With one part of the deal locked down, our writer and producer attempt to work around their differences to ensure that they secure their leading man. The kids do some digging around to find the answer to a very important question.
EPISODE 4 RECAP
Dae-oh tells Ae-jung to work with him if she’s confident, mirroring how he’d asked her to pull him up back when he confessed all those years ago. This time, she doesn’t slap away his outstretched hand and the fountain goes off when they shake on it, which sets off a fit of genuine laughter.
When Yeon-woo pops up to greet Ae-jung, she realizes that she looks like a mess and leaves the two men behind to dip into the bathroom. There, she notes that Dae-oh always seems to say important things near water.
As they wait, Yeon-woo declines a call from his mother. Dae-oh mentions that he’s a popular writer – no big deal – which is when something clicks and Yeon-woo realizes that he’s Cheon Eok-man.
He grabs Dae-oh’s hand with gratitude, introducing himself as the middle school teacher who organized the event that he’ll be speaking at. Dae-oh’s confused of course, but understands when Yeon-woo credits it to Ae-jung’s connection with him.
Dae-oh scoffs and the way he addresses Ae-jung with familiarity sets off a territorial battle between the men. Dae-oh casually brags that they go way back, while Yeon-woo slips in the fact that he currently lives with her.
They shake hands under the guise of being friendly, but the PE teacher has the upper hand when it comes to strength. Dae-oh’s saved from Yeon-woo’s iron grip when Ae-jung returns, so he makes his escape without realizing that she wanted to continue talking.
Meanwhile, Yeon-woo’s mother JOO BO-HYE (Jin Hee-kyung) is utterly embarrassed in front of an assemblyman’s wife and daughter. It’s clear that the intention is to set the daughter up with Yeon-woo, who’s a no-show to dinner.
To save face, Bo-hye blatantly lies that he’s attending a funeral for his principal’s mother-in-law. She humblebrags that he couldn’t get out of it since their organization runs the school he works at. Bo-hye invites them and the assemblyman to their house for dinner next time.
The wife interrupts that the rumors are true – Bo-hye lacks control over her own son. She tells her not to feel bad about today as she doesn’t intend to speak poorly about Cheonmyung Entertainment to her husband, but Bo-hye knows it’s over.
On the way home, Ae-jung complains endlessly about Dae-oh to Yeon-woo, who remarks that they must be pretty close. When Yeon-woo tells her that Dae-oh mentioned that they go way back, she’s eager to know if he said anything else.
When Yeon-woo brings up the guest speaker event, Ae-jung asks if they can find a replacement. Although Yeon-woo can tell that it’s an excuse when she says Writer Cheon is rude, he agrees. Grandma and Ha-nee spot Ae-jung jumping up and down in gratitude. Ha-nee’s eyes dart between the two with suspicion and Grandma bluntly asks if they were on a date.
Ae-jung ignores the comment and drags Grandma away, inviting herself to join them at the bathhouse. Ha-nee lingers behind to grill Yeon-woo on why he was with Ae-jung, wondering if this is the missing 2% from her “paternity checklist.”
Grandma announces that what she saw was proof that letting Yeon-woo stay was the best decision ever. Ae-jung tells her not to make him uncomfortable, and Ha-nee excuses herself to think about the call she’d made to Ryu Jin earlier in the day.
She searches the name online and realizes that the lead actor in Ae-jung’s graduation movie is most likely the famous actor. Ha-nee gasps that Mom has some amazing connections, heh. Ae-jung joins her and Ha-nee gets a overly excited when Mom reveals that she’s dated before.
Ha-nee asks if it was with a younger man, but her curiosity leads Ae-jung to believe that she has a boyfriend…in elementary school, LOL. Mom teases her and tries to tickle more information out of her daughter, who ends up stomping away.
Ryu Jin is pre-recording a radio show and the host, (cameo by Hong Yoon-hwa), starts off by mentioning Hollywood. Ryu Jin signals for help, but Manager Myung urges him to just keep smiling.
The special segment named “Ranking King” reveals the top five scenarios that men are terrified of. Ryu Jin’s eyes fly open when he sees “being confronted by a child I didn’t know I had” coming in at number three.
As if on cue, Ha-nee texts to confirm that he’s the actor and asks if he knows Ae-jung. When Yoon-hwa comments that the scenario is pretty scary, Ryu Jin slaps on a smile and says that only those who are guilty would be afraid.
