⊱ ♫ ────── ⋆Jaebeom⋆ ────── ♫ ⊰
Our last night in Houston was tense. We were all thinking about the LA show and how I was going to fulfill my promise to our fans. From the other room, I could hear Mark talking with his dad on the phone.
"I know you expected me to stay with you and Mom tomorrow night, but something came up and I really need to be with the rest of the guys," he was explaining.
Without hearing the other end of the conversation, I could tell by Mark's response that his dad was concerned and was trying to find out the reason for this change from how he'd always done things every other time we'd been to town for an event.
"No, nothing's wrong. You don't need to worry. It's a good thing," he was trying to reassure Papa Tuan. He continued, "You know how Jaebeom has been doing surprise announcements throughout the tour? It's dealing with that, and we have a lot to prepare for as a group. I probably won't be able to meet up with you until after the second show either, but I'll make up for it as I'll get to spend Christmas with you all instead. Okay?"
As Mark joined the rest of us in the living area of the hotel suite, he smiled reassuringly at me and Sharay. His smile, however, didn't reach his eyes. We were all feeling anxious about how the announcement that I was dating would go over the following night. We knew his parents would be supportive and could keep a secret, but there was always an entourage of Mark's "friends" trying to muscle in on things and it would be difficult to explain to Papa and Mama Tuan why they needed to be excluded. This was easier under the circumstance.
Now that I fully understood English, I had gone back through the Snapchat posts from our FLY tour in LA and realized that Mark's friends were not necessarily ones who could be trusted. I wouldn't go so far as to say they were snakes, like some Ahgases did, but I was also aware that even unintentional comments and posts could undermine what we had planned. There was no sense not being cautions. Wisdom dictated that we learn from past events so as to avoid any possible repeats.
We were schedule to depart from Houston early in the morning and get to LA mid morning. We'd been to the same venue several times before so didn't need as much prep time as we were familiar with the layout and all there. We'd do a single dry run of everything in the early afternoon; everything except our closing remarks. Those we would run through at the hotel away from staff and possible outsiders.
As we wrapped up the evening, I walked Sharay back to the suite she was sharing with her mom and Daniel. I entered her room to give her a quick hug and kiss goodnight since we would be traveling separately tomorrow. I hoped we'd be able to travel together starting tomorrow evening, but Sharay's comment that she would not stand in the way of my career if the fans didn't accept our dating, loomed large. Until now I was able to put it from my mind. As the hours and minutes ticked by though, I became acutely aware that this may be the last time she would mine before she cut ties with me "for my own good."
As I held onto her, like she was a life line, and I a drowning man, I spotted Daniel standing in the doorway of his bedroom. He was looking at us with fierce determination written all over his face. As Sharay turned to head to bed, Daniel called out to me.
"Jaebeom Hyung, can we talk a moment?"
༺ ¤○•° Sharay °•○¤ ༻
The venue in LA was buzzing. The fans here seemed more down to earth. I assumed it was because it was Mark's hometown and they felt a special kinship with GOT7 because of that.
The music, games, and interaction between the boys and between them and the fans was over the top. There was an entire row one level above us filled with Mark's friends and family. Papa Tuan and Mama Tuan were obviously huge supporters of their son, but they were clearly there for the entire group.
As the fan meet progressed, the feeling of dread escalated in me. My pulse was racing and jumpy. My hands were sweaty and shaky too. Every breath seemed to be a challenge; like it would be my last.
As I looked at Jaebeom on stage, I knew that breaking up with him would be the only right thing to do, if the fans rejected the fact that we were dating. He belonged up there. He was the consummate showman. His singing, dancing, and song writing skills were unparalleled, and to deny him and his fans that would be the most selfish thing I could do. I reasoned that if anyone had to be hurt, I was only one person versus Jaebeom, the rest of GOT7, and all their fans. I think I'd been praying nonstop for several days, asking God to soften the hearts of the fans, as I wasn't sure how I'd be able to function without Jaebeom in my life. Watching him from afar would be too painful. I realized if it came to that, I'd be better off cutting all ties with him and, frankly, anything to do with KPOP. Anything else would be too painful a reminder of what I'd lost.
