김재중 ~~ ♥♥♥ you forever
Follow Your Dream
(a story of 김재중 /TVXQ)
A few years ago, there was a story. Somewhere in Korea, a 15 year old boy bid goodbye to the city that had raised him. He gathered up a few pieces of luggages saying goodbye to 8 sisters and 2 parents who loves him deeply. He got on the train to Seoul, his family cried at the sight of his back walking away. The boy heard his loved ones crying for him, but he was afraid to look back, because he knew if he looked back, he wouldn’t have the heart to leave them. However, he didn’t want to throw away his dream and he didn’t want his family to see his tears. Just like that, with a very thin jacket in a freezing winter, for the sake of his dream, the boy left his home town for the first time in 15 years, to a big city he has only seen in his dreams.....
Finally, the train has stopped, the boy got off of the train. He looked at his surrounding, the strange yet fancy city and all its glory, busy streets, limelights. He has never seen anything like this before in his life and he felt his heart grows weak because it was so overwhelming. Can he really find his place in a city like this? The boy hesitated, his faith was shaken.
However, the dream he has in his heart can’t be thrown away. If he just returned back home, he would never forgive himself for being such a weak and a coward person. So,without any help or anyone, the boy found himself an apartment at the size of a tuna can and called it home.
Then finally, they big day arrived. SM Entertainment, the biggest music entertainment company in Korea held the singing audition. The boy went in. In the lobby, he saw so many other boys and they were just like him hoping to get picked through this contest so they can be on their way to be a great singer. All the contestants were well-dressed, they were wearing the coolest clothes, with high-end mp3 players in their ears when they did practice. The boy looked down on his plain grey t-shirt and jeans, he felt like he has already lost half of the battle.
He was contestant number 12, he walked into the audition room. There sat 5 stone cold expressionless judges. He was so nervous, until a judge asked him to sing.
When he sang, his voice touched everyone in the room. The voice was pure,soft and when you've listened to his voice, you couldn't help but feel the sadness and tons of emotions. It made you to listen to his voice forever and lost in the sound of his voice. But still, his voice was too soft and too weak....with no technique at all.
At the end , the reason the boy won the contest because he has a flawless face, perfect skin, long eyelashes, delicate features that are even prettier than girl, big watery eyes, pouty lips, and that white as snow skin. People from SM said his face was born to be in the entertainment business.
Finally,he got signed by SM with a 7 year of contract, two years of training. However he has to pay for all of his music, dancing and other classes. If he continued this, the next five years he would actually become an entertainer. Seeing himself that much closer to his dream, the boy signed the contract with the parents agreement not knowing in the next two years, his life will be extremely hard like he
has never experienced before......but he knew this was his dream, so he could not give up.
So he begun those two hard years. He knew his family isn’t well off, so he has never asked his parents for a penny. Everyday he jumped in between 3 different jobs. When everyone else was still sleeping, he would've drop off a stack of newspapers that are heavy as he is, he would've ride an old bike and deliver those newspapers. In the afternoon he would've worked in construction site for part time job. Can't imagine that gorgeous face was being covered by those pounds of cement and dirt. After his music lessons early in the afternoon, he would've walked for 3 hours to another part time job in the restaurant in order to save a few pennies. He quietly did his job and quietly took on everything a 15 years old shouldn’t do. He quietly did everything he could to get through these two rough years...... All for the day he will be surrounded by bright lights.
The boy did everything he could, but he still couldn’t manage three meals a day. Every time he got his salary, the first things he did was paying for his lessons even if the left over wasn’t nearly enough for him to eat or to buy any clothes. Finally one day, the boy realized he didn’t have any money left for food and he had been starving for two days. His weak body shouldn’t even be walking, but he managed to work as he has had to pay for his classes. That night, when he was cleaning a table at the restaurant, he saw a customer has left more than half bowl of his noodle soup. It was still hot and he couldn’t take the hunger anymore. His hands were shaking.. he picked up a spoon and started to eat the left over noodles. He wondered why it starts to taste so salty.. then he realized it was his tears.. has dropped down in the bowl without him realizing it.
One day, the boy got sick. He was running a high fever and he laid in his tiny little apartment for three straight days. Thank God he already paid for his lessons, but he was missing his 3 days of job. So once again, the boy dragged his fragile body walking three hours to his restaurant job.
On the way back, he saw a blood donating booth. His stomach growled and again the boy once again did something he didn’t want to. He walked inside and after an hour, he came out with a few bills in his hand. He dragged his lifeless body into a store and bought the cheapest pack of ramyeon.
Finally, he got through those two years and he was chosen to be in a group of five.The company have announced that this was going to be the one of the best group of all times. Even though the five boys are very different but the company believed that they will be perfect. The boys thought he was so lucky to be chosen in such group and at the same time he was being the oldest. He got four younger “brothers” who adores him.
