***

***

''I can't. We're already there.'' Rika said as the car slowed down near SBS.

''What?'' Nayeon asked because Rika had broken the silence.

''Nothing. I was just replying to Jihye's tweet out loud.''

When Rika got out of the car, she felt dizzy and leaned on Sunha. Nayeon and Haeri shared a worried look. They were all very worried about their leader. Her condition deteriorated day by day. For days, their manager had been giving her Chinese medicine, but it didn't seem to work well. That morning, he had decided to take her to see a doctor and had secretly been trying to convince her when the other members weren't around.

They all walked inside the building and greeted some singers and the staff on their way. In their waiting room, Nayeon told Rika to sleep on the couch, but she refused saying she was fine. She instead asked their manager to buy them something to eat. He did as she wanted since he thought that having appetite was a good thing.

''What with these long expressions? I'm sick, but not dying.''

''We care about you, unnie.'' Sunha said.

''If you care about me, just act normal. Jihye, do you want me to do your nails while we wait?''

Jenny agreed because she didn't want to make Rika grumpier then she already was. Rika took a a bottle of nail polish from her bag and brought a chair in front of Jenny who was sitting on the cough. Haeri started talking with their coordi-unnies, while Sunha grabbed her script.

''Sunha-ya, don't you have an essay to write?'' Nayeon asked her. ''Have you at least finished reading the novel?''

''Unnie, the recording is tomorrow. You know that.''

''Yes, but I also know that your essay is due Friday. I went through your lines with you yesterday. You memorized your text already so reading it again would be a waste of time.''

Sunha put her script back in her bag. She was mad at Nayeon like she rarely was, but she knew that she was right. She then took the novel which she had barely begun before sitting on the couch next to Jenny. Nayeon joined Haeri and their coordi-unnies. She listened to their conversation about Infinite for a few seconds, but their voices seemed to die down. She started thinking of Soohyun and his eyes. The look he had given her last time was engraved in her memory.

Fifteen minutes later, their manager was back with some hot food street. The members of Aurora all liked it a lot. He had also bought ice tea for Jenny and milk for the others. Everyone, including the manager and the coordis started eating. The mood was quite good until Rika stopped eating and said she had a headache. She sat on the cough, leaned her head against the wall and put her forearm in front of her eyes because of the light. The manager got up and asked her if she wanted painkillers or Chinese medicine. She refused both of them. Afterwards, the waiting room remained silent.

Someone notified them to go on stage for their dry rehearsal. In the corridor, they met Dongho and Hoon. The latter greeted Rika in Japanese, but she just bowed her head with a small smile. Nayeon greeted him back to fill the silence. Dongho smiled at Sunha.

''Sunha, why didn't you answer my calls? I wanted us to meet earlier.''

''I was... busy. Sorry.''

''Memorizing your script? Last time, I said I wanted to help you.''

''No, Dongho. No. I wasn't memorizing my script. Sorry, I gotta go now.''

''But...''

Hoon and Dongho looked at them as they headed to the elevator. They thought that something was weird. They went back to their waiting room and told their fellow members what had just happened. Soohyun said they should keep an eye on them. Kevin suggested standing next to Aurora during the winner announcement at the end of the show. Everyone agreed except Kiseop but they told him he didn't have to do anything if he didn't want to.

''I don't want to stand next to Haeri.''

''Oh, you know her name now.'' AJ said.

''She scares me!''

''The way you act with her, she's probably more scared than you are. Last time, she seemed playful at the beginning, but you didn't talk to her.'' Eli said.

''I'm not the only one. Soohyun-hyung, you didn't talk to Nayeon either. Why don't you call her. You have her number, right?''

''Don't try to change the subject. We're talking about you and your fear of Haeri-ssi.''

''How about your fear of Nayeon-ssi?'' Eli said, teasing him.

''I'm not afraid of her!''

''No, but you're shy around her.'' Hoon said.

''It's because of what happened at Quiz that Changes the World.'' Dongho said.

''I can't wait to watch the broadcast really.'' Kevin said, visibly excited.

The teasing continued a little bit longer. The boys even teased Dongho about his close relationship with Sunha. They said he was abandoning IU and Suzy. Soohyun joked saying their maknae was a man and cared more about girls than about him and Kiseop. He ruffles Dongho's hair and Kiseop pocked him. The manager had to calm them down. He told them to hurry and change into their stage outfits.

When it was their turn to perform, they didn't see the members of Aurora. Kevin thought about the tweet Jenny had sent him. She wasn't there to cheer them on even though she had said she would. Maybe they were only meaningless words or maybe something had happened to Aurora after the tweet was sent. He couldn't stop thinking about it, but tried his best to focus on his performance. Fortunately, they managed to complete it without big mistakes.