Fearing the worst and preparing as best I could for it, I still tried to keep a positive outlook in front of Jaebeom. I didn't want to add to the stress I knew he was already under. I did wonder what Daniel had talked to him about the night before though.
⊱ ♫ ────── ⋆Jaebeom⋆ ────── ♫ ⊰
I always tried to give my personal best to each and every performance. Tonight, however, I performed like my very life was on the line. In reality, if I lost Sharay, I knew it would feel as though I had died. I didn't dare allow myself to even contemplate such a possibility. I had to have faith that the fans would we moved and would support us.
"Hey! I'm your boy Bambam. Did you guys have a great night?" asked our Thai member. "Have you liked what we did tonight and during the rest of the tour?"
The crowd responded enthusiastically, so Bambam continued. "Jaebeom Hyung has given you all some great surprises this tour, right? Did you see the fancams from the other venues?" Again they roared with enthusiasm. "We decided tonight we'd each share some of our favorite moments of this tour so far."
Youngjae, using an interpreter chimed in, "Hello Im' your sunshine otter Youngjae," said our vocalist with a great big belly laugh. "One of my favorite parts of this tour was the announcement that Jaebeom is going to collaborate with Lin-Manuel Miranda the mastermind behind the musical "Hamilton." I think this will be just the start of more collaborations with US artists."
It seemed fitting that he'd chosen to talk about that, given his earlier involvement with Sanjoy and Elliot Yamen.
Yugyeom also used an interpreter and he offered, "Hello. I'm Yugyeom your dancing maknae. One thing that really stood out for me during this tour was meeting Jane in Houston. I think she represents all our fans that support us fully. She made me so proud of all Ahgases because she showed that she really knew Jaebeom and was able to support him and keep his secret even when it was a challenge to do so. That loyalty and love is the hallmark of the IGOT7 fandom that is unparalleled. I love you all and thank you for standing with us through thick and thin."
I smiled as they each chimed in with comments that were not only true, but were geared to encourage the fans to have the right frame of mind when I made my announcement.
"Yo LA! Whassup?" yelled Mark. "I'm Mark. I know my hometown always has our back and our best interests at heart. Thanks for supporting us. You know we'll always continue to give you everything we've got and will come back again with even better songs and better performances. We love you!"
Though Jinyoung was still working on improving his English, and he was nowhere near as fluent as I was, he had planned his final comments in English. "Hi! I'm Jinyoung. Some of you are still calling me Junior. 하지마!" This comment was met with laughter as he was adored for his savage remarks and biting comments.
"This tour has been the easiest for us as a group because Jaebeom has been able to speak English and act as our leader here instead of relying on Jackson and Bambam. We never looked to Mark as he doesn't speak much on a good day." Jinyoung, my JJP partner, followed it up by giving some top notch aegyo and his trademark, "Wae?"
Not leaving things there, Jinyoung ended things by asking the loaded question, "Aren't you thankful to Jaebeom Hyung's English instructors?" which elicited the desired affirmative response from the entire arena.
Next was Jackson, who was at his hyper showman best to begin with by ripping off his T-shirt and throwing it to those in the front rows while flexing his muscles.
"Jai Er. Jackson," he said while giving all the girls and many a guy a heart attack by his actions. "I've really loved this tour. It's been the best. I have to say that my game partner in Miami changed my life. As most of you know, I've struggled with self esteem problems since switching from fencing to becoming an idol. I lost the self confidence I once had and I tended to compare myself with others, especially my height, and well... that was a self defeating thing since I am the shortest in this group. I've also never really believed people when they complimented me about my talent or my looks. Though I know I have plenty of room for improvement, and will continue to work on myself and my skills, my game partner freed me of the lies that had been paralyzing me and holding me back from moving forward. I no longer focus on the negative, but am looking at the truth and the possibilities. For that I will be forever grateful."
