Episode #12: “The day that love comes into my heart” …
Episode 12 begins with Nam Ha Jin (Sung Joon) waking and finding girlfriend Han Yeo Reum (Jung Yu Mi) gone from their bed. He thinks of ex-boyfriend Kang Tae Ha (Eric) as he searches for her. He finds Yeo Reum crouched down as Tae Ha reaches his hand towards her. Ha Jin calls out interrupting the moment. Ha Jin draws Yeo Reum to him and starts to lead her away. Tae Ha pretends they were having a disagreement about work. He scolds her for skipping the work retreat to spend time with her boyfriend. He asks that she be more professional in the future.
Ha Jin asks why Yeo Reum got upset, she is vague. Ha Jin asks if Yeo Reum can quit working for Tae Ha, she apologizes and says she cannot. Ha Jin asks that she not leave their bed in the middle of the night, she agrees. Folks, this is a broken relationship. Neither of them is honest with each other. Later Yeo Reum asks Ha Jin why he stops himself from demanding answers from her. He tells her it is because he likes her more and he is afraid that if he pushes her she will break up with him. Ok, now that is honesty from Ha Jin to Yeo Reum. He asks if she knows how hard living in fear is. She tells him she loves him. He hugs her and says he knows.
The next morning at breakfast Yoon Sol (Kim Seul Gi) asks Tae Ha why she got 2 calls from Ha Jin in the middle of the night. Tae Ha admits that he and Yeo Reum ran into each other while walking last night. He says she was crying when Ha Jin found them. Yoon Sol asks why she was crying. Tae Ha claims it was work related. Yoon Sol does not believe it. Tae Ha says he does not remember why Yeo Reum cried. Yoon Sol runs into Ha Jin and Yeo Reum leaving for the ferry arm in arm. She rushes to tell Tae Ha everything is fine, pointing to Yeo Reum and Ha Jin as they make their way to the ferry.
Yeo Reum’s mother meets soccer boy (assuming secret son with Min Soo) and gives him a pair of soccer shoes she just happened to get for free that just happen to be his size that she just happens to have no one else to give them to. Soccer boy is thrilled and (brace yourself) Yeo Reum’s mother smiles, genuinely pleased at his enthusiasm. Min Soo arrives asking why she watches the boy. He asks if she has considered his proposal that they live together. She tells him she is not getting into a relationship with him. He tells her they both have another 50 years to live. He wants to share moments with her. He encourages her to live for today and start by having dinner with him. Gotta admit they are kinda cute together. He manages to get her to smile during dinner. Yes, two smiles in one episode!
Yeo Reum shares her work with Ha Jin. They paint some furniture and eat a meal together at her studio. Yeo Reum remembers Tae Ha encouraging her to make it work with Ha Jin. She tells him that they will have more times like this after they get married. (no, no, no!) Ha Jin is thrilled! She tells him that she did not accept his proposal before because she has debts – student loans, money she borrowed from her mother, and the money she borrowed to start the studio. Ok, I like that she is being honest with him. Ha Jin tells her to borrow the money from him to pay off all her debts. Yeo Reum says she would have been offended at that offer a month ago but now she is grateful. Ha Jin asks about her father. He has noticed she does not talk about him. She likes that he noticed. Ha Jin suggests that they can stop sharing right now and continue with more revelations later. That was a nice exchange between them. But after the gut wrenching connection between Tae Ha and Yeo Reum last episode, I am having a hard time caring at all about these two.
Jung Mok, Yoon Sol, and Tae Ha discuss work. Tae Ha and Yoon Sol have a disagreement. She recommends they drink and work out their differences. They pound some Soju. Yoon Sol tells Tae Ha that Yeo Reum does not have any feelings for him. (you got that one wrong, Yoon Sol.) He reminds her that he used to carry her home when she got drunk. Yoon Sol tells Tae Ha that he is their past’s dark secret. Yoon Sol admits she wanted he and Yeo Reum to work out. (That is nice she rooted for them in the past). She wanted their love to overcome their fighting and disappointments in each other. But he shattered her dream of finding a realistic love. She claims no matter how drunk she gets he will NOT carry her home. Cut to Tae Ha giving Yoon Sol a piggyback.
Flip to interview mode as Tae Ha takes a water break:
Tae Ha: I was Yeo Reum’s boyfriend not Yoon Sol’s. I apologized to Yeo Rem. Why do women think their friends’ boyfriends are their boyfriends too? He points to a passed out Yoon Sol. She was the worst. Her dating life was crazy.
Do Joon Ho (Yoon Hyun Min) guides Tae Ha to deposit Yoon Sol onto her bed. Joon Ho asks why she is drunk. Yoon Sol sits up and tells Tae Ha that he keeps making Yeo Reum cry. Joon Ho asks why is he making Yeo Reum cry. Tae Ha tells them he used to be friends with them too. Yeo Reum walks up behind him unseen.
