무한대 (mu-han-dae) n: the state or quality of being infinite

Infinity (symbolically represented by a ∞) is a concept in mathematics and philosophy that refers to a quantity without bound or end.  People have developed various ideas thoughout history about the nature of infinity.  The word comes from the Latin word ‘infinitas’ or ‘unboundless’

Chapter 1

행복하다 (haeng-bok-ha-da) v.  to be happy

2024년

“Uncle Yeol!”

Sungyeol turned around as he heard the farmiliar call of his name as the three year old girl came running out from the dance floor towards Sungyeol who was sitting alone at a table, watching all of the other guests dancing on the floor. 

“Hey, Nabi!” Sungyeol said cheerfully, pulling her into his lap.  “You look like a princess today!”

She nodded excitedly and pointed across the hall where a couple was dancing to say, “Uncle Jin told me that I am prettier than Aunt Soul.”

“Of course, you do!  You are the prettiest girl here. And you know what the prettiest girl deserves?” Sungyeol said, reaching over the table to grab his half finished ice cream.

“Wow! Really?”

“Of coourse, just don’t tell your dad.”  

Nabi smiled and started eating the ice cream as another couple joined them.  “Why aren’t you down on the dance floor?” Dongwoo demanded as he pulled out a chair for his wife.  “Come on.  You could find some pretty ladies!”

“Thank you for your enthusiasum, hyung, but I last time I tried, I’m pretty sure it was the last time that Yejin-noona is going to hook me up with someone.”

“It wasn’t that bad!” Yejin said, but pasued and nodded.  “Yeah, that was bad.”

Sungyeol smiled and asked, “Anyways, why aren’t you still dancing?”

“The kids needs rest,” Dongwoo said with a smile as he placed his hand on Yejin’s pregnant abdomen and Yejin returned his smile. 

“How are they today?” Sungyeol asked, concerned about Yejin. 

“It’s been a long day,” Yejin replied, moving her hands over her stomach.  “I think that he can tell that we’re excited.” 

The chair scrapped on the floor beside Sungyeol as Woohyun pulled out a chair and flopped down.  “Hey, what’s up?” he asked, stretching his arms over his head.  “Enjoying the wedding?”

“We have to enjoy this wedding, it's going to be the last one we have for a little while,” Sunggyu said as he joined the rest of them.  “Also, what is Nabi doing eating ice cream? You know her dad is going to kill you." 

Nabi looked up at the mention of her name and smiled an ice cream covered smile. “Where is Appa?” she asked as Sungyeol cleaned off the remaining ice cream from her cheeks. 

“I’m not sure,” Sungyeol said.  “But if we can’t find your dad by the end of the night, you can come and live with me!”

“Really?”

Sunggyu hit the back of Sungyeol’s head before smiling at Nabi.  “Your dad is over there with your mom.”

Nabi brightened when she saw her parents and rushed off on the dance floor as fast as her two-year-old’s legs would take her.  Smiling, Sungyeol shook his head fondly as Nabi’s father saw her coming and scooped her up in his arms lovingly, covering her cheeks with kisses.  “I can’t believe that it’s been four years since we went to his wedding.”

“Yeah... it’s going to be another ten years before we go to yours,” Woohyun said. 

“At least I’ll have a wedding,” Sungyeol fired back. 

Coughing, Sunggyu tried to cover up his laugh, but all of them could see Sunggyu’s smile.  Woohyun rolled his eyes and punched him on the shoulder.  “If I’m not going to have a wedding, you definitely aren’t too.”

“I bet that I’ll get married before any of you,” Hoya said, sitting down in the chair on Sungyeol’s other side.  “Also, Woohyun, you owe me.”

“What did you bet on?” Sungyeol asked, looking between the two. 

“That the groom would be late for his own wedding,” Woohyun grumbled as he forked over the money.  “He would’ve totally been late.”

“Have more faith in him,” Hoya said.  “Speaking of the groom, where is he?”

“He’s over there with his in-laws,” Dongwoo replied.  “I can’t belive that’s he’s married.”

