Chapter 102 Tattoo.
October 2015, United States.
After a 20-day break following their Chongqing concert, Big Bang restarted their Made tour in Taipei at the end of September.
In October, the tour reached North America. After finishing a concert in Mexico, the team arrived in Newark, New Jersey, USA.
Newark is very close to New York, and Kwon Ji-yong had a list of tattoos. During this tour, he happened to book a tattoo with a tattoo artist he liked in New York.
However, a problem arose before he left, and he and An Rufeng switched bodies.
"How about I get you a tattoo?" An Rufeng suggested, knowing that this tattoo artist was quite difficult to book.
“No need. I have a few more shows to go on tour in the US. We can schedule them at other times.” Kwon Ji-yong refused without even thinking.
Anru was afraid of pain, so he naturally wouldn't let her tattoo him.
This time, he's getting a tattoo on the sensitive back of his neck. The tattoo area is quite large, and it will be more painful than a regular tattoo.
"Ru Feng, would you like to get a tattoo?" Quan Zhilong asked enthusiastically.
"You want to get a tattoo for me?" An Rufeng asked in surprise as she watched him look down at "her" body with great interest, as if he was thinking about where to get the tattoo.
Kwon Ji-yong nodded: "I'll get you a tattoo~" He looked at An Joo-feng expectantly, he had already decided what kind of tattoo he wanted.
Anru Feng also became interested: "Sure, I'll get your name tattooed on it."
"No way!" Kwon Ji-yong reacted strongly.
"Why?" An Rufeng asked, puzzled.
"You absolutely cannot get my name tattooed."
Anru was greatly confused.
Kwon Ji-yong rubbed his forehead, looking like he was having a major headache about his future: "What if I see you in the next world and mistake you for a stalker again? I can't get any tattoos related to me!"
An Rufeng chuckled: "Then what should we get tattooed?"
“I’d like to get a sentence tattooed on the outside of your ankle, is that alright?” Kwon Ji-yong asked for her opinion.
“Sure.” An Rufeng had no objections. Suddenly, she thought of a perfect place for a tattoo. “Could you get me a small tattoo on my wrist?”
Kwon Ji-yong, of course, had no objections.
Kwon Ji-yong is quite knowledgeable about tattoos and knows many people. After finding a suitable tattoo artist, the two of them, along with Tiger Bro, Soon-ho, and Tae-hyun and Ji-eun, drove to New York.
Anru Feng wanted to get a willow branch tattooed on her wrist.
In traditional Chinese customs, willow branches are associated with new life.
There is a custom of planting willows during the Qingming Festival. At this time, spring returns to the earth, all things revive, and willow branches sprout tender green buds. Planting willows symbolizes welcoming new life and warding off evil and disaster.
Willow branches are incredibly resilient; they can take root and sprout wherever they are planted, symbolizing new life thriving in all kinds of environments.
The willow branch tattoo, symbolizing new life, perfectly reflects Anjou's attitude of saying goodbye to the past and moving forward.
Aside from not getting the tattoo herself, Anru Feng personally communicated with the tattoo artist about the design and colors of the willow branch.
Anru Feng was fully responsible for getting the tattoo she wanted, and things seemed normal between Anru Feng and Quan Zhilong.
However, since they were switching bodies at the moment, it seemed to Ji-eun and the others who came together that Kwon Ji-yong had taken charge of arranging the tattoos on An Yeo-bong's body.
Zhi En looked at An Ru Feng, who was now in the body of Kwon Ji Yong, and was surprised that even the location of the tattoo on her wrist was so precise. She turned to Tae Hyun beside her and said, "Ji Yong makes Ru Feng listen to him in everything. This is too domineering!"
“Magamama~” Tae-hyun agreed wholeheartedly. She thought of the last time she dyed her hair and complained, “The last time I dyed my hair, Ru-feng wanted to dye it mint green and didn’t want to cut her waist-length hair to her collarbone, but Ji-ryong rejected it!”
Zhi En was astonished upon hearing this: "Wow... Is Zhi Long this domineering and controlling in relationships? Wasn't he supposed to be a service-oriented boyfriend? I've seen him with his girlfriend before, and he seemed quite gentle, not like someone who would control even this."
Tae-hyun said, "We didn't really know much about his previous relationships. Most of the time, we only learned about their interactions when we got together, so it was pretty superficial."
“That’s true,” Zhi’en agreed, feeling she had gained a new understanding of Kwon Ji-yong. “So Ji-yong is such a controlling person when he’s in a relationship…”
Choi Soon-ho, who knew the truth about An Yeo-feng and Kwon Ji-yong switching bodies, secretly laughed as he listened to Ji-eun and Tae-hyun's complaints.
Choi Soon-ho continued listening to Tae-hyun and the others complain, remaining outwardly unmoved but secretly amused, and made no attempt to defend Kwon Ji-yong.
The willow branch tattoo in Anjou style is very simple and can be completed in less than an hour.
The tender green willow branches, symbolizing new life, are tattooed on my fair left wrist, like a delicate bracelet.
Anru Feng looked at her wrist and was very satisfied.
After getting the tattoo that Anjou wanted, Kwon Ji-yong discussed the tattoo he wanted with the tattoo artist.
He wanted to get a simple sentence tattooed on his left ankle. About half an hour later, a clean and simple tattoo appeared on the outside of An Rufeng's left ankle.
A German sentence is written above in minimalist lines:
"Ich liebe dich. Diese Liebe, wie du sie jetzt empfindest und empfunden hast, wirstdu noch einmal und noch unendlich oft empfinden…"
It is adapted from Nietzsche's core statement on the idea of "eternal recurrence":
"Dieses Leben, wie du es jetzt lebst und gelebt hast, wirst du noch einmal und noch unendlich oft leben..."
The literal meaning of Nietzsche's quote is, "You will experience the life you are living now, and the life you have lived before, again and again, an infinite number of times..."
It actually raises a hypothetical question: if you knew that your life would be repeated infinitely, would you still want to live like that?
If you are willing to repeat it forever, you have affirmed life.
This shows that you truly love your life and live the life you believe is worth living.
Kwon Ji-yong felt that the temporal aspect and meaning of Nietzsche's quote perfectly matched his and Anjou Feng's relationship: past, present, future, eternity...
So I adapted Nietzsche's quote, making it mean, "I love you as you feel now and as you have felt before, and as you will feel again and again, infinitely..."
Kwon Ji-yong originally wanted to tattoo this sentence on his body, but in the next world, he definitely wouldn't have this tattoo. Since he and Ru Feng have swapped bodies, why not tattoo it on Ru Feng himself?
In this way, even if he forgets in the next world, he will still leave an indelible mark, promise, and blessing on her.
The sentence with the dragon tattoo retains many words and structures from Nietzsche's original sentence.
He wanted to express that he did not regret his love for An Rufeng in the previous timeline, and he still did not regret his love for her in this timeline. He would continue to love her in the future, and would do so again and again, infinitely, and eternally, and he would still be willing to do so.
Because Anru Feng is someone who has no regrets about her lifestyle, what she has done, her feelings, and her choices; she is someone who lives authentically, passionately, and with a firm sense of self.
Therefore, Kwon Ji-yong also wanted to take this opportunity to wish An Joo-fung that in the future she will continue to be herself, forever.
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Author's Note: [Heart] I'm here!
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