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It was a big day. A very very very BIG day. Well, for Vernon, at least.
Vernon, tie slightly crooked and hair neatly combed for once in his life, stood backstage with his name taped to his chest in big letters: HANSOL VERNON written in marker because he didn't want to be called just 'Hansol' or 'Vernon' today, no. Today, he was Hansol Vernon, superstar and a super-poet. Why?
Well, the talent show had been talked about for weeks now. His school gym was full of parents, teachers, kids, and balloons that reflected the stage lights too much that it hurt his eyes. Joshua, Jeonghan and Seungcheol arrived early, armed with juice boxes, baby Chan in a front carrier strapped to Papa's chest, and a handmade sign that said "GO VERNON GO!" With glitter and tiny dinosaur stickers all over it (it was a homage to Vernon's poem).
When the three parents got to the backstage, Vernon rushed to Joshua, holding onto his Papa's sleeve then whispering, "Papa, I fink I'm gonna win."
Joshua smiled and kissed his forehead. "Of course you are, you're our little super-poet."
Those were Vernon's sentiments before his parents went back to their seats. But now, standing behind the curtain with a mic in his shaky hand, Vernon wasn't so sure anymore. His palms were sweaty, his knees were weak, his arms felt like spaghetti (wink wink), and his stomach felt like it had a tornado trapped in it. He made the mistake of peeking out through the curtain and saw so many eyes, which made him immediately duck back with a gasp.
"Nuh uh. Nope. I... My tummy says no, I can't do it." Vernon whispered to himself, determined to get off the stage. Unfortunately, before he could even make a run for it, his name was called.
"And now, let's give it up for Hansol Vernon with his very own poetry!" Their principal announced.
The curtains were pulled back, the lights hit the stage, and there he was in the middle of it. His mic feedbacked, and then, silence.
Vernon stood frozen. His lips parted but no words came out. His talent? Reciting a poem he made himself. Who would've thought he'd be reciting a self -made poem? Not his parents. His Papa thought he'd sing, his Daddy thought he'd dance, while his Appa thought he'd rap. But no, he said he'd recite a poem he made. It was about dinosaurs and his baby brother Chan who had the endearing nickname 'Dino', of course. But his brain? Empty.
The crowd patiently waited for him to start, they were very understanding about the fact that he's only six years old and is already experiencing stage fright. Someone's cough was heard amidst the silence of the crowd. Vernon looked at them with wide eyes, his hands shaking as they gripped the mic. His eyes darted around, he couldn't see his parents despite them being seated in front, the lights were right in his eyes. He was about to burst into tears when he heard,
"WAAAN!!!"
A tiny shout came from the front seats. Vernon squinted to see Baby Chan, bouncing in Seungcheol's front carrier, waving his arms like a little windmill and shouting.
"WAN!!! WAN WAN!!!"
He clapped wildly, beaming at his big brother, which made the crowd laugh. Vernon blinked at Chan, everything didn't feel so scary anymore. He took a deep breath, gripped the mic tighter, and started.
"Dino is big,
Dino is strong;
But Dino not scary,
He sing a lil song!
Roaaaar, he say!
But it just a joke;
Dino just wants,
To play with his dino folk.
He stomp and stomp,
With big ol' feet;
But when he see friends,
He say, "Let's eat!'.
Not people though!
Just jellybeans;
And sometimes toast,
With buttered greens.
He hug real tight,
And dance around;
And when he trip?
He fall on the ground.
But Dino still smile,
With teeth so wide;
'Cause friends all cheer,
They on his side."
The last line came out a little squeaky and a little off-rhythm, but Vernon did it. He finished his poem and the crowd clapped. Chan clapped too, yelling, "WANNN!! COOKIEEE!!"
Vernon smiled, bowing and exiting the stage.
Backstage later, Joshua hugged him tight. "You were amazing!"
"I forgot my poem when I came out." Vernon sniffled into his shoulder.
"But you remembered it anyway," Jeonghan added, wiping a tiny smudge of glitter from the toddler's cheek. "And you made everyone smile."
Vernon smiled, leaning into his Papa's arms, suddenly feeling sleepy after all that adrenaline. "I think I'm going to win." He whispered.
Joshua ruffled his eldest's hair, gaining a reaction from Jeonghan for messing up the neatly combed hair and Seungcheol laughing.
"Come on, let's go back and watch Seungkwan. I heard from Jihoon that he's going to sing."
Vernon perked up, remembering his best friend.
"Oh, yeah! Kwannie said he'll sing 'Nobody'! Come on!" Vernon exclaimed, pulling his papa back to their seats.
His parents couldn't help but smile at their son. Seungcheol, in particular, was struck by just how brave the boy was. If it had been him at that age, standing on a stage, performing a poem he had written himself in front of parents, teachers, and classmates, he would've probably peed his pants and backed out long before the talent show even started.
But then again, this was Vernon.
The kid might get scared, might hesitate, might second-guess himself, but he was resilient. Give him a little encouragement, a little faith, a little trust, and just a tiny sprinkle of pixie dust (or glitter in Vernon's case) and he'd find the courage to keep going. Somehow, he always did.
Seungcheol's attention was removed from Vernon when he heard the familiar intro of 'Nobody' by the Wonder Girls come through the speakers. He looked and saw Seungkwan in the middle, looking every bit the entertainer he aspired to be.
Seungcheol clapped when Seungkwan started singing, there was no doubt that the kid had talent, and the kid knew it.
In the car ride home, while Chan babbled nonsense and Vernon's snuggled between Appa and Papa, a crumpled blue participation ribbon in his hand and a rolled up 'Certificate of Participation' in the cupholder, it didn't matter that he didn't win any trophies. Because tonight, Vernon was his Papa's, Appa's, Daddy's, and Channie's super-poet, and that was good enough for him.