A 'Touching' Encounter

I wanted to write about this ‘touching’ BYJ encounter a year ago when I first heard it. But since it’s not my own personal story and I haven’t obtained the consent from the involving sister yet, so it had been cooled off and put aside. This desire is revived again when the topic was brought up during our recent TO gathering. Since our princess bb has shown immense interest in this story, so I called up our devoted BYJ sister Ivy for a second by second account of her ‘getting physical’ with HRH. (well, based on historical data, most sisters’ encounters with HRH are only in seconds, so I hope I am not too far off here)

Time : August 2005 April Snow Promotion Tour

Place : Prohibited Passenger Arrival area in Taipei International Airport

Characters : Hero – the irresistibly gorgeous Prince Bae Yong Joon
Heroine – a devoted, kind-hearted fan Ivy



Setting : He arrives

Pulling in all their networks and exhausting their resources, hundreds of die-hard fans have uncovered the arrival flight of our Prince at Taipei International Airport. They conveniently scheduled their own flights to arrive just ahead of our Prince’s so they could greet him ‘intimately’ inside the Prohibited Passenger Arrival Area. (Hehe, of course ‘intimate’ is a relative term : when we say ‘intimate’ with BYJ, we’re talking about hundreds of drooling fans here. When we say ‘public’, please multiply at least 10 more times to the fans and the screaming that comes with it!) To amplify the confusion, this ‘greeting’ was also joined by hundreds of curious airport personnel, stern-faced police and security officers, and aggressive reporters from all over Asia!



Trigger : He conquers

The Prince’s airplane touched down safely amidst the eager awaiting of his fans. He stepped out of the aircraft and was met by calling, clapping, screaming, waving and flashlights zapping here and there from all 16 directions. Being a top star and a true professional who loves his family so much, Yong Joon returned his fans’ love with his pure heart and beautiful smile. Our noble prince then proceeded onto a ‘moving sidewalk’ with his entourage while our heroine Ivy, other fellow fans and reporters were following very closely outside along the ‘sidewalk’. They were holding onto the moving handrails so they could walk (or make it jog) at the same pace as our prince. Now you can picture when you have rows and rows of fans leaning against each other, together with reporters sticking their microphones out, photographers carrying heavy equipments all trying to crowd towards an electrical/ mechanical moving machine, it is accidents waiting to happen.



Climax : He rescues

All of a sudden, a photographer carrying a heavy video equipment lost his balance and started to fall backwards onto a tiny woman right in front of Ivy. The poor woman of course is no match against this big man and huge equipment, so she started falling backwards too onto Ivy like a domino. Now our quick-thinking Ivy had 2 choices flashed across her mind : she had enough time and room to just step aside so she wouldn’t get hurt herself OR she could use her own body to absorb the poor woman’s fall to save her from being crushed. Our very kind-hearted Ivy did not even think twice but continued to use all her strength to grip onto the handrail very tightly. But how was a single her able to support both the photographer and the woman’s weight from falling? Her selfless act is about to be rewarded by the gallant rescue of her Prince Charming!


In this split second, Yong Joon witnessed the entire incident amidst all the screaming and struggling, was able to immediately determine where the critical point lies. Disregarding all the watchful eyes, Yong Joon dashed forward and left behind his entourage. With the astonished bodyguards and managers looking in shock, he grabbed both wrists of the ‘very very very very very very’ lucky Ivy with his strong and warm hand to help her stabilize herself. He must knew once Ivy had gained her balance, then she’d be able to push the woman in front of her back up straight, and then the photographer in front of her. (Now sisters, you have to remember that Yong Joon was still standing on a ‘moving sidewalk’ while all these decisions and actions are being executed! Imagine what quick reflexes this man has!!)



Ending : He leaves

Like most Bae sisters, Ivy was stunned (hehe, don’t know if it’s due to the fall or the fact that she’s been ‘touched’ by HRH?!) and didn’t know how to respond. Before she realized what had happened or contemplating how many days she wasn’t going to wash her hands, the gallant prince had already moved on. Maybe on his way to rescue another falling angel?



I hope you enjoy this (literally) ‘touching’ story that our TO sister Ivy has personally experienced. Please excuse me Ivy if I had unintentionally used my hyperactive mind again to dramatize or sensationalize the story a little bit. Thank you so much for letting me share your story. We all wish we had your ‘luck’!

(Oops! Sorry that I'm so engrossed in describing the logistics of the encounter and miss the most important findings in this story. Thanks gosijo for reminding me, here may I quote what you wrote :

"I recall Ivy stressing that, in person, he's sooooo incredibly beautiful and, also, that having seen him once in person will not be the sort of experience where you'll say: okay, I've seen him once, now I can keep him in my heart from afar. No! Ivy says it'll simply make you want to see him again and again and again."

Hehe, drooling again! :)