It was my turn to close things down, but first I had to make good on a promise.
༺ ¤○•° Sharay °•○¤ ༻
As the guys began their closing remarks, I realized that they were trying to set the stage for the best chance of a positive reception of Jaebeom's announcement. With each member's comment I felt honored that they recognized me for so many things. I was in tears by the time Jackson was done speaking and almost missed it when Daniel said he was heading to the bathroom shortly before Yugyeom started talking.
I guess I was so worried that it didn't dawn on me that it was a very inopportune time for him to leave. By the time Jinyoung had spoken, my fingers were aching as I was clenching the armrests so hard. Just after Jackson wrapped up his comments, I cracked my knuckles against my face to relieve the stress. From the corner of my eye I could see my mom checking on me. She looked tense as well. I started to fidget because Daniel hadn't returned yet. I really wanted his support when Jaebeom took the stage.
⊱ ♫ ────── ⋆Jaebeom⋆ ────── ♫ ⊰
As Jackson finished his comments, he turned to me with a reassuring smile. Though I'd performed hundreds of times, I'd never been so nervous. I felt as though I was moving in slow motion as I proceeded to the front and center of the stage. I took a deep breath before beginning and as I exhaled I could feel the nerves diminish a touch. Having said that, I was aware that I was holding the microphone tightly and that my palms were sweating.
'Start off with the easy stuff,' I told myself, in an effort to regain some semblance of composure. I knew my voice got a bit tight when I was worried and I needed it to sound as confident as I was about my love for Sharay.
"Hey everyone. I'm JB!," I began. "This tour has been fantastic, right!"
I paused to wait for the crowd's feedback to die down. For the most part, they seemed so interested in hearing me speak English, and my instructions at prior venues that I would only talk if they were silent seemed to have been passed along, that it wasn't long before there was quite in the hall.
"I'm sorry that I was so lacking as a leader and a member before. I'm humbled that you put up with me not being able to communicate with you all directly before. I'm sure I missed out on some great conversations and comments in the past because of my poor English skills. These couples of weeks have allowed me to get to know so many of you on a more personal level, though a few of you have proposed some things that made me blush! I have to wonder if I was asked something similar in the past and I just stood there nodding like a fool with a stupid grin on my face. The thought of that makes me laugh and cringe at the same time," I said, which was followed by laughter from the fans.
I took a deep breath and said a silent prayer then launched into what I really wanted to say.
"I want you all to know that I love what I do. It's not just the music and dancing that I love. I love these guys I work with. They're like brothers to me. I also love seeing how what we do makes you all happy and I never want to lose any of this. Our, my, relationship with you all is precious to me. That's why, tonight, I'm going to make good on a promise I made to you all several months ago."
No one said a word, but I could hear people restlessly shifting in their seats in anticipation of the news. I mentally visualized Sharay in the audience and knew she would would be on edge. I wanted to get this done, so we would know how things were going to go, but I didn't want to rush it to the point that I blew it. Been there. Done that with my confession to her. There were no 'do overs' this time.
I decided to launch right in. I could see the guys on either side of me giving me subtle, yet encouraging, smiles.
"This past summer it was incorrectly reported that I was involved in a dating scandal. In response, I held a press conference where I promised to let our fans know if I started to date rather than date in secret. Today, I'm meeting that promise."
I stopped there to let my words sink in. It took a few beats and then the entire arena erupted. Though there were a number of people clapping and cheering, the vast majority were not as gracious. I heard loud boos, yells of 'NO!' and 'how could you' and even a couple saying they hated my girlfriend. Some were even hissing, sobbing and crying. Why did I not envision this possibility? Why had I been so sure they would support us? How could I have been so wrong?
