It's Showtime

Keeping her concerns deeply locked inside her heart, So-Young continued to practice for the concert. The girls were made to follow their schedule to a T. They were supposed to eat what they were given and nothing else. They had to look perfect after all.

The concert would last for 2 hours. The audience was asked to show up at least an hour before the concert to ensure the orderly and disciplined movement of the crowd. The crowd would be entertained by playing 2ne1's music and M/Vs.

The crowd was separated according to the price of the ticket. The premium backstage passes would be given the most priority. The seats were right next to the stage and it almost felt like the idols were within your reach. The prices for these passes were shockingly high for a new group. But, the people with these passes would be granted a personal fan meeting with 2ne1. The next pass was the premium pass. The seats were still close to the stage but the people were not allowed to meet backstage. The rest of the tickets were priced based on the view they would get from standing there. The seats were not numbered. That is, it was a first come first serve kind of system. Thus, people were crowding more than 5 hours before the concert started.

Luckily, YG predicted this and had proper security and safety measures. So, the whole security process was relatively smooth. The whole stadium was filled up a whole hour before the concert started. Though there were a few arguments for the seats, it was sorted out quickly by the staff members.

While the fans were kept entertained with music videos, the 2ne1 members were in the dress-up room getting ready and trying to shake off the nerves. Bom and Sandara had their makeup done and were busy with the wardrobe. CL and Minzy were getting their hair done, while So-Young was getting her makeup done. The makeup which she hated.

To So-Young, makeup was like an enemy she willingly befriended. She had never applied makeup before, so she did not know what she was getting herself into. 'If I knew makeup was this uncomfortable, I would have not thought of becoming an idol.'

The makeup artist was applying foundation on So-Young and So-young started scratching her cheek.

Makeup artist: "So-young-ah!!! That will ruin the makeup!!

So-Young: "But my face is itching!!"

Makeup artist: "It doesn't matter! you have to bear it. It is very hard to blend this stuff!"

So-Young: "OK OK I'll not move"

****Ten minutes later****

So-Young: "Aaaahhhh don't blind meeeeeee!"

Makeup artist: "Don't make a fuss! I'm just going to take a second."

So-young: "You have been saying that for 15 minutes."

Makeup artist: "I really will take a second"

So-Young: "But I hate that mascururu stuff. It feels like my eyes become heavier"

Makeup artist: "It's called mascara. And it makes your eyes look bigger."

So-Young: "But it is a pain!!"

Makeup artist: "Bear it. Beauty is pain."

So-Young: "Then why does anyone willingly bear the pain????"

And the bickering continued until she was finally done. CL and Minzy were sitting right next to her and laughing at their leader. While Sandara started recording this the moment she was dressed. It was precious content!

CL: "HAHAHAHAHAH! I really love seeing So-Young getting her makeup applied! It's always so entertaining!"

Minzy: "HAHAHA I still remember the same thing had happened during the MAMAs! I really feel bad for our makeup artist! You really need patience to deal with So-Young."

Sandara: "This is the most amount of emotions so young has ever shown us. She is usually really calm and almost emotionless at times. Kinda makes her feel distant. So, whenever I see her like this, I feel much closer to her."

CL: "I get what you are saying. That's why I treasure these moments the most"

While they were chatting, Bom was ready and came out of the changing room.

Bom: "what are you guys talking about?"

Minzy: "HAHAHA! Dara eonni, show Bom eonni the video!"

And they once again broke into fits of laughter.

****10 minutes before showtime****

Minzy: "I am really scared right now! I feel like puking"

Sandara: "Minzy! Don't be scared! We can do this!"

The girls huddled together and did their iconic chant after consoling each other.

So-Young: "Ready girls? It's showtime!"

The five of them hopped onto the platform and waited for their first song to begin. The moment the melody began, the five of them emerged with the smoke machines fogging up the stage.

So-Young: "WASSUP SEOULLLLLL! "

Crowd: "ahhhhhhhhh"

So-young: "I CAN'T HEAR YOU!!"

Crowd: "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

CL: "LET'S GET THIS CONCERT STARTED"

The five of them proceeded to give their best. The first song they performed was a fast-paced song from their album that got the crowd invested in their performance. Then, So-Young performed her solo song. It was a mystical-themed song with power-packed dance moves. Then, Bom went up singing a slow ballad. Then the five of them went back up together performing another one of their songs with synchronized dance moves.

2ne1 did not have sufficient songs in their album for a two-hour concert. So, they performed a few of the famous BIGBANG songs as well. It was a win-win situation. BIGBANG would get more fans and 2ne1 could hold a full two-hour concert.

More songs from their album as well as BIGBANG's album were performed one after the other when finally came the time for their final act. There was a short prerecorded monologue of the five of them preceding their last performance. It gave them enough time to change. The song was the famous 'Burn it up.'

Sandara: "I want all of you to sing with us for this song."

So-Young: "We know you got the dance moves too"

Minzy: "So let's do it together!!"

Bom: "ARE YOU READYYYYYYYY??"

Crowd: "YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS"

CL: "HIT IT!"

It was a magical moment where the idols and the crowd performed a song as if they were one entity. There was no boundary between them. It was as if this whole scenario was pre-planned. The cameras were not focused on 2ne1 anymore. It was focused on all of them. It was as if 2ne1 was sending the message that the fans were their(2ne1's) idols.

The concert ended with them thanking their fans for taking the time to attend their concert and their wishes to see all of them soon. The girls were really emotional as they were overwhelmed by the support of their fans. BLACKJACKS had made their way to their hearts in the very beginning. But now, their place had been solidified and nothing could shake them away from there.

They all made their way backstage where they almost collapsed on the ground. So-Young was faring the best as she was physically fitter than the rest. The worst impacted was Bom. She had to perform her solo song right before the five of them performed a song together. The choreography for both songs was not easy. So-Young helped Bom up and to the chairs and gave her a glass of water.

So-Young: "I told you that it would be best if you go as the opening act. You are going to hurt yourself at this rate."

Bom: "You have been overexerting yourself for us and for your company. I, as the eldest, cannot let you go on like this. Besides, your solo was the intro for our album and it was better for you to be the opening act for our concerts."

So-Young did not know what to say. She was incredibly touched. Someone went out of their way to help her and had her back. She knew Bom would not agree to her offer so she just squeezed Bom's hand tightly. She seriously looked into Bom's eyes.

So-Young: "If you for a second feel like it is too much, we can change the line-up. Don't hide your pain from me."

Bom: "OK OK Eomma(mom). I'll listen to you. Now let me rest."

It was an extremely exciting, scary, heartwarming experience. the five of them were driven back to their hotel. The girls loved each other but needed some alone time to process what had just happened and sort out their feelings. So that is what they did. Some good ol' me-time was always refreshing.

*******

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Just wanted to know if you think the concert scene was too rushed. Please comment down below to let me know so I can change it for future chapters!