too.
she follows after maya, stopping beside her at the merch stand, watching peope pass absentmindedly. then maya asks her a terrible, terrible question: what should we do next?
now, surely her friend knows by now that she's horribly indecisive, so she just shrugs. "we can look for food?" she suggests. she could probably eat, too, but she's not incredibly hungry, so she could also wait.
maya points something out then, and riha follows her friend's eyes to the crowd. is that...a moshpit? no, that's not what they're called. what is it...?
maya asks her if she wants to try, and riha looks over at her with wide eyes, blinking in surprise. does she want to give it a shot? not really, honestly. she'd rather watch and enjoy this particular activity from the sidelines, but maya makes a good point.
"only if you do it too," riha partially agrees. it won't be any fun if she just joins in without any friends. it won't be as fun, anyway.
riha's friends have abandoned her. no, that's not true at all – she's just a bit slow at deciding what she wants to eat, and her friends want to make sure they get a spot close to the stage for the next set. so they left to do that, and riha is stuck here, staring at the various food stalls in front of her as people pass around her.
she gets distracted though, which also isn't that surprising or unusual for her, especially because she's distracted by a pretty girl. her hair is bright red and her outfit is...skimpy, sort of...but tastefully so! she's soooo pretty.
and then riha realizes she recognizes her. it's claudine! and riha simply cannot restrain herself from going over to her. "claudine!" she says, excitable as always. "you look amazing! i love your hair!" riha doesn't even think for a moment that it could be a wig. she assumes claudine dyed her hair, because why would someone wear a wig to a festival with excessive amounts of water?
it's only after she's bounded over to her and spewed her compliments that riha starts feeling a little shy and clumsy in the presence of someone so pretty. no no, it's fine! this is her friend claudine! everything is fine.
he's thankful that it isn't too noisy here, below the shade. everyone else seemed as though they were busying themselves with the performances, the stands – whatever they had going on. siwoo though, found comfort in the peace that this provided him.
he responds with a smile, well meaning. riha's always been a pretty good gym buddy, and siwoo had religiously gone to the gym before everything at next gen transpired. "training?" he repeats, and he tilts his head slightly, giving her a slight shrug.
training is tiring, that's for sure. and he's well aware of the fact that he might regret this – going to a waterbomb festival, tiring his body out, and then having to go for training the next day. but jay had wanted to go, and siwoo couldn't find it in him to say no.
"ah, it's rigorous," he says, nodding his head. "but honestly, a lot less stressful than next gen ever was, haha," and that's true. it really is – next gen had been physically and mentally exhausting for siwoo; yet all at the same time a little fun. though he's not too sure if he'd go through something like that all over again.
"how are you? it's been a while since i've seen you!" he asks, "i've been using the gym at lime instead, i'm still getting used to it though!"
riha would believe training is less stressful than next gen. they had to do so many performances, all of it on live tv for the eyes of the korean public to see. their lives and dreams were on the line every episode. riha doesn't think she would have the strength to do it. then again, maybe she'd surprise herself. she should have the physical stamina, at least.
"i'm good!" riha chirps easily. "busy, but you know, that's nothing new," she laughs a little. it's self-inflicted busyness. she would probably die if she spent too much time idle. "how's the gym at lime?" she's genuinely curious.
she hasn't given too much of a thought to what company she wants to join. she doesn't feel skilled enough to be picky, but she liked yuna on next gen, and lime seems to focus most on fundamental idol skills, right? doesn't studio delta expect creativity, and sr media expect acting skills? riha certainly doesn't have either of those. not really, anyway...maybe lime would be the most reasonable goal for her?
she isn't sure how much it matters. she just needs to practice more - get better at singing, dancing, and rapping, and see where it gets her. sometimes she's so busy with work and sports and keeping up with friends that she forgets she's supposed to be achieving a new dream for her mother.
she doesn't want to think about her mom, though, so she asks, "are you here by yourself?" siwoo doesn't seem like the type to go to something like this alone, but he's alone now. then again, so is she.
"that's a good idea!" riha chirps. "there are a lot of clothes options here. i'm sure i could find something too." riha can always find more clothes she wants to buy. it's just a matter of if she actually buys them or not. she has a hard time deciding most of the time, so it's great to have a friend to shop with that can give her a second opinion.
makeup is also a great choice. when seira says she likes doing her own makeup, riha can't help but take a good look at her face. "oh, it looks really good today, if you did it today too." seira always looks pretty, though. she has such unique features, and a really cute face.
riha hums, trying to decide where they should start. "we could just go toward the clothes or makeup sections? and if anything else jumps out at us we can look at that too...?" it's just a matter of deciding whether to start with clothes or makeup that is the harder part for riha. "where do you want to start?" hopefully seira is better at making decisions than she is.
“oh–” yuji freezes for a moment, hands hovering in the air. the kind woman’s actress processing a bit longer on her inebriated brain. “oh my god, thank you! you didn’t have to do that!” yuji thanks and simultaneously protests in the same go. it’s her bad, after all– but she smiles wide, none the less. dragging her bag closer, she begins to deposit her fallen belongings back in. “talk about timing. i spent too much time on my lipstick, and then just as i finish, this happens.” yuji sighs. her nice little reprieve in the bathroom turned into a bit of a hot mess.
“you’re so nice, thank you, again.” another round of thanks to show her gratitude, yuji collects the last few things she can see off the ground, glancing around for anything else. upon not seeing anything, and saying to hell with anything else that’s disappeared in the midst of the chaos, yuji begins to stand up, bracing herself on the sink for assistance. “your assistance was very much appreciated! oh, here, let me–” in a rush, she extends a hand out to help the other girl up, even though she stumbles a bit with how fast she moves, showing that perhaps she isn’t as stable as she’d like to think.
yuji smiles, regardless, as if she didn’t stumble at all. “your dress is so pretty, by the way. sorry for making you get on the gross ground in it, though.”
"no, it's okay!" riha assures the other girl. she's happy to help, really. what was she going to do, just leave her there to pick up all of her stuff and walk past her? if riha was in that position she'd feel so embarrassed. she couldn't inflict that on a fellow woman if she could help. ultimately, it's such a small thing to do. the other girl mentions her lipstick, and riha can't help but look at it. it does look pretty, from what she can see it from the minimal-light of the bathroom floor.
"of course!" riha chirps. she watches as the other girl stands up, wobbly, and comes to the obvious conclusion that this woman is not sober. that's not surprising, considering their location. still, she's polite enough to offer a hand to help riha up, and riha hesitates. she's kind of afraid the other girl will just topple over, but it would also be rude not to accept her help. in the end, she does grab her hand and stand up herself.
she turns to the other woman quickly, though, prepared to stabilize her if she starts tipping over. she seems okay, though. for now, at least. if she does fall, it wouldn't be the first time riha has dealt with that. she just prefers to learn from past events instead of repeating them when possible.
when she compliments her, riha smiles, equal parts bright and shy. "thank you! it's okay, at least it's not...the men's bathroom, or something." now that they're in decent light again, riha gets a proper look at her lipstick, and easily says, "your lipstick looks amazing! i don't know how you did that after drinking, i would look like a clown."
she's also just really pretty in general. then again, riha has never met a woman that isn't pretty, honestly. "i'm riha!" she introduces herself with another smile and a quick bow of her head.
