diff --git a/stylesheets/components/ToastManager.scss b/stylesheets/components/ToastManager.scss
index 1ff534793b..65b910b636 100644
--- a/stylesheets/components/ToastManager.scss
+++ b/stylesheets/components/ToastManager.scss
@@ -34,6 +34,11 @@
     inset-inline-start: 0;
     width: 100%;
     align-items: center;
+    pointer-events: none;
+
+    & * {
+      pointer-events: auto;
+    }
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/ts/components/StoryViewer.dom.tsx b/ts/components/StoryViewer.dom.tsx
index 7a4073b9ba..e50e6c7afe 100644
--- a/ts/components/StoryViewer.dom.tsx
+++ b/ts/components/StoryViewer.dom.tsx
@@ -938,7 +938,6 @@ export function StoryViewer({
             onReact={emoji => {
               onReactToStory(emoji, story);
               if (!isGroupStory) {
-                setCurrentViewTarget(null);
                 showToast({ toastType: ToastType.StoryReact });
               }
               setReactionEmoji(emoji);
diff --git a/ts/components/StoryViewsNRepliesModal.dom.tsx b/ts/components/StoryViewsNRepliesModal.dom.tsx
index 0ed32b21d7..25afa9b39a 100644
--- a/ts/components/StoryViewsNRepliesModal.dom.tsx
+++ b/ts/components/StoryViewsNRepliesModal.dom.tsx
@@ -245,10 +245,10 @@ export function StoryViewsNRepliesModal({
         <ReactionPicker
           i18n={i18n}
           onPick={emoji => {
-            if (!group) {
+            onReact(emoji);
+            if (!group && messageBodyText.length === 0) {
               onClose();
             }
-            onReact(emoji);
           }}
           preferredReactionEmoji={preferredReactionEmoji}
           theme={ThemeType.dark}