Thursday, September 9, 2010

Moving On

I write this after Sukkie's Seoul FM. A year after they started filming for Minamishineyo, there they are onstage again, the ANJELL minus Hong Ki. What difference does a year make! I will forever miss them together as the fictional band ANJELL. But individually, they are doing so good right now, I think that they merit our constant support and devotion, as true YAB fans. I hope you agree with what Yong Hwa has to say in this fic. :)


 Moving On

You see Park Shin Hye look at Jang Keun Suk with that beaming smile and you feel something familiar tugging at your heart. Her smile reminds you of someone you badly miss this moment. She, too, smiles at you that way.

You see them exchange sweet glances like they are just the two people in the restaurant full of make-up artists, managers and staff, and you stifle a smirk. Another proof that love does really blossom in the workplace is staring at you right before your very eyes.

Has it been almost a year now since you last saw these two together, you ask yourself. How time flies. You know you have a lot of explaining to do to them. You have been missing in action since forever they said and you are guilty of it. But you have valid excuses, you see. Starting out in the music industry is no mean feat. Leading a pack of wide-eyed boys with raw yet still unknown talent has nearly driven you to your wits' end if not for the support of your family, friends and fans. Life has been good to you these past months but it surely robbed you off of your personal time to meet up with friends like them.

"To Jung Yong Hwa, for finally, finally showing up, after a long, long hiatus," Keun Suk takes a jab at you, raising his soju glass. "I feel honored that CN Blue's mighty leader has accepted my request to grace my fanmeet at last."

You give him an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, hyung. It's just..." you try to find new words to answer him but finds none. They both know the answer to that already. Schedules always get in the way of your life as a private person. And yes, you have come to realize, schedules can also form cracks between friends and relationships if you are not careful. So you really pulled all stops to let your management agree when invitations were sent out for Sukkie's final FM in Seoul. Especially when they said Lee Hong Ki won't be able to go due to conflicts in schedules, as usual . "Just send me then. I owe ANJELL a lot already, sajangnim," you pleaded and bargained. That group, fictional as it is, certainly helped a lot in putting you within the public radar early on before your band's debut. "Let me just return the courtesy and give me the chance to reconnect with my friends even just this once."

Sukkie gives you a knowing nod. "Don't worry, dongsaeng, I know how hectic your life has become. And although it sucks not to see you each time I organize a party or event, we understand. Right, Shin Hye?" he asks the girl sitting beside him with, you note, an unmistakable warmth in his eyes.

"We missed you, though," Shin Hye, her heart in her eyes, tells you. You have never seen her so beautiful like this before. Eyes alert, cheeks flushed, smiles blinding you. And you know she does not owe her make-up artist unni anything for this. Someone else is responsible. Someone whose hands are busy grazing her back as you speak.

"I have long forgotten how good you look in person, you know.The TV does not give you justice," she proceeds to joke with you.

You chuckle. "And it seems I have missed out alot during my absence," you tease back, giving her a playful smirk. "It's nice to know life has been imitating art for the both of you," you tell them meaningfully.

Sukkie gives a loud laugh. "Are you talking about yourself, Yong Hwa?"

You laugh back. A year ago, you knew something was already brewing between these two. The subtle flirting on set, the late-night talks, the girlish giggles and loud, boisterous laughs exchanged between the two leads in Minamishineyo were an open secret in the set. You even remember betting with Lee Hong Ki on who would fall for whom first. You placed your bet on Shin Hye that she would fall first if she was not careful about it. You already saw the signs even back then. There was something different on the way she would look at Keun Suk. With you and Hong Ki, she had no qualms laughing her heart out, getting rowdy, joining in your silly guy antics, refusing to act like the girl she really was. But around Keun Suk, she would act coy, shy and girly. She fell first, you were certain about that.