On their way back to their waiting room, they met other idol groups, but no member of Aurora. They weren’t stressed about it since many singers prefer to stay in their waiting room unless they are needed somewhere. They waited for the end of the show, playing games and chatting, before going back to the filming area. AJ was the first one to spot Aurora in front of them. They were near the stage with the other Take 7 nominees, waiting for Boyfriend’s comeback performance to end. Once on the stage, they stood behind Aurora. Kiseop was as far away of Haeri as he could.

''I hope you win.'' Kevin whispered to Jenny in English.

''I don't think it's possible.'' she replied in Korean before turning back, surprising him with her serious expression.

He didn't say anything else and stayed still. He listened to Gikwang who, as one of the MCs, was talking. Rika whispered something to Nayeon. Soohyun had noticed it since he was looking at Nayeon from behind. The winner was finally announced. Surprisingly, it was Infinite. Everyone started clapping. The cheer from the crowd was very loud.

All of a sudden, Rika fell on the ground. She had fainted and no one had seen it coming. Eli, who was just behind Rika, was the first one to bend down after Nayeon. The members of Aurora gathered around them and the singers who were near them looked surprised and confused.

''I got her. Don't worry.'' Eli said calmly to Nayeon who was in shock.

He lifted Rika's shoulders. AJ and Soohyun helped him to lift her completely in his arms. He went down stage and Nayeon and Soohyun followed him. AJ was about to go with them, but he saw that Haeri was panicking. She wanted to follow the others.

''Haeri-ssi, relax.'' he said after grabbing her shoulders. She didn't look at him, so he gently lifted her chin and continued: ''She's gonna be okay. Stay here until the end.''

She nodded, looking into his eyes, and turned to listen to the rest of Infinite's acceptance speech. The remaining members of Aurora and U-KISS stayed on stage for two more minutes, some of the longest in their whole life. Just before the encore stage, they bowed to everyone a bit carelessly and rushed to the waiting room. Rika was lying on the couch, still unconscious. Eli was right next to her, holding something under her nose, while Aurora's manager was talking on the phone. Nayeon was crying and Soohyun was trying to comfort her.

''It's not your fault, Nayeon-ssi. You couldn't know it would happen.''

''I should have known. Manager-oppa asked me to fulfilled Rika's duties as a leader. It partly meant to take care of everyone. I failed.''

''Stop crying, Nayeon. You're annoying.''

Everybody turned to the couch after hearing Rika's voice. She had just woken up thanks to the smelling salts Eli had been holding under her nose. She tried to sit, but Eli prevented her to do so.

''Don't push yourself. You just fainted. Remember?'' Eli said.

''You're as annoying as Nayeon.'' she said without stopping herself.

''What did I just say?''

''Aish... Yes, mom.'' she said before putting her head back on the couch.

***

***

Aurora's Rika faints and gets hospitalized for exhaustion

Celebrity News | Posted on 2011-10-09 20:22

The five members of Aurora are actively promoting their new album Goddess and it seems like Rika could only take so much because she fainted during the recording of Inkigayo. Viewers were in shock when they saw the leader of Aurora faint live on television during Infinite's acceptance speech for their Mutizen. Luckily, with the help of U-KISS's AJ and Soohyun, Eli was able to take her off the stage very quickly and the recording continued smoothly.

After the recording, the members of Aurora expressed their gratitude toward the members of U-KISS through Twitter, leaving thankful messages. Furthermore, a representative of NL Entertainment said: ''We would like to thank the members of U-KISS for quickly reacting to the incident. Eli, in particular, has apparently taken good care of Rika.''

Rika was rushed to the hospital where she received an IV treatment for exhaustion. She will spend the night there in precaution, following the doctors' recommendation. Her schedules haven’t been cancelled and she will join the rest of Aurora as soon as tomorrow. Let's hope she will be able to rest well during her very short break.

Today's Hot Issues: Inkigayo, Girls’ Generation, Brown Eyed Girls, Japan

Related articles:

- INFINITE wins Inkigayo Mutizen!

- Aurora’s Nayeon is a fan of U-KISS

- Aurora’s Japanese member Rika’s Korean skills impress again

- U-KISS’s Soohyun wants to date Han So Young

***

A/N: Sorry, sorry. You must be tired to see them backstage, but it's one of the only places idols can meet without the cameras.

It's about 2 am right now. I'm going to be so dead tomorrow, but I wanted to post this before going to bed. I will proofread tomorrow when I get back from work. Thanks to those who comment.