“Me too.”

“Me too.”

“Me too.”

“Me too.”

“Lee Sungyeol!”

Sungyeol looked up, but then ducked again as Myungsoo came running across the floor and hit him a couple of times over the head.  “You gave Nabi ice cream?”

“Hey, just because you were deprived of ice cream during our trainee years and majority of your 20s doesn’t mean that you get to deny your daughter of ice cream,” Sungyeol defended, straightening out his suit as Myungsoo stopped hitting him. 

Myungsoo groaned and found a seat next to Dongwoo.  “She gets sugar rush, idiot,” he said.  “It’s going to take forever to put her to sleep.”

“I wonder where she gets that...” Woohyun said sarcastically, tapping his chin as if in thought.  “Let’s think...”

The whole table burst into laughter and Myungsoo scowled.  Dongwoo patted his thigh comfortingly as Nabi and her mother came out of the crowd.  “Appa!” Nabi called out happily and jumped into his lap. 

“Nabi!” Myungsoo kissed her cheek.  “Did you have fun dancing with your mom?”

“She’s a better dancer than you, sweetie,” his wife said gently, kissing him as she sat down.  

While Myungsoo pouted at his wife’s comment, the others laughed, agreeing with Sookyung’s statement. 

“Hey, hyungs.”

Everyone looked up in unison as Sungjong joined their table, smiling broadly. 

“There’s the groom!” Hoya said with a grin.  “Go joined those old married guys over there,” he said, pointing to Myungsoo and Dongwoo. 

“Hey!” Myungsoo complained. 

“So where is the beautiful bride?” Dongwoo asked. 

“Right here,” Sungjong said, holding out for his wife.  “Moon – Lee Daeun, meet your new crazy in-laws.”

“Welcome to the family, Daeun,” Woohyun said, giving Sungjong’s wife a hug. 

“I thought I was already part of the family a long time ago,” Daeun said with a smile. 

“Now that Sungjongie and Daeun are married, I’m married and have Nabi, and Dongwoo-hyung and Yejin-noona are married and expecting kids, everything is going to change, isn’t it?” Myungsoo said with a melancholy  smile. 

“Yeah... but no,” Sungjong said.  “There’s one going to stay the same.”

“And what’s that?”

“Us,” Sungjong replied simply.  The others laughed at him and Sungjong buried his face into Daeun’s shoulder. 

“Dongsaeng-ah,” Sunggyu said teasingly.  “How do you know that we’re going to not change?”

“Shut up,” Sungjong shot back, looking up from Daeun’s shoulder.  “Just forget it.”

“No, tell us!” Sungyeol demanded. 

Sungjong scowled at all of them as they laughed together and Daeun patted his thigh comfortingly.  “Tell me first,” she said. 

Leaning over, Sungjong whispered something in Daeun’s ear and promptly, she started laughing.  “Daeun!” Sungjong whinned as the others started laughing with her even though they didn’t know what she was laughing about.  “Stop laughing!  It’s not funny.”

“It’s funny,” Daeun said between fits of giggles.  “Really funny.”

With a sigh, Sungjong shook his head and leaned back in the seat.  “I give up.”

“What did he say?” Woohyun asked Daeun. 

“He said—”

Sungjong clapped a hand over Daeun’s mouth before she could finish.  “Don’t tell them.  They’re going to make fun of me forever if you do.”

“We already make fun of you.”

“What is it?” Sunggyu asked. 

“Tell me too, Uncle Jjong,” Nabi piped up from her spot in Myungsoo’s lap. 

With a sigh, Sungjong said, “Don’t laugh, okay?”

“Can’t say that we won’t,” Sunggyu said dryly, looking at the others. 

Without looking at any of them, Sungjong mumbled something under his breath. 

“What was that?” Sungyeol teased. 

Turning bright red, Sungjong yelled, “I said I know that we’re going not stop being Infinite because we promised on Infinite!”

For a moment, no one said anything, then Dongwoo and Myungsoo started laughing.  “I said don’t laugh!” Sungjong complained as the others started laughing too.   

