NCT‘s Mark began training at SM Entertainment in 2012, when he was a wee middle school student from Canada. Under the care of his parents who both boasted great musical talents, Mark grew up exposed to performing arts. He may have even dreamt of becoming a musician himself…

… though it seems, the actual realization came to him on August 20, 2012. In a “Report”, baby-Mark shared his thoughts after watching SM Entertainment’s sunbaenims perform.

In what is possibly the cutest handwriting ever, he scribbled across the page his hope to become just like his “seniors” — to “dance and sing joyfully on stage” and “receive a true applause from the audience”. Even as a kid, Mark knew there would be hardships along the way, but he passionately promised himself to “strive [for his] best” and “accomplish [his] dream”…

… which he did! His “hard work” paid off four years later, in 2016, when Mark debuted as a part of NCT U. Now, in 2019, Mark is one of the most beloved K-Pop stars who is talented enough to belong to not one, but two idol groups — NCT and Super M — and his fans cannot possibly control all the UWU over how far Mark has come since that hopeful “Report”.