As Tae Ha leaves Yeo Reum offers to drive him home. They both think about each other but neither of them speaks their thoughts. Ha Jin calls and Tae Ha tells her to answer because Ha Jin’s mistrust is tiresome. She asks why he sent a text in the middle of the night to her. He asks why did she take a walk in the middle of the night? She counters that she would never wait for him. Tae Ha accepts the call and puts the phone on speaker. Yeo Reum lies that she is at home. Ha Jin tells Yeo Reum that he will propose again properly. She almost runs a red light. Ha Jin asks if she is driving with Tae Ha. She admits it. Ha Jin is understandably miffed that she continues to lie to him. She tells him Tae Ha brought a drunk Yoon Sol home and she is returning the favor by driving him home. Ha Jin stews in his bed.
Joon Ho sees the dead flowers from Eun Gyu and the dying pine tree from Jung Mok. He tells Yoon Sol he would offer a different kind of gift. Eyes close he leads her to…the bathroom where he has installed an automatically flushing toilet. Gentlemen, appliances do not typically make a woman’s heart beat faster. Yoon Sol is not impressed. Yeo Reum, on the other hand, is thrilled.
Ha Jin has an email conversation with A Rim about his offer to finance her studying abroad. She declines his offer.
Yeo Reum gets to Ha Jin’s apartment first Friday. She looks for a vase for the flowers she brought and finds the photo of Ha Jin and A Rim as children. Ha Jin’s mother startles her. Mother asks if Ha Jin told her about the photo. Yeo Reum says she found it when looking for a vase. Mother leaves with the photo puzzling Yeo Reum. Mother goes to Ha Jin’s office. He tells her that he will send A Rim away to study abroad. He tells her wants to share his history with Yeo Reum, the woman he loves and wants to marry. He tells her that he will not share his history until she tells him he can. With tears in her eyes, she tells him he can. He, in turn, tears up. They hug it out.That was a nice moment.I do not understand why Ha Jin being adopted is a secret.
A Rim stops by to pick up the information Ha Jin left at the front desk. Ha Jin’s mother comes into the lobby holding the picture of Ha Jin and A Rim as children. Another patient collides with Mother and the picture falls to the floor. A Rim picks up the picture stunned at the image of herself and her “brother” from the orphanage. Joon Ho helps Mother to exit. A Rim asks if the woman was his mother. Joon Ho tells her it is Ha Jin’s mother. Wow! big reveal. A Rim knows the good doctor has not been honest with her. A Rim folds clothes blindly at her job. It looks like she realizes that Ha Jin is her “brother” from the orphanage.
Tae Ha realizes tonight is the night Ha Jin will propose. He offers to drive Yeo Reum to the Ha Jin’s house. Ha Jin prepares the flowers for the big proposal evening at his house. Tae Ha drops Yeo Reum off watching her walk away from him potentially forever. As Yeo Reum gets the front area of the apartment building she sees A Rim staring at the building. Yeo Reum tells A Rim that Ha Jin does not have feelings for her. A Rim agrees. Yeo Reum tell A Rim that Ha Jin helped her because he is a kind man. A Rim asks if Ha Jin is doing it only because he feels sorry for her. Yeo Reum agrees. A Rim gets angry that Yeo Reum is telling her this. She states that the pity should remain between her and Ha Jin. (A Rim does have moxy at times, I like that aspect of this character). She continues that Yeo Reum knows it is only pity but acts suspcious and jealous unnecessarily. (good point) She tells Yeo Reum that she should pity her because she was is an orphan. She asks if Yeo Reum would be hurt if someone said to her what Yeo Reum just said to her. A Rim walks away crying. I must say A Rim has a good point. Yeo Reum only sees the situation from her vantage and does not attempt to understand A Rim’s perspective. I am not sure the Yeo Reum understands that her perspective is selfish and unkind to A Rim.
When Yeo Reum enters Ha Jin’s apartment, he escorts her to the table set with flowers, wine, cheese, fruit and a jeweler’s box. She recalls A Rim’s words and tells Ha Jin that she saw A Rim before entering the building. She tells Ha Jin she is tired of being patient for the explanation of who A Rim is. She stands to go. Ha Jin tries to stop her. Yeo Reum tells him this is who she is, deal with it. She turns to leave. Ha Jin stops her with the simple question why can you lie but I cannot? (fair question) He tells her he does not understand her relationship with Tae Ha. His brain is suspicious but his heart wants to trust her. With passion he asks why is she giving up on him for being slow to share when she is flat out lying to him? (excellent point) He tells her she has never been sincere with him and not to bother saying she loves him. He asks if she even knows what love is. (Wow, that is astonishingly forthright and practically reckless of Ha Jin to be so blunt.) Yeo Reum turns to leave. He stops her. She tells him they are different people. She says she cannot to continue this conversation. She leaves. Ha Jin is stunned.
