Under The Stage Light.

- SNSD, you are next.

Seohyun checked up herself one last time before moving with her members to the stage, and couldn't stop herself from looking around with a faint hope that she would catch the sight of them. But they were nowhere to be found. Her friends and colleagues in the backstage were cheering for them, and Seohyun gave everyone a polite smile as usual. 

 - You will do great! - Minho patted her shoulders

- Don't worry! -  Suho gave Soshi the fighting gestures and all Soshi gigled.

They really had nothing to worry about. The 2013 Dream Concert was not the 2008 Dream Concert, and So Nyeo Shi Dae of the moment was no longer the same So Nyeo Shi Dae back then. They were the new girl group in 2008 with scandals after scandals, but Gee, Genie, and many other activities had made them The National Girl Group that Korea treasured dearly. 

- SNSD on stand by.

Soshi hurried into their positions for The Boy performance. Seohyun, again, looked around as it was a habit that she had for every Dream Concert. She bit her lips because she was confused about their abscence. They promised.

- 3!

"Seo Joohyun" Someone was calling her name. 

- 2!

She turned around and her eyes lit up instantly. They were standing next to each other, waving and mouthing something to her. 

- 1! 

Seohyun turned back and focused on her performance. She knew what they said without having to guess, and at that moment, she was ready to face everything, even when it could be another Black Ocean. 

Seohyun could hear the fan cheering quite loud even before the performance started. 

Then, the light was on. 

Seohyun blinked a few times. The lights on any stage were always too bright that it was hard for any artist to see too far into the crowd. And so, the only thing that they could notice were those people in the front, and the cheerings from the fans, if it was loud enough.

Seohyun had expected the cheering to be quite powerful, judging from the amount of fans that they had have at the point. However, the fanchants were far beyond her imagination: they were too stentorian to the point that she had to concentrate to make sure that she would not miss a beat. 

"I wish that we had just half of this fanchants in 2008"

She smiled at the thought. Truthfully, Soshi couldn't see the Black Ocean, and the only thing that made them guess that something was not right was the faint cheerings instead of those loud ones for other performances. 

The performance ended before Seohyun realized. As Soshi smiled and looked at each other, they knew that all their sweats, tears and blood were well paid-off.

When SNSD stepped off the stage, their friends and colleagues were once again cheering enthusiastically as if they had also gone crazy like the fans outside. As Seohyun gave everyone her usual demure smile, her gaze wondered around to find the familiar figures. Finally, she caught them standing afar from the crowd, and with the overwhelming emotions from the performance, she almost made a reckless decision: she wanted to run into their hugs. 

However, it was as if they sensed her feelings without any communication, that Changmin suddenly chuckled and Kyuhyun put a finger on his mouth, hinting her to stay calm. Seohyun gigled and stopped abruptly, which made Sunny, who trailed behind, stumbled upon her. 

- Yah maknae, you are not alone.

- Unnie. - Seohyun turned around, but before she could apologize, Sunny winked 

- I know, maknae. 

And Seohyun could only smiled thankfully at her. 

As Seohyun excused herself right after the ending, she decided to have a little walk before joining her group on the back to the dorm. And there they were, at a small corner, like many times before.

- I thought you had left. - She sat down next to them and whispered. - You should. It was already too much for you to come here, even though you don't have to perform. 

Kyuhyun chuckled. Changmin chortled.

- We promised you. 

Words had became redundant and inadequate for them, so she smiled happily like a child, as they quietly embraced her once again.

Yes, they did. 

Years ago. 

At the Dream Concert 2008, Soshi tried to keep their composure as they walked off the stage and started realizing that everyone turned off their lightsticks during their performance, except for SONE. However, as they reached the backstage, the girls could no longer hold it in. They were young, hopeful, and inexperienced. They could not understand how the world suddenly seemed so cruel. 

Taeyeon and Tiffany reached out to each other. SooYoung, Jessica, and Hyoyeon held hands while leaning back against the wall. YoonA cried on Yuri's shoulders and Sunny pulled them into a hug. Seohyun was busy consoling Taeyeon, then YoonA at first, but when she realized that they were all too busy with their own grieves, she felt that she needed to have her own space. 

To grieve on her own. 

Without anyone knowing her vulnerable and imperfect side. 

And she ran away. 

In her blurry memory of that night, she was not sure who came to her first in the small, hot, and humid corner. The only thing that she remembered was Kyuhyun's broad shoulders which she leaned on to cry her heart out, and Changmin's gentle hands that caress her hair and soothed her pains. 

That night, they promised her. 

They promised that they would be there for her for all the Dream Concerts, so she knew that she would always had them as her fans, cheering and watching her, no matter what happened. 

And despite their busy schedules, they had always never failed her once. 

To be with her on every Dream Concert.

To be her knights in shining armors. To be her guardian angels. 

A/N: Happy birthday to me!