I could feel the blood draining from my face, while my feet seemed rooted and my body frozen in place. My vision started to blur and the sounds around me seemed to wash over me like when tossed by a large wave. I felt like I was drowning and couldn't break free from the whitewater that was spinning me and trapping me. I couldn't see a way out – a way to get air. I'd been tightly gripping the microphone, but all of a sudden my arm felt as heavy as lead and it dropped to my side. I couldn't feel my fingers and the microphone slipped from my hand, landing on the stage floor with a deafening thud and a feedback screech that momentarily stopped the crowd's response. Everything seemed to be happening in slow motion.
I felt like I was having an out of body experience. I sensed wet tears streaming down my face and all I could think of was Sharay sitting amongst the fans booing the two of us. I wanted to run to her side to comfort her, but knew that was impossible. My only consolation was that she had her mom and brother to support her.
Out of my periphery, I saw a figure approach, stoop down, and pick up the microphone I'd dropped a spit second before. A hand was on my shoulder. I could feel life slowly stream from that hand back into my body.
✧ °∘• Daniel •°∘✧
"I'll be back. Gotta go to the bathroom," I said to my mom and sister. Without waiting for a response, I quickly got up from my seat and made my way towards the side exit. As I walked, I reached into my pocket and pulled out the paper I'd sequestered there. Looking at the crude drawing, I exited the auditorium, turned right and headed down a series of corridors until I found the door I was looking for.
Carefully, I counted and I knocked on the door in a series of intricate tapping sounds. Fortunately, I'd practiced a bit and apparently got it right, as the door opened as soon as I'd completed the secret code. I found myself near the back of the stage on the right side – left side as you looked at the stage from the audience. I was ushered to the side of the stage, just out of sight behind a barricade, by a staff member. Though he had no idea why I was there, he was apparently apprised of where I needed to be.
Left alone, I heard Jackson start his remarks. Talking a moment to collect myself I reflected on the night before at the Houston hotel.
━━━━━━ ♫ ◈ ♫ ━━━━━━
FLASHBACK
━━━━━━ ♫ ◈ ♫ ━━━━━━
"Daniel, no matter what I'm trusting you to protect and be there for your sister,' Jaebeom Hyung had told me as he was leaving our room.
"I will Hyung. I'll protect you both," I assured him.
"Forget about me. Focus on her. That's your job. Got it?" he emphasized.
"Sure," I'd replied, knowing that I needed to focus on both, since my sister would only be happy if Jaebeom Hyung was okay and the same for him.
After Jaebeom left, I headed to the bathroom to brush my teeth. My phone on the side of the sink was buzzing, so I rinsed and checked the message that had been received.
//Meet us by the ice machine in 5 minutes – Jackson//
As I finished up in the bathroom, I casually walked over to the ice bucket and said to no one in particular, "I'm heading out to get some ice. Back in a bit." Grabbing a room key, I left quietly.
"Daniel, thanks for meeting with us," Jackson said. All of GOT7, with the exception of Jaebeom Hyung were huddled in the vending and ice machine area on our floor.
Mark took charge at this point. "Daniel, I'm concerned that Jaebeom has overlooked how crazy fickle our fans can be. This town isn't as generous as some and we're concerned they may turn against him and our sister. It's a case of 'plan for the best but prepare for the worst'."
I knew things were serious, as this was more talking than I'd heard from Mark during the entire time since Miami.
"What can I do?" I asked, genuinely concerned and hoping they had a plan, as I was way out of my depth here.
"Glad you asked," chimed in Jinyoung. "This is what we were thinking..."
With that they outlined a Plan B in the event things started to look bad.
━━━━━━ ♫ ◈ ♫ ━━━━━━
END OF FLASHBACK
━━━━━━ ♫ ◈ ♫ ━━━━━━
I heard how the crowd was responding and knew that Plan B was definitely needed. I only hoped that it would be effective; that I would be effective. It was a gamble and not knowing exactly what I would be faced with, I had prepared a few thoughts but was really going to have to improvise. Fortunately, my training as an actor included a focus on improv and I was, according to directors and casting agents, pretty good at it. This, however, wasn't an audition and a lot rode on how I handled things.
