The One That Got Away: How Super Junior’s Heechul Dodged Dispatch For A Decade
Dating for K-Pop idols can be extremely difficult due to the public nature of their jobs and the backlash they can face when their relationships are discovered. News agencies often report or expose idols for dating and one of the most infamous for doing so is Dispatch. However, there is one idol who has managed to avoid getting exposed by Dispatch for more than ten years: Super Junior‘s Heechul!
(Heechul’s one and only dating news was with TWICE‘s Momo, which was released by Market News.)
Heechul originally debuted as a member of Super Junior in 2005, making this his 17th year in the industry. While many would assume that because of a lack of dating rumors or exposures Heechul simply does not date that much. Heechul has actually admitted to the opposite!
When he appeared on KBS’s 1% Percent Friendship in 2017, Heechul revealed that he has dated “enough to be proud of,” implying that he has dated at least as often as other idols around his age!
This means that Heechul is a pro at keeping his relationships secret. Here are a few of the “creative” ways Heechul makes sure that he never gets caught dating!
1. Don’t Be Friends With One Female Idol – Be Friends With Them ALL!
Heechul is known for being the male idol with the most female friends, and it definitely plays a part in how well he is able to hide his relationships. Some of Heechul’s most well-known friendships include Girls‘ Generation‘s Taeyeon, EXID‘s Hani, BoA, and Red Velvet‘s Yeri!
2. No PDA, seriously.
Heechul has stated that he doesn’t like being obvious when he’s in a relationship and doing things like lovestagrams or owning matching clothing.
Heechul also revealed that he doesn’t like to take photos with his significant other! The reasoning behind this choice is that there’s always a chance that one of them could lose their phone and risk someone finding the photos.
His logic regarding PDA was proven to be true after fans snapped pictures of him and former GFriend member Yerin holding hands for a music video shoot, causing rumors about the two to spread.
3. Not too many dates.
Heechul previously said that he does not meet up with his girlfriends very often, something that caused a lot of tension in his previous relationships. According to him, he only met up with some of his girlfriends once a month, and rarely one-on-one!
Heechul even confessed that he was hesitant to take trips with his significant other as well! During an episode of Where Are You Going, Ddaenchul? Heechul mentioned that he couldn’t go on trips because of “how sensitive it is for me to meet people.“
4. Don’t name your exes.
One thing that Heechul refuses to do is to refer to his exes by name. While he will openly discuss his past relationships, once he is asked to name the other party, he clams up. During an episode tvN‘s Life Bar, Heechul and Siwon discussed a time when a woman may have dated them both at the same time, but Heechul refuses to say any hints as to who it may have been even though it was around the time they debuted!
5. Do talk about your crushes and ideal type.
Heechul has been very open about the female idols that he considered his ideal type or had crushes on. This may seem like it would have the opposite effect but has proven to take any focus off of real potential significant others. In fact, many fans initially thought that the dating news between Heechul and TWICE’s Momo was just rumors until it was officially confirmed!
One of Heechul’s longest crushes and ideal type, Ahn Sohee, appeared on Knowing Brothers where she actually had him rank the different women who he had announced as his ideal type.
These are just some of the many ways Heechul avoids having his relationships exposed! While he’s careful not to talk about his relationships, he has discussed what kind of boyfriend he is, which you can check out below!
Heechul Reveals What Kind of Boyfriend He Is in Romantic Relationships