Later tears come as he stares at the engagement ring still in the box and thinks about moments missed. He realizes he blew his chances to be honest about A Rim. He wonders if it is too late to repair the damage with A Rim. He grabs his coat and leaves.
Tae Ha looks at the engagement rings in his apartment. He realizes that Ha Jin is probably proposing to Yeo Reum right now.
When Ha Jin exits his apartment he finds Yeo Reum crying. He helps her up. She apologizes. He tells her as long as she does not leave him, everything is ok. They hug.
Tae Ha tells himself a happy ending with Yeo Reum probably will not happen. He missed the moment to be with her forever. He notes both of them let go of each other.
Yeo Reum looks at the diamond ring on her finger. Ha Jin asks why she did not leave. She tells him she could not stand the thought of him being hurt and alone in the apartment. She tells him she loves him. He tells her for the first time he truly believes she loves him. The newly engaged couple hug.
Tae Ha on the other hand, cries, realizing the hand that will hold Yeo Reum’s hand forever will not be his.
Comments:
* What can I say, this is not what I wanted to see this episode. Yeo Reum and Tae Ha were on the brink of reconnecting at the end of last episode but that was completely dashed this episode. I am rooting for Tae Ha not Ha Jin to get the girl. So watching Ha Jin and Yeo Reum enjoy each other at her studio was not what I wanted to see. Watching her accept his ring, his hand stroking her hair (I do not know why but that gesture from Ha Jin to Yeo Reum bugs me and I liked it when it was used in Trot Lovers), and their profession of love…was NOT on my top ten list of things to include in this episode. There was more angst than fun. This episode bummed me out. It looks I care about this characters!
* The repeated pattern of the characters lying to each other is getting tiresome. Each episode it seems like only one character can be honest at a time. This week Ha Jin sat in the tell the truth chair. Which is nice for him, designed to make his character more sympathetic and less “kick to the curb”. I hope the next episode more characters can be honest with each other at the same time.
* Can someone tell me when the title of the episode (“The day that love comes into my heart”) was spoken during the episode? I did not register that moment when I watched the episode.
*Eric does heartbreak well as he portrayed of Tae Ha this episode. His pain, his pain, his pain, and selflessness which led to more pain was palpable in every scene. Is he verging on noble idiot?
* Jung Yu Mi’s character Yeo Reum went back to lying. She lied to Ha Jin when she was with Tae Ha. She was unkind to A Rim. She did not garner my favor much this episode. At this point, why keep lying about the past relationship with Tae Ha? Yeo Reum is not likeable sometimes. At least she owns her attitude with a “deal with it” flair.
* Sung Joon portrayed Ha Jin with fortitude and honestly to Yeo Reum (please overlook that he is still lying to A Rim). I thought that even with his willingness to open himself to her that he might lose her. I was surprised when Ha Jin exited his apartment and found Yeo Reum still there and crying. The scene that worked was the bonding with his mother regarding his need to share his past with Yeo Reum. That was well played.
* Yoon Sol got drunk and got a piggyback from Tae Ha. I was surprised the character admitted that she had rooted for Tae Ha and Yeo Reum to make it as a couple years ago. I now understand that her disappointment in their failed relationship is why she is spiteful to Tae Ha at times.
* Do Joon Ho blew the gift to Yoon Sol. Thanks goodness he did because that was one of the few the fun moments of an overall angst filled episode. Dude, an auto flushing toilet is not considered a romantic gesture by women!
* A Rim had moxy this episode. Her realization that Ha Jin had lied to her. Her realization that he pitied her. When Yeo Reum was unkind, she let her have it in a firm manner. Atta girl!
* Did I mention that Eric is yummy? You need look no further for proof…
Discovery of Romance
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Asian drama fan. I watch and blog dramas on https://kjtamusings.wordpress.com/.
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Thanks for the recap. Why am i hating yeo reum? If only she’s not the main girl, I’ll be hoping that Tae ha will end up with someone better. Hehe
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Yeo Reum is prickly and unlikeable at times. Not the standard sweet or plucky female lead. Rather a wounded soul that is guarded and protective of herself first.
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I think soccer boy is Yeo Rim’s dad’s secret son. Her mom is doing her best to not be resentful of the child.
Do Joon needs to change tactics to be successful in winning over Sol.
Ha Jin and Yeo Rim will not last unless they get real honest, real soon. I am dumbfounded she would accept the ring after walking away hurt and angry.
Yeo Rim go back to the one who knows you, is honest and still loves you!🌻
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Yeo Rim’s choice does make you scratch your head in confusion.
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