방백
SHINee Lyrics

The lyrics of SHINee's song "방백" (Romanized as "Bangbaek") tell a story of unrequited love and the internal struggle that comes with it. The singer spends sleepless nights, drawing the face of the person they love in their mind. However, they feel embarrassed about their own imaginary scenarios and how their feelings for this person have grown inside them without their knowledge. The more they face this person, the more they fear their forced composure might give away their true emotions. They find it particularly difficult to see the happy face of the person they love, as it is a source of both happiness and hardship for them.

Every time the singer sees this person smile, they feel a deep-seated seriousness in their heart because of the illness of unrequited love that has taken hold of them. Despite knowing that they shouldn't feel this way, they can't help but want to hold and feel this person. They want to dream together and be with them, even if it means envying the person who always loves and cares for them. However, eventually, they want to pour their genuine feelings into a long-kept story and hold this person's hand.

In times when their heart beats uncontrollably, the singer admits that they could selfishly confess their love to this person. But they are afraid of what might happen afterwards, uncertain of how their relationship would change. They fear the potential consequences.

Again, the singer mentions the seriousness of their internal illness whenever they see this person smile. They know it's not right to feel this way, but they can't help wanting to hold and be with them, to feel and dream together. Despite sometimes hating the person who always loves and cares for them, they can't help but be endlessly envious. They long for the day they can fully express their feelings and share their old stories while holding this person's hand.

The lyrics then reflect on the first time the singer saw the tears of this person, remembering the moment vividly and regretting having wrong expectations at that time. They recall seeing this person in distress and admitting to having selfish hopes. Right now, in front of the singer, stand two dazzling figures: the person they love and the singer themselves, who feels inexperienced and inadequate. Even if they scold themselves for being foolish, their heart continues to beat for this person.

Feeling like they can't hear what has been promised, the singer laments their own inability to move forward alone and secretly murmurs thoughts of wanting to go toward this person. They hope that someday they will gather the courage to fully express their feelings and share an old story while embracing this person.