When they have sold their first EP, even though there were only two songs on there, they topped the charts in Korea. It also broke the fact that EP did sell well in Korea, the boy finally got a taste of success. He has seen more and more fan letters everyday and yet he knew everything in the past two years was worth for it
But nothing’s perfect, good times are always short, it’s cruel actually. The first time they held their fan meeting, the people that came were fans of other members. Watching lines of fans lined up in front of other members, there weren't even a single soul in front of him. He wanted to scream and cry. The crew members didn’t want to make things weird, so they dragged a few fans in front of the boy. The boy held his sadness and started talking to the female fan girl. But the fan girl coldly said to him “ I was forced to stand in your line, I don’t even like you”.. and his heart shattered again. But he didn’t cry, he rather bit his lip and let it bleed.He didn't want to cry in front of anyone especially himself. The boy didn’t know why the fan didn’t like him, but what he did know is that his fans were still waiting outside the building because the meeting room was full.. their hearts were shattering along with his.
Once he found out online that it wasn't fans hated him nor he did anything wrong, but because he’s just too pretty and the girls are jealous. Reading this silly gibberish, the boy chuckled. He has never gave up, everyday he has put on his sincere smile to public, hoping and praying that others would see him for who he really is and listened to his voice. But the harder he tried the more pressure he felt. He always made mistake during performances and it made him nervous because he was scared that others would dislike him even more. So little by little,the boy stopped smiling in front of the camera, watching his every action and words.
But because of it, the fans were saying that he’s pretending to be cool and the company should consider switching him out.He was seriously scared, he didn’t want leave this place that was practically his 2nd home. However he understood that he’s just a “product” that makes money for the company. If the consumers are tired of this "product", then the company must switch the "product" out for new one.
Finally he didn’t get switched. He found out that his fans roamed in the streets for days begging the company to keep him in the group. The maknae (t/n : youngest member) of the group, Changmin, despite what the manager has restricted him to do begging in front of the camera, that if the company takes the boy away, he will tear up his contract and go back to being a high school student.
The boy cried, he knew that everyone in this group has a passion for music, Changmin the youngest, just like him, has gone through hardship to get to where he is today. The boy cherished everything he have had even more. He began to practice harder and harder in order to thank to his fans. He wanted to show all his best to his fans that have been loving him.
During concerts, there's the time when the boy always looked around in the audience.The director said that he looked funny when he sings, the boy said," it’s better for the singer to stare at one particular spot when he sings, but I can’t do that. I want to see the face of every single fan out there, even if the picture of me was ugly, I don’t care."
One day during the dance practice, the boy fell.He thought it was normal to fall when doing dance practice. But this time he couldn’t get up.His knees was hurting like crazy. He balled up and started shaking in the corner of the room.The leader, Yunho,without saying a word carried the boy on his back and took him to the nearest hospital. At the split second that the emergency room door was closing, the boy saw four familiar figures on the other side of the door. Worrying for him, praying for him.
The doctor said his right knee was pretty much gone and he needed surgery as soon as possible.It was a major surgery thus he needed to rest for a long time during post-operation, but the boy refused. The 2nd day after his surgery, he arrived at the Seoul Olympic stadium with the rest of the members. Following his schedule, he did a fan-meeting. Before the meeting, Yunho was by his side all the time and didn’t leave him even for a second. During the fan-meeting, they asked what does Changmin want for new year, Changmin’s answer was “ I wish for hyung to get better soon”
The boy hated crying so he looked down trying hard not to cry and he finally looked at the fans. He saw them crying for him and his heart was breaking. He picked the microphone and said “I’m not hurting at all, really, please don’t cry for me, let’s face each other with smiles, please?” This is the first the boy has lied to everyone, it was within 24 hours of his surgery, how can't it be hurt?
But he faced it out, for the love he has for his fans....
He finally recovered, he celebrated with his friends and on the drive home. On the way back home he was pulled over by the police for drinking and driving. Yunho came to pick him up at the police station without a word, but the boy knew he has disappointed Yunho and others.
The boy was kept in silence by the company for two weeks. He knew that this was actually the lightest punishment for his foolish actions and he knew his member have begged the company many many times in order to keep him in the group. Because of it, he insisted in the next fan-meeting, he will apologize to everyone. That was the first time the boy has shed tears in front of his fans....when his fans said that they forgive him and they still love him.
The boy started to get more and more popular, people started seeing him for more than just a gorgeous face, he’s a passionate musician with a beautiful voice and a brave soul who isn’t afraid to face his mistakes. Three simple words “we forgive you“ from the fans gave him all the faith he needed to carry on.
This boy is Kim JaeJoong, a member of the hottest group in Korea, DBSK/TVXQ. The company gave him the stage of name of Youngwoong (t/n :Hero) JaeJoong. So whenever the boy wants to cry, he reminds himself he can’t.. because he’s Hero JaeJoong and a Hero doesn’t cry.. a Hero will fight until the end and win the battle.
Once a DBSK fan said that the first time she saw JaeJoong, she thought his name couldn’t possibly be Hero because it didn’t suit his fragile image, but she knows now why his name is Hero, because underneath his beauty, lies the soul of a true hero....
ALWAYS KEEP THE FAITH ~~!!