Untouchable Secret

Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.
Dalai Lama
 

The great music hall, in good old CNBLUE tradition, was completely sold out. Providing this whole concert for their national fan base had been a blast for Jonghyun and his brothers so far. Playing such a long world tour could be tiresome at times for a musician’s body and soul, however, receiving all this love from the fans always made him think that each and every concert was worth it. Today even more, because his family was enjoying the ride with him.

Jonghyun felt strangely giddy when he climbed the stairs to get into position for his solo stage. He didn’t know if it was the song choice that made him nervous, her presence or the fact that his parents were still sitting in the audience cluelessly. Perhaps it was all of it combined.

This performance was going to be his special way of thanking Seungyeon for everything she had been through with him since they first started to go out; something like a homage to the peaks and lows of their relationship. Because it meant so much to him he had been racking his brain about which titles to choose. Now he just hoped for Seungyeon to be touched, too.

“Ahh, where to start? These last few months have been like a rollercoaster ride for me. First of all I want to thank all of you for coming to see us tonight. I will always be grateful for the support of our beloved fans. You’ve been with us since we debuted. You fulfilled our dream of becoming an internationally recognized band and didn’t stop cheering on us even when we went away to complete our military service. Therefore my brothers and I will continue to show our deep appreciation by putting our hearts and souls in each and every song we write and concert we play. I hope you enjoyed the night so far. There are a few more great songs waiting for you during this encore so please look forward to the rest or the show.” Jonghyun began his introduction, earning him a wave of pleased shouting.

When the joyful screaming started to die down he brought his microphone to his lips again to continue.

“As many of you know, it’s my birthday today.”

Jonghyun chuckled at the sudden rise of volume.

“But what you probably don’t know…”

It became quiet again.

“… is that my entire family is here with us tonight, too. You see, I was really surprised to meet everyone just before the concert. I never expected them to come since I originally made other plans. Thankfully I married a wise woman... Yeobo, for knowing my heart so well, gomawo. Out of all of the birthday presents I received, enjoying this meaningful event with my family tonight after spending such a long time apart feels like one of the greatest gifts to me. ” Jonghyun’s signature dimples appeared when the crowd started to applause and chant ‘Happy Birthday’ wishes. After a while he gave them a sign to let him speak again.

“A long time ago I said I wanted to become a happy husband in order to be an even better musician for my fans. My wife is here tonight, too. Please always continue to look favourably upon us.” Jonghyun asked his fans and when the volume rose again he knew he had their full support. He didn’t mind growing older at all since his fan base just seemed to do the same. Although he was still in South Korea it felt as though times had eventually changed.

“Seungyeonie, meeting you always felt fated to me, there is no doubt about it. When I stamped your thumb on the first day we met, asking you to promise me to become my wife I already knew that there was something exceptional about you. Since then we experienced so many things together, it sometimes seems surreal to me. Most importantly though I want you to know that you made me the happiest husband on earth with that early birthday present you gave me.” He said mysteriously, only for his wife to understand.

“Thank you for always accepting me for who I am. I know you missed me a lot while I was away, too. This is the first time I’ll sing our song at a concert. Please enjoy it. To all of you who are with us tonight, I hope you can travel back in time with me to one of the best moments of my life.” Jonghyun continued, keeping his gaze fixed on a row of seats close to a stage. He could watch Seungyeon covering with one hand, her mind literally going blank. She looked just as surprised as when she first travelled to Japan to meet him, although her eyes were gleaming suspiciously, too. No, she definitely hadn’t expected an event like this at all.

Satisfied with the first part of his surprise he indulged himself into the intro of Sky Blue Coat before he began to sing their song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fNEpSoko-4

After the last chords were played and the applause quietened down Jonghyun eventually started to speak again.  

“To be honest, life isn’t always just about butterflies and rainbows. Each and everyone here has probably encountered some difficulties during their lives and as much as it hurts at the time, it makes us appreciate even more the happy moments in life. Some of you might remember my kind of melancholic solo stage some years ago when I did a Korean cover of Yutaka Ozaki’s famous song. At that time, balancing my career as well as keeping a satisfied private life seemed almost impossible to me. It’s hard to believe now but there was a time when I felt like I had lost my path. Back then I feared that I would possibly have to give up one of the two. The mere thought of it tormented me and when I didn’t know what to do anymore I ultimately hit a low in my life.”

As he spoke the whole arena fell into silence. The crowd was basically sticking to his lips as he revealed a very personal story of his past. As true fans they understood how difficult the life of an idol could turn out, being away from home almost permanently, having a hard time to stay in contact with family and friends.

Jonghyun was proud of his fans for giving him and his brothers credit for it. Not every band made time to travel the whole world to please their fans. Especially now that some of them were already married. But CNBLUE was diligent when it came to their job and their loyal fans appreciated their hard work by supporting them no matter what.  

“So I am going to tell you a secret tonight... When I sang the aforementioned solo, my wife and I only knew each other for nine months and we had been in a relationship since my birthday of the very year. We were both