Jaebeom Hyung had stopped talking and I saw his arm drop and his mic crash to the floor. "THUD –squeeeaaal." The microphone was emitting feedback and stunned the crowd momentarily. This was my cue, if ever there was one.
I walked quickly, yet confidently on to the stage, and picked up the microphone abandoned by Jaebeom Hyung and placed a hand on his shoulder to ground the two of us.
༺ ¤○•° Sharay °•○¤ ༻
Daniel hadn't returned by the time Jaebeom started talking. I was getting super concerned and my mom held my hand trying to silently reassure me. But, when Jaebeom announced that he was fulfilling the promise of telling them when he was dating, the place rapidly transitioned into mayhem.
All around me I could hear girls wailing and crying. Some were booing and hissing. A few voices issuing death threats against me could also be picked up. I felt as though I'd been stripped naked and thrown in front of a jeering crowd. If I could have run, I would have, but there was no place to go. Tears were streaming uncontrollably down my face. I guess I must have looked like I was upset about the news like so many others, but the truth was, I knew that I would never be able to see Jaebeom again.
My heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vice. It hurt so badly that I had to pound on it with my fist to try and create another form of pain to distract me from it. Simultaneously, my stomach started to hurt and I could sense that I was about to vomit.
My eyes never left Jaebeom who was standing on stage. He seemed alone and defeated. His eyes looked as though they were glazing over and all of a sudden his arm collapsed to his side and the microphone he'd been holding crashed to the floor with a loud thumb followed by a squeal of feedback. The feedback was apparently very loud as many held their hands to their ears, and momentarily the noise in the arena was arrested. I, by contrast, could barely hear the sound as I felt as though everything had been muffled.
It was then that I noticed movement at the side of the stage and a person emerged and made his way to Jaebeom, picked up the abandoned mic and placed a comforting hand on my boyfriend's shoulder.
I took a shaky breath and could almost feel the warmth of that very same hand, as if it were resting on my shoulder too. I knew that hand and that feeling all too well. It belonged to my younger brother, Daniel.
I had no idea how he got there or what he was doing, but for a sense of hope began to well up in me. 'Could Daniel be my answer to prayer?'
✧ °∘• Daniel •°∘✧
This situation was worse than any the guys and I had envisioned. I needed to get their attention and get it fast. I needed to control this crowd and calm things down. I only hoped I could rise to the challenge.
"Hajima!" I said with as commanding a voice as I could muster without yelling.
That startled the audience. Along with my unexpected presence and being an unknown, they didn't start back up with their protests about Jaebeom dating, but seemed to settle in to see what I had to say.
I nearly giggled when the thought crossed my mind that they may be thinking that he was dating me! Ha! Not likely.
"I'm Daniel," I offered by way of introduction. "Thank you to those of you who were happy for Jaebeom when he announced that he was dating. You are truly wonderful people. I know how hard it is to have hopes and dreams of dating your bias only to find out that he's found someone he loves."
At this I changed tone, "As for those of you who booed and jeered; you should be ashamed of yourselves. How hypocritical! You want him as your boyfriend but are unable to be happy for him when he's happy with someone else? How would you feel if it were you he was dating having to hear those rude and selfish comments?"
I paused briefly to let my words sink in then continued. "I'd always heard that this fandom was different; that the people who called themselves Ahgases were kind, caring, loyal, and supportive of GOT7 as a whole and of each of the members individually."
I could tell my words were starting to have some think about their actions, so I went on. "Not a moment ago you were cheering and thrilled about the people who taught Jaebeom Hyung how to speak English. His English instructors were my mom and my sister. By the way, I'm the younger brother of Jaebeom Hyung's girlfriend." I paused again letting that sink in.
