*November 10, 2021 | 18th Birthday* Today, I will be having my special 18th birthday. It has been 7 months since I first went to South Korea, met Sungchan, and started dating him. We have been keeping up a consistent long distance relationship for all these months, and I have been unable to see him in person after all this time. I have just been giving him all my trust, knowing that he will stay loyal to me. It is the middle of the week, a Wednesday, but I decided to have my birthday today anyways.
Everything is in place. I have chosen the perfect dress for my 18th birthday debut party. Yes, that is what they call it. In The Philippines, there is a culture where a young girl, when she gets to her coming-of-age, she has this 18th birthday party. It is called a debut. It is very different from what K-pop idols and fans alike may think it is. Anyways, the dress I chose is a beautiful, royal blue dress:
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I honestly love this dress the most. It's too bad I'll only be using it for this one night. I had been planning my debut party since the summer of this year, and I'm so glad it ended up being exactly what I pictured. I spoke with Baekhyun about arranging either NCT or EXO to have a special performance for my birthday. Baekhyun told me he'd see what he can do. Since he is currently enlisted, there's not much he can do from his end, so he asked me to talk to Kai or a member of NCT about getting either group to come perform for me.
It took months of planning, but my party is finally coming alive tonight. During my party, there is a few traditions that my mom said I just have to follow. One is lighting of the 18 candles, where I choose 18 close friends of mine and they do a little speech for me. There is also a tradition where 18 men of my choosing give me a bouquet of 18 roses. The catch is, they give me a rose after they have a slow dance with me. It was so hard to choose the 18 men because I have 23 male friends already in NCT, plus 6 available men from EXO. I thought I'd choose my dad as one of the men because, come on, he's my dad.
As for the 17 others, I chose these guys; my brother, 2 of the guys on the dance team who I'm also friends with, Jaehyun, Mark, Johnny, Kai, Suho, Sehun, Sungchan, Taeyong, Jungwoo, Jaemin, Jeno, Jisung, Renjun, and Lucas. Yes, I just had to choose a majority of NCT members because why not? If they were unable to make it to my party, then I wouldn't have a hard time finding replacements. Kai wasn't going to tell me if they were able to make it because he wants it to be a surprise for my birthday. Probably one of the biggest surprises on my 18th birthday.
For my dance of the 18 roses, it started with my two friends from the dance team. Then, it'll end with my dad. NCT & members of EXO made a huge entrance once it was their turn to dance with me. To introduce EXO first and foremost, their song Power, a classic from their 'THE WAR' repackaged Album[2017], bumps in the background. The first EXO member I dance with is none other than the leader himself, Suho. The DJ switches the music so something more appropriate, a slow song. I begin dancing with Suho, my face beat red because he's just too handsome. I can almost not handle it.
When I finish my dance with Suho, Kai follows him. Yet another handsome man in the lineup of EXO. If only Baekhyun could come, then it would have been perfect. I have to get a hold of myself and try not to blush up to my ears like I did with Suho. Kai is my bias, I just can't help myself. I love him so much, and getting to dance with him like this, makes my heart flutter. Kai is an elegant dancer and had made appearances in my video calls with Baekhyun, on special dance lesson days. Finally, after finishing my dance with Kai, the next member makes a smooth transition, and he is the maknae himself, Sehun. Sometimes, it's hard for me to believe he's the maknae and not any other member.
I finish my dance with the EXO members and NCT make their entrance with their epic mashup song: RESONANCE. I hear Mark's famiar voice and just smile from ear to ear. Taeyong's rap and then followed by Jaehyun. Oh, what a masterpiece of a song. The NCT boys pop into line and wait patiently for their turn to dance with me. The DJ changes the song back to a slow song once once. The first NCT member I dance with is Mark. We are both equally as awkward, and I love that for us. Mark is not much taller than me, which I find comical.
The next member I dance with is Jaemin. Ugh, don't even get me started on this man. He is incredibly handsome. From his smile to his overall visuals. I just can't take it. I may be dating Sungchan, but I can appreciate a visual when I see one. Jaemin cracks jokes with me and makes me laugh. Ah, I love that. The next members I dance with are the rest of the NCT DREAM members; Jeno, Jisung, and Renjun. I'm pretty sure they put themselves in this order on purpose. They wanted me to start with my bias wrecker, then end with my bias, because they knew I'd love it either way.
The next set of boys from NCT that I dance with are; Jaehyun, Johnny, Taeyong, and Jungwoo. Ah, the 127 members. Starting with Jaehyun really made me nervous. I mean, among the NCT members, he is famous to be one of the most handsome members, but he doesn't brag about it, and is rather unbothered by a lot of situations. I love that about Jaehyun. He is such a chill guy, not to mention his amazing taste in music. Next Johnny, a fellow American. The fact that we're both born and raised Americans, make us able to connect on a personal level. We're able to relate to each other more than any other members.
Followed by Johnny is Taeyong, the great leader of these 22 other children. He told me all sorts of stories about being leader, and his beginnings of just being picked to be in SM Entertainment just because he was handsome. He then grew into the incredible rapper, vocalist, and dancer he is today. I truly appreciate Taeyong's hard work, and when it gets too much, it is okay for him to take breaks. It's what Taeyong deserves after all these years. Finally, I danced with Jungwoo to 텐데...Timeless by NCT U. Jungwoo sings along quietly. He had such a pretty voice, I love it. Jungwoo is also taller than I imagined him. When I first met him, I was shocked at how much taller he was than his other members. I mean, he is equally as tall as Johnny.
We are leaving the last pair of NCT members, best for last; Lucas and Sungchan. These two rappers have somehow found their way into my heart and became my WayV and NCT U biases, respectively. I danced with Lucas first. He actually has a pretty good singing voice for having a deep voice. I'm holding out for that ballad that he talked about making with Mark. Man, I hope that collab happens soon. It would be amazing to hear Lucas sing seriously for once. He had sung before in 'Let me love u', but it was only for a few seconds. I want a whole song of just Lucas vocal.
Last of the NCT members, is my one and only, Sungchan. I guess I can't have enough of my tall boys, as Sungchan is also 6'0. That's insane, but our height difference is adorable. Sungchan congratulated me on my 18th birthday and my coming-of-age. He said he's excited that I'm 18, because it means we can try things we couldn't before. Whatever he means by that, I have no idea, but I'm also excited.
When I finish my dance with Sungchan, the last man to dance with me is my dad. He is the one guy who has been by my side through every phase of my life, up until now, dating a K-pop idol. I wasn't just about "those Korean boys", because I'm serious about Sungchan. Also, NCT has a diversity group of guys, who come from all over Asia, even North America and Europe. As soon as my dad met Sungchan, it opened his mind to the idea of me marrying a Korean guy, and not just joking about marrying these handsome boys. I'm glad that my dad accepts Sungchan, and whenever we're ready, has given us the blessing of marriage.