Dae-oh’s under the assumption that Yeon-woo is Ae-jung’s husband. He wonders how a husband can just sit still when his wife has so much debt. The rest of the night is spent calling middle school classmates who might have the power to dig up information on this guy, but he fails to find anything.
Ae-jung wakes up to a string of texts from Dae-oh listing very specific conditions like the fact that he won’t work when there’s too much air pollution. She adds them to the contract and meets with him to seal the deal at a café.
She accuses Dae-oh of regretting his decision and spending the night coming up with annoying requests, but he retorts that he wouldn’t waste time thinking about her. Dae-oh reminds her that he hasn’t signed yet, so Ae-jung sarcastically thanks the “Mighty Writer Cheon” for working with her.
Ae-jung’s unsure what else he wants her to show gratitude for until he brings up the guest speaker gig. She tells him to forget about it, even though he says he can do it. After signing the contract, Ae-jung makes it clear that she’s swamped with things to do.
Dae-oh is curious who’ll be directing, insisting that it’s important to him as the author of the novel. When she says she’ll let him know after meeting with the investor, Dae-oh can’t believe that she’s meeting “the mobster” alone. Ae-jung defends Pa-do but Dae-oh tags along to the meeting.
Heh, they’re basically having a tea party and Pa-do assures Dae-oh that he doesn’t use “blood money” to invest. Dae-oh explains that he decided to work with them because he realized his story can be turned into someone else’s. He wants to direct the movie and Pa-do asks Ae-jung for her opinion.
Back in university, they both shared a passion for movies. Dae-oh would prioritize his work over himself, and made things happen even when they seemed impossible. Dae-oh’s touched by Ae-jung’s support when she firmly states that Pa-do can trust him. With that settled, the final mission is to recruit Ryu Jin.
After the meeting, Dae-oh scolds Ae-jung for agreeing to such unreasonable terms – how will she cast someone who’s headed for Hollywood? Dae-oh’s sure “the mobster” will torture them with his power.
When Ae-jung realizes that Dae-oh still keeps in touch with their sunbae, she eagerly encourages him to set up a meeting. He secretly smiles and emphasizes that he’s the one on her side, not Pa-do.
Heh, they’re totally back in their old groove because she shuts him up with just a word. Dae-oh’s completely mesmerized by her smile as she snaps a photo of the sky to commemorate the start of her career as a producer.
Yeon-woo goes out for drinks with some rich-looking friends who don’t really seem like his crowd. He’s here is to ask his friend Young-seon to introduce him to a famous Youtuber to fill the guest speaker role.
Young-seon suggests that Yeon-woo go on a blind date with his cousin – she’s beautiful, has a powerful father, and called dibs on Yeon-woo after seeing his picture in their high school yearbook. Yeon-woo apologizes and asks if he can return the favor in another way, since he already likes someone else.
The kids sort bottles at Sook-hee’s bar (named Sukey), and Ha-nee huffs that she hates being poor because it’ll take forever to save enough for a DNA test. Dong-chan discovers a text on the old phone from Ae-jung to Ryu Jin saying, “I need to tell you something.”
He gasps that he could be her dad and wonders if they should call to ask, but they clam up when Sook-hee pops up. Ha-nee plays it off as if they were talking about Dong-chan’s crush, but Sook-hee notices the way he glances over at Ha-nee. She invites them inside to eat and announces that she’s taking 10% commission from their bottle sales, hah.
Pa-do paces around waiting for Dong-chan to return, intimidatingly welcoming him home. Dong-chan backs off at the sight of his injured hand, which Pa-do ends up hiding behind his back. Before heading upstairs, Dong-chan bravely asks Dad not to bully Ae-jung – she’s his best friend’s mom.
The next day, Dae-oh follows Ryu Jin around the gym to persuade him to work with him and Ae-jung. “Weren’t you determined to break her heart and make her eyes bleed?” Ryu Jin asks, confirming that yes, Dae-oh was that brutal when seeking revenge.
Dae-oh tries to appeal to him in many different ways: he’s the only actor who can understand the hardships he went through. Working on a small production with fellow alumni portrays a loyal image. Oh, and Ae-jung used to be his favorite so they should totally make an awesome film together!
He then tries to guilt him, divulging that Ae-jung’s investor will pull out if he doesn’t take on the lead role, meaning, she’ll never fulfill her dream of producing a film. Ryu Jin asks, “What if Ae-jung didn’t disappear like that? What do you think would’ve happened to you?” Dae-oh has no answer.
