diff --git a/flutter_client/test/cache/cache_first_test.dart b/flutter_client/test/cache/cache_first_test.dart
index f98f7db9..9f99e2be 100644
--- a/flutter_client/test/cache/cache_first_test.dart
+++ b/flutter_client/test/cache/cache_first_test.dart
@@ -32,9 +32,12 @@ void main() {
       isOnline: () async => true,
     );
 
-    final firstFuture = results.first;
-    controller.add([]);
-    expect(await firstFuture, 42);
+    // Post-coldFetchAttempted guard, cacheFirst yields the current
+    // (still-empty) rows after the fetch returns, so the stream
+    // never hangs when populate is a no-op for this filter. The
+    // simulated drift re-emit then yields the populated rows.
+    final emissions = await results.take(2).toList();
+    expect(emissions, [0, 42]);
     expect(fetchCalled, 1);
     await controller.close();
   });