You could almost hear the light bulb go off simultaneously in the minds of thousands of fan girls. I knew I was on the right track so ratcheted things up even more by adding, "You were also excited about Jaebeom Hyung collaborating with Lin-Manuel Miranda. Who do you think introduced the musical Hamilton to JB? Yeah. That would be my sister and his girlfriend, again."
By this time there were excited murmurs running through the crowd. Taking a deep breath and controlling the anger I'd felt and focusing on reconciling these crazing fan girls with Jaebeom and, by association my sister, I stated, "During the Miami fanmeet my mom, sister and I were in the P3 section. Though we'd been offered P1 seating by JYP, we didn't want to take away the opportunity for other fans to get up close and personal with GOT7. Amazingly enough, my ticket was randomly chosen as one to participate in the games. As an early Christmas present, I gave the chance to my sister. You all loved her at the time and eagerly cheered for her when Jackson shared how much she had helped him with his self esteem as his game partner."
You could hear an audible gasp from those in the arena. They were finally catching on how influential my sister was and how much she had done for Jaebeom and GOT7. I figured I'd drop the last one on them for good measure.
"Who besides Jaebeom Hyung would honor his promise to you like he did when it could blow up in his face? Also as a final point, I want you all to know that my sister really loves Jaebeom Hyung; so much so that if you don't accept them as a couple, she's vowed to break it off with him. You see, she refuses to get in the way of his career and that of the rest of GOT7 and wouldn't do anything to interfere with the boys and you all. Let that sink in for a moment. Where many of you selfishly wanted him not to date, she selflessly is willing to let him go if that would be the best for him. Ask yourselves this: has his performance, fan service, energy or time been less than before or greater? Greater, right? If my sister is forced to break up with him because of you all, do you think Jaebeom Hyung will be happy? Do you think his performance, fan service and energy will be the same or will it be negatively impacted, as he would be facing the loss of someone he loves?" I said.
With all my training in speech and communication, I learned that every speech needed a call to action to wrap things up. This was going to be the litmus test to see if their dating would be accepted. I slowly scanned the audience. Well, truth be told with the lighting I couldn't see anyone really, but I imagined locking eyes with as many people as I could. I wanted to make this a personal approach, so tried to convey that as best I could when I concluded by asking, "So, are you going to be selfish hypocrites and cause both Jaebeom Hyung and my sister the loss of each other, or are you going to uphold the reputation of Ahgases as the best and most loyal fandom every and support Jaebeom Hyung dating my sister?"
To my side, Jaebeom Hyung had dropped to his knees, basically begging for acceptance. I'd intended it as a rhetorical question, but slowly the audience began clapping and the cheers began to increase in volume and intensity. I could make out a few shouts of '미안하다', 'We support you JB', '화이팅', '울지 마라 (Don't cry) JB', 'We love you no matter what', and more.
I looked down at Jaebeom and offered him my hand to help him up. He looked exhausted, both physically and emotionally. As he stood, he turned and gave be a hug and kept thanking me over and over again. I offered him the microphone and backed away heading towards the side of the stage and the exit but was intercepted by the other members who patted me on the back and ruffled my hair. Jackson picked me up in a bear hugged and shook me up and down in excitement.
⊱ ♫ ────── ⋆Jaebeom⋆ ────── ♫ ⊰
Despair and loneliness at the thought of the impending breaking up Sharay had said would occur, if we weren't accepted, threatened to swallow me whole. It took a moment for me to realize that the hand on my shoulder belonged to Sharay's younger brother Daniel. I could barely discern what he was saying at first, but slowly his words started to filter through. He was controlling the audience like a pro, I thought. How bizarre that I could evaluate such things at a time like this!
I was amazed that this 13 year-old kid was able to steer and maneuver the crowd so deftly. Daniel alternated between encouraging them, berating them, reminding them of their prior responses to Sharay's good points when they had been unaware it was regarding her, and a straight up guilt trip. He put them in Sharay's shoes and helped them to envision me as a lifeless, listless corpse of an entertainer without her. Slowly, they started to reflect on their behavior and I started to see some possibility of hope.