Ae-jung and Hye-jin regain access to the office, but aren’t sure why. They receive a flower basket but excitement turns to fear when they read, “You have three days until your time is up. I sincerely hope you can cast Ryu Jin,” written in red. Pa-do is so easily misunderstood, poor guy.
At the café, Ae-jung shares her plan to win over Ryu Jin. Dae-oh makes her day by sending over the completed scenario, boasting that he’s a pro. He explains that the novel was originally a movie scenario.
He gets defensive when she suggests fixing some scenes, especially because it’s about the male protagonist whom he thinks is already perfect. Ae-jung insists that the attractiveness of the hero determines the success of movies like this. With a smile, she jabs, “You probably don’t know since your specialty is being a loser.”
Ae-jung tells Dae-oh to trust her – she has a good eye for men – but he makes it personal and quips that that must be how she ended up with a husband who watches idly as his wife is swallowed up by debt. He wonders how she ended up like this.
However, he quickly realizes that he messed up but continues digging himself deeper into a hole that he can’t escape from with every new thing he says. Despite having gone through worse, Ae-jung has never once thought of herself as unfortunate.
Her biggest joy in life is spending time and talking with her daughter – who is Dae-oh to judge the way she’s living? She angrily says she’ll write the proposal herself before sending it to Ryu Jin’s agency tomorrow, and Dae-oh feels terrible.
At the VIP ward of a hospital, Bo-hye explains to her lawyer that she plans to trick Yeon-woo into believing she’s terminally ill so that he’ll listen to her out of pity. She gloats that she bought all the studio apartments in Seoul to prevent him from moving out and even purchased the school foundation he works for. Yikes.
When Yeon-woo shows up, she gets Lawyer Yoon to read her (fake) revised will. However, he doesn’t actually care about her assets and would be happy even if she decides to donate everything.
Bo-hye springs up angrily and ousts herself, but he just chuckles and apologizes about the blind date. Before Yeon-woo leaves, Bo-hye asks if he’s acting out because of “that woman.” In the past, Yeon-woo had told her that someone was pregnant but she didn’t take the news well.
Grandma’s able to tell that something’s wrong during dinner, but Yeon-woo plasters on a convincing smile. Ha-nee, on the other hand, sighs audibly that her concerns have doubled. Noticing that Ae-jung isn’t home, Yeon-woo offers to bring her some food and Ha-nee jumps at the chance to tag along.
Dae-oh beats them to the punch by bringing her takeout, but finds Ae-jung fast asleep on the couch. She grabs his hand when he repositions her gently. Affected by the touch, Dae-oh allows himself to stay like that for just a moment before leaving the office. Hearing Yeon-woo’s voice coming from downstairs, Dae-oh goes up a flight of stairs to hide.
Ae-jung spots the food and revised copy of the scenario when she wakes up. She looks around for Dae-oh, but Ha-nee and Yeon-woo show up instead. When Dae-oh peers into the office, he sees the three of them chatting happily like a family.
He imagines Yeon-woo and Ae-jung dropping Ha-nee off at school, and the three of them laughing around a dinner table. By the time Ryu Jin joins him at the bar for a drink, Dae-oh has come to the conclusion that he made a mistake.
Dae-oh sadly announces that he wouldn’t have met Ae-jung again if he knew his feelings would resurface. He asks, “What happened to Ae-jung and I?” In 2006, Ryu Jin dealt with a heartbroken Ae-jung who’d asked the exact same question. Back then, he’d lamented, “Do you not care about me?”
The next day, Ryu Jin agrees to meet Ha-nee at a place of her choosing. She announces to Dong-chan that one of the two candidates will be disqualified by the end of the day.
Ae-jung cheerfully arrives at Ryu Jin’s agency with the proposal in hand, but Manager Myung just tosses the scenario into a bucket filled with scripts. She persists and places it right on his desk, annoying him with kindness.
He instinctively pretends to read the script every time she turns around to tell him that she’s Producer Noh Ae-jung, to the point where he actually repeats her name with her. Pfft.
When Dae-oh shows up at the office, Hye-jin invites him to wait inside – Ae-jung’s not in yet because she’s attending a school event. Dae-oh uses this opportunity to learn more about Ae-jung’s family situation, but is shocked to hear that she’s a single mother.