“Wow, no wonder you didn’t want to say that,” Woohyun said as everyone was laughing.  “That’s even worse than what I can come up with.”  

“Oh shut up,” Sungjong fumed.  “Shut up...”

The others laughed as Sungjong tried to stop them from laughing.  Giving up, Sungjong stood up as a new song started to play. “Come on, Daeun, let’s go dance,” Sungjong said, offering a hand to help her stand up. 

As the couple left to the dance floor, Nabi jumped out of Myungsoo’s lap and hurried over to her mom.  “Umma!  I want to dance please!” she said, pulling Sookyung over to the dance floor, leaving the rest of the Infinite members alone. 

“Our Sungjong has grown up a lot,” Myungsoo said with a chuckle. 

“You all have,” Yejin said, “and you all owe it to that young man over there.”

The six of them looked at each other and promptly started laughing. 

“Fine! Go ahead and laugh,” Yejin said as she stood up.  “But you do.  And you all love Lee Sungjong a lot.  Don’t even try to deny that.”

After dropping a quick kiss on Dongwoo’s cheek, Yejin left Infinite at their table to head to the washroom.  On the dance floor, Sungjong held onto Daeun gently, singing the song into her ear lovingly. 

Somewhere up there, there is an angel,

Singing the same songs as I am.

Somewhere up there, fly with me

To the infinities behind the clouds

Tonight.

Woohyun chuckled as he leaned back in his chair to watch the newlywed couple dancing together to one of the songs from Sungjong’s solo album.  “We’re going to be Infinite forever, huh?”

“That’s true,” Sungyeol said.  “We did promise.”

Sunggyu smiled at Sungjong and Daeun on the dance floor.  “Our maknae is right.”

“Hyungs: 0.  Maknae: 1.”

2030년

“Guys... maybe he’s not coming back.”

“No.  He’s coming back.  We promised.”

“It’s been five years.  Maybe... it’s too long for him to be alone.”

“I did not come back here just to hear you say that.  He’s coming back.  I know it.”

“You can’t be this sure about something.  He’s not going to come back....”

“He is!  How can you lose faith this easily?”

“I’m not losing faith.  I’ve just come to terms with the slightest option that we might lose him.  We started losing him after that car crash and we lost him seven years ago on that beach. He said goodbye already.  He's gone"

"But he's not. He promised on Infinite." 

 Infinite.

It’s been 17 years since we met.  15 years since we first stood in front of an audience, bowed and said for the first time, “Hello, we are Infinite.”  Since that moment on June 9th I know none of us will forget, we’ve done so many things.  So many photoshoots, press conferences, concerts, music shows, plane rides... everything that we have ever done has passed in a blur. 

How many times have we danced like tomorrow we won’t be able to dance? How many songs have we sung? How many hours have we practiced, together or alone? How many times have we gone up onto stage with those bright lights on us?

How many times have we stood in front of cameras, audience, fans, and with a bow, announced, “Hello, we are Infinite.”?

We did all of these things countless times.  We’ve accomplished so many dreams, hyungs.  For the longest time, we’ve been those perfect people that the world has expected. 

During all of the interviews, in all those interview questions that we’ve been asked, there’s been one question that I always wanted to be asked.

“Sungjong, are you happy?”

Sometimes, I find myself lying in those interviews, but this time, I’ll be honest. 

Infinite... I don’t think I’ll ever be happy again. 

I’m sorry. 

I give up. 

The score will never be in my favour. 

Life: 3.  Sungjong: 0. 

행복하다 (haeng-bok-ha-da) a small moment that never lasts

Hello everyone! Okay, I'm really sorry that I haven't posted this for the past... 6 months. There can be a whole essay of reasons that I haven't been able to update, but the succinct version is that school has to be number one priority most of the time. I'm probably going to be able to update the next chapter a bit quicker than 6 months, hopefully around the like month mark at the latest, but who knows. I hope you liked this chapter and please comment and upvote and subscribe! ^^ See you soon (hopefully)!