I'd wonder how I could have been so wrong about how Ahgases would respond. As Daniel talked, I realized that they truly were a fantastic bunch of fans; they merely needed some guidance to get there.
As a thousand thoughts swirled through my head I wondered how Daniel got on stage without being stopped, if Sharay was okay, and whether other fans would react the way this crowd did in the beginning or after hearing Daniel. It was with that thought that I hoped there were people filming this whole thing so it could be uploaded. I only hoped it would play as well on video as it did live.
As Daniel wrapped up his comments, I dropped straight to my knees to make it clear that I was actually begging for their support. Over and over I mouthed the words. "Please!" and "제발!"
Finally, Daniel extended his hand and helped pull me to my feet. He gave me a hug and passed me the microphone before moving to head off stage. I saw the other guys embrace him and before he could escape to safety he was being shaken up and down by Jackson like a he was a portable jackhammer.
I couldn't form any words just yet, but instead bowed at a full 90 degrees. Finally, I stood upright and brought the microphone to my mouth. "Thank you," I said, my mouth still dry like I'd been chewing on sawdust. I was guardedly optimistic at this point. Knowing instinctively that we needed to end on a high note, I asked, "Would you all like one last song?"
Before waiting for an answer, I signaled the crew and the members. The lights went down and we got into place for a final number. I'd prepared this "Just in case," and was so glad I had.
We finished up the fan meet and went backstage to prepare for the High Touch and photo opportunity. I was emotionally a wreck but needed to speak with Sharay to make sure she was okay. I couldn't wait a couple of hours until we got back to the hotel. Picking up my cell, I called her.
"Yes," she answered.
"I love you. You know that, right? Know that I wouldn't have let you break up with me even if they'd never come around," and she quietly cried into the phone, probably as much out of relief as anything else. "I'll see you in a few hours, okay? Please tell Daniel I owe him big time!"
During the High Touch, just about everyone said they supported me and my girlfriend. Strange how no one admitted that they'd been one of the ones to boo or start off hating the idea of me dating. Funny thing is a lot of the younger girls wanted to know if they'd be seeing more of Daniel. Ha! He already had his own little fandom. Can't say he didn't earn it. Even during the group photo people were still talking about the dating thing.
As we got back to the hotel, I headed straight for Sharay's room. My knock on the door was promptly answered by TJ. She let me in and called, "Daniel, let's head down to the lobby for a bit," while she gave be a hug and nodded her head in understanding.
After Daniel and TJ closed the door, I briskly walked to the bedroom where Sharay was curled up. I could tell from her breathing that she was sleeping. Probably she was exhausted from the stress of it all. I crawled onto the bed beside her and wrapped my arms around my girl. She stirred and rolled over. Opening her eyes and seeing me beside her, she nestled in and held me tightly. It was enough to just lay there with her in my arms. I'd almost lost this and it still felt so fragile.
I knew about 50 videos were being posted that were supporting us, as we lay there in each other's arms. Over a dozen other idols and actors were also confessing that they were dating. It was hoped that having a number of such confessions at the same time would diffuse the attention on any one person.
Bambam, bless him, had arranged to have my comments and Daniel's recorded in HD and with direct audio feed from the microphone. That was also being uploaded too. Apparently, the members and Daniel had conspired while in Houston, so everything had been set in place in advance. Seeing the reaction of the fans tomorrow night during LA's second night would be the final test. For now, I was just going to focus on the moment. I was so thankful that the guys were behind me and that they had conspired with Daniel for his game changing involvement. I felt blessed to have their support and this girl of mine.
As sleep overtook me, I was vaguely aware of someone coming in the room and covering me with a blanket and lying down on the other bed nearby. My eyes were too heavy to open, but I assumed it was TJ. Just before succumbing to sleep I was able to mutter something I hoped remotely resembled, "엄마 감사합니다."