"You picked a very good song, by the way, hyung," you say, changing the topic, steering it away from you. You know these two are out to grill you tonight about your own personal affairs and you want to dodge it for now. It's still new, this special thing you have with that special someone in your life. And you just want to protect it for now, keep it under wraps, even from your friends.

"Your cover of Narsha's song is really fantastic, arrangement wise. And well, it definitely blew your fans away," you tell him.

Keun Suk looks at Shin Hye with a goofy grin on his mouth. "It was a special song, indeed," he nods, eyes never leaving Shin Hye's face.

If she had been the first to fall, he is steadily catching up now, you muse. You know that look on your hyung's face - the way his eyes darkens when he looks her way, the way his hands can't stop patting her back or brushing her arms, the way he sits closer to her, the way his lips automatically curl upward whenever he addresses her. You know what those little details mean. You do that, too, a lot these days.

You have noticed, too, during your brief performance onstage earlier, that during your absence, something remarkable might really have happened between these two to merit the change you saw in Shin Hye. She was still a little shy in singing, just like before. There was still a tinge of nervousness, of awkwardness, as she belted out her part in the song...but unlike before when Keun Suk would cover her shyness with his strong stage presence and unfaltering confidence, he surprisingly had willingly prodded her to sing confidently, even stopping to sing during the chorus part to let the audience hear her voice clearly, to let her shine more. Thankfully, you quickly picked up his cue and did the same, giving Shin Hye the floor for a few moments.  

You felt a sense of pride surge within you for Keun Suk at that moment. He was taking the backseat for her, in his own FM. It was a gallant act which you did not fail to notice. This guy is really smitten, hands down.

"I hope we can do this again in Taiwan," Shin Hye tells you, putting sushi rolls in Keun Suk's plate like it is the most natural thing to do in the world for her.

"I wish it, too but we are busy with our Asia tour now and FT Island I think is also swamped with work until next month....so..." you trail on, feeling guilty again for missing yet another Fan Meet for ANJELL.

"Stop feeling guilty, Yong Hwa," Keun Suk laughs at you. "We might miss you and Hong Ki in every FM we do but we can manage. We are doing just fine. Right, Shin Hye-yah?" he nudges the object of his affection and she bobs her pretty head in agreement, giving him the sweetest smile you have ever seen on her. 

"Just don't forget to send your video greeting again, ahrasso? For the fans." He reminds you before his eyes  gawk at Shin Hye again.

You gulp down your tea as you force yourself to look away and hide your smile. Yeah, these two are definitely doing just fine on their own.

You have heard about clamors for a season 2 of Minamishineyo from fans. They said they need to know more about what happened to ANJELL after the love story of Hwang Tae Kyung and GO Mi Nyu finally unfolded. You smile at their craving. Unknown to fans of the drama, season 2 has already started after you guys have wrapped up the drama in November.

Kang Shin Woo has moved on after experiencing heartbreak from Go Mi Nam. He started his life anew, became the leader of his own band and eventually met his own piece of heaven with a lovely girl he can claim as his own, not anyone else's.

Jeremy has grown up to be a wiser, more mature person and singer. He now has the ability to think of more profound thoughts such as love, girls, career options and... well, love. Sometimes, if you're lucky and wait long enough on the right spot, you can still catch a glimpse of him in his magic bus contemplating about life and its complexities... in the rare chance that he is back home in Seoul from his busy schedules abroad.

And...Hwang Tae Kyung and Go Mi Nyu? Well, looking at them now, in front of you, you will be happy to inform the fans that they have continued their love affair away from the spotlights. Mi Nyu has managed to curb Tae Kyung's arrogance and selfish tendencies. Tae Kyung, in return, has been able to rub off on Mi Nyu some of the confidence he has in excess.

Will you be willing to do a sequel of the drama again? This question still sometimes crop up in interviews, especially when you are overseas.

Why not? If it means working again with your friends. But you think, right now, there is really no need for that anymore.

Season 2 has been going for quite awhile now for the ANJELLs. In real life.