Ae-jung arrives at school in good spirits, but her mood is quickly dampened by the crowd of mothers who yell at her for not bringing Writer Cheon like Grandma promised. The substitute never showed up.
Ha-nee is elsewhere practicing how to introduce herself to Ryu Jin (so cute, hee) when she gets a call from Dong-chan reporting her mom’s situation. Seeing Ae-jung apologize repeatedly angers Ha-nee.
Manager Myung pulls up to a gas station and laughs about Ae-jung’s antics this morning. Ryu Jin freezes at the mention of the name. Just then, his pre-recorded radio show starts to air, discussing how scary it’d be to be confronted by a child you weren’t aware you had.
Since everything is coming at him at the same time, Ryu Jin gets a text from Ha-nee asking him to come to Classroom 1-3 at Hanbak Middle School right now. Realizing that it means Ha-nee’s fourteen years old, Ryu Jin sighs. Fourteen years ago, he’d chased after a sobbing Ae-jung in the rain, and she leaned on him for comfort.
He hops out of the van and makes a run for it. Ha-nee runs towards the school’s entrance and instructs Dong-chan to stall for a bit while she gets the new speaker. Although she expected him, Ha-nee stares in shock when she comes face-to-face with the popular actor at her school.
Meanwhile, Dae-oh shows up at school and steals Ae-jung from the mob of angry moms, passing by Yeon-woo as he drags her up to the rooftop. Stressed, Ae-jung yells that she’s in enough trouble and snaps, “Why did you appear out of the blue and bother me?”
Dae-oh grabs her wrist to keep her from leaving and accuses her of showing up and swaying his heart. Yeon-woo joins them and grabs her other arm protectively, but Dae-oh tells him to get lost if he’s not her husband, boyfriend, or relative.
We rewind a bit and see that Dae-oh went through dozens of USBs (each one with an absurd number of folders named after birds) before he finally found the original “Love Doesn’t Exist” scenario. He’d celebrated happily when he succeeded.
COMMENTS
I definitely feel like the show found its footing with this week’s pair of episodes. It was a breezy and pleasant watch, and I’m really happy about that! I’m generally pretty satisfied while watching, if I don’t think too hard about it. It’s easy to see that Ae-jung is comfortable around Dae-oh when she’s not actively trying to shut him out. They bring genuine laughter out of one another and despite his long-awaited revenge, Dae-oh has once again fallen for Ae-jung. I don’t think he ever really had a chance against her. If he works on toning down his anger and learns to stop lashing out so pettily, I can get behind this ship really easily.
Although I’m ultimately rooting for Dae-oh, it would’ve been more fun if the other suitors actually had a chance. It’s been a loooong time since I’ve had a severe case of Second Lead Syndrome, and I can’t believe I’m out here asking for it but…I want it! I want to be torn about who to root for! Show doesn’t really seem to be heading towards that territory at the moment, but it’s still pretty early on. I’m still really intrigued by Pa-do and find it so funny (but also sad) that he’s unable to shed his menacing, intimidating image even when writing a nice, supportive card. He also clearly wants to be there for Dong-chan, but can’t help scaring the poor boy! This is the relationship I want mended the most. I’m also really curious about the people around him that speak Cantonese – was he perhaps somehow linked to the Hong Kong Triads?
While Yeon-woo is cute, I find him to be unnecessarily territorial about Ae-jung. Although, I guess if he lost her once, he’d work that much harder to protect her the second time. I have the same reservation as Ae-jung in that he (and Grandma) never really considered how it’d affect Ha-nee if he just moved into the same house as his student. And speaking of Ha-nee: I love this girl and her budding friendship with Dong-chan, but it legitimately scares me that she’d call a stranger – a grown man – and agree to meet up with him alone. That’s not okay! She acts mature but she’s ultimately still a child and needs to learn to be safe, if only for my own sanity.
I’m undecided on how I feel about Ryu Jin. He’s fun to watch and acts a little ditzy, but at the same time, he totally knows what he’s doing (as evidenced by how easily he can get CEO Song to do something without making it obvious). I’d take that to mean that he’s likely manipulative or calculative enough to possibly break apart Ae-jung and Dae-oh. The fact that he seems worried at all that Ha-nee might be his child makes me nervous, but there’s a possibility that he’s this invested because he realized that she could be his best friend’s daughter. There are so many ways this could go, so for now all I can do is chant “Please don’t be shady” whenever he pops up on my screen.