Afternoon reflections ๐
*Personal*
GG & DD's dynamic is so interesting and special; the way they bonded and got along so effortlessly always gets me contemplating.
DD debuted in 2014 at 17 in a K-pop group.
In 2018, at 20, he landed the leading role in a drama. It wasn't *so* long after his debut (four years), but being a K-pop trainee is very hard work. He'd been living away from home for many years at that point, practicing to exhaustion, going on TV shows and showcases and promotions -- and all that, having barely left his teenage years.
He had people taking care of -- and controlling -- his life for him since he was so young. He himself said many times that he lacked daily-life skills (and still does, as he stated in ETU 2).
He could be considered experienced in the industry. But on a personal level, he was inexperienced in the world.
GG, on the other hand, debuted in 2016 at 24 after he won a TV competition.
In 2018, at 26, he landed the leading role in a drama. It could've been considered a fairly typical timeline for an idol-turned-actor (two years after his debut), if not for the way CQL exploded in popularity and changed his still-short career a year later.
But before all of that, GG had gone to college, worked as a designer, founded his own company, and spent years living outside the entertainment world as a young adult.
He could be considered inexperienced in the industry. But on a personal level, he was experienced in the world.
And then these two clashed. The boy who was too mature for his age, but still a boy nonetheless, and the man who was too old for his novice status in the industry, but still a boy on the inside.
They found the middle ground; they helped each other, they were each other's point of reference, they kept each other awake and happy and fed and cared during the long and boring hours of filming, they went through hell (almost literally -- because that summer was f*n hot) and back together.
And DD, so young, had his life changed for the role he played so delicately and wholeheartedly. And GG, a novice, had his life changed for the role he played as if he had been crafted and brought to the world solely to play.
History goes on from there, and we gladly continue to cheer on their accomplishments to this day, be it together or individually.
We're now halfway through 2026 ๐, and hopefully the rest of this year will be filled with much more happiness, love, and good things for all of us. ๐ซถ
