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Discovery of Romance: Episode 8

To call or not to call? That is the question that lingers throughout this whole episode. It’s a frustrating game of tug-of-war, in which neither side is willing to cut any slack. The reluctance to communicate reveals a fundamental flaw in the relationship — something that our couple may not have noticed yet — and it’s a sure sign of a slippery slope. The nature of their relationship is not as stable as we once assumed, and the potential for their old blissful relationship seems to be out the door, especially with new players in town.

 
EPISODE 8: “This isn’t dating; it’s war”

Yeo-reum witnesses this outrage and demands to know why Ha-jin and Ah-rim hid if they had nothing to hide. Surprisingly, Ah-rim steps up and tells her that she’s had enough. She can be patient once and twice, but not the third time. That statement stirs Ha-jin’s memory, and he thinks back to their childhood.

Young Ah-rim cries to Ha-jin, asking him to beat up the kid who hurt her. He says that he can’t do that, but he teaches her how to defend herself. He instructs her on throwing a punch right at the girl’s nose, telling her to be patient the first and second times but not the third. People will trample all over you if you don’t stand up for yourself.

She does as instructed and punches the bully right in the nose. Ha-jin cleans her up afterwards, and she tells him that she’s not scared of the girl anymore. She promises to stand up for herself after waiting three times.

Back in the present, Ah-rim voices her frustrations. She accuses Yeo-reum of being suspicious right away, never giving her the benefit of the doubt and even tracking her down where she worked. Ha-jin receives this information with shock, spectating Tae-ha scoffs, and Yeo-reum looks to him with apologetic eyes. Looks like the tables have turned.

Yeo-reum tries to defend herself, but Ha-jin’s reached his tipping point. Looking at her with incredulous eyes, he asks why she would do such a thing and yells at her for misunderstanding the kimbap date. Taken aback by his reaction, Yeo-reum reflects on how they’ve been dating for a year, but this was the first time she’s ever seen this expression on his face.

Ha-jin doesn’t accept any more excuses and expresses his anger asking, “If you don’t trust me, why are you dating me?” Yeo-reum falls silent, but Tae-ha decides to step in and call out Ha-jin for being a hypocrite. He’s the one caught doing wrong and now he’s yelling at Yeo-reum. Ignoring him, Ha-jin offers to take Ah-rim home. At that point, Yeo-reum’s brimming tears start to fall.

Tae-ha yells at him, asking if he doesn’t know what’s important right now. Taking her cue, Ah-rim walks off with her bike and escapes the tension. Tae-ha offers to take Ah-rim home if he’s so worried and advises him to resolve his problems with Yeo-reum. But he doesn’t take that advice. He tells Tae-ha to mind his own business, and he walks off after Ah-rim.

Feeling uncomfortable about Ha-jin following her, Ah-rim turns around and tells him resolve his misunderstandings with Yeo-reum. He refuses, saying that he doesn’t want her to walk alone at night. Ah-rim pops the question, “Do you really like me?” Again, Ha-jin refuses, saying that it’s not like that.

She tells him that she’s fine going home alone and starts to ride off on her bike, but it breaks down. She attempts to fix it, but Ha-jin ends up picking up the bike to take back to the shop.

Tae-ha approaches Yeo-reum and asks her what she wants to do. He offers to take her to Ha-jin’s house and beat the pulp out of him when he gets home, but Yeo-reum simply states that she’s hungry. He offers to take her out for food, and she follows.

From inside the hospital, Joon-ho peeks at this scene with shock and falls to the ground. Shaking his head, he tells us, “This isn’t dating; it’s war.” He gets a call from Sol, who complains about him being late. She decides to head into the show without him.

As Tae-ha and Yeo-reum drive away, they notice Ha-jin and Ah-rim walking together. Yeo-reum’s clearly affected by this, so Tae-ha tries to pass the awkwardness by asking what she wants to eat. She’s visibly upset and answers, “Anything delicious.”

At the bike shop, the mechanic tells Ah-rim that her bike has many problems. She’s ridden it so much for so long that it’s better to get a new bike at this point. She doesn’t seem to have the funds and asks him to just repair the basics. But long-legged Ha-jin buys her a new bike and walks out.

She chases him outside to ask why he’s so nice to her. He tells her, “Misfortune comes without a reason, and so does fortune. Have you never met someone who’s been good to you?” She tells him that those people only exist in fairytales, like Daddy Long Legs. He tells her that he’ll be her Daddy Long Legs since he’s tall anyway. Heh. He also acknowledges his mistake in creating the misunderstanding with Yeo-reum and tells Ah-rim not to worry about it.

Meanwhile, Yeo-reum is stuffing her face with some delicious food. Tae-ha asks how she’s eating so well after this fiasco, but she’s optimistic. She knows that things will be better tomorrow. Unable to understand, Tae-ha pokes her where it hurts, mentioning all the suspicious things Ha-jin’s been doing.

Yeo-reum insists that Ha-jin is a good person, which prompts Tae-ha to ask why she didn’t just let this slide. She argues that letting things slide can become a habit, and some men (ahem, Tae-ha) take that kindness for granted. He’s annoyed by her implicit blaming and asks her to list everything he did wrong. She looks at him and says what she’s always said, “Go home and think about it.”

Frustrated, Tae-ha demands that she just tell him, but she responds, “Men who don’t get it without explanations won’t understand anyway.” He just gives her the stink-eye and continues eating.

Tae-ha drives Yeo-reum home, but the moment she sees Ha-jin at her house, she instructs him to drive past. All of them see each other, and the situation gets stickier. Ha-jin’s furious about being ignored, and Tae-ha’s irked that he was manipulated.

Ha-jin approaches the stopped car, but Tae-ha locks the doors, telling Yeo-reum that he’s not letting her out. She shrugs, as she didn’t want to get out anyway. Ha-jin begins pounding on the window, demanding that she come out, but Tae-ha starts the car and drives off. Yeo-reum decides that she’s going to watch a movie now.

As they watch the movie, Tae-ha’s alter ego pops onto the screen to tell him that he should get it together. “Just get up and go home. Do you have no pride? Han Yeo-reum doesn’t have the slightest interest in you. She’s just using you to make her boyfriend mad.” He gets up to leave, but his alter ego stops him, “Okay fine, you like this girl. The only way to continue this unrequited love is to be patient. But why the hell did you fall for a girl with a boyfriend?” And so he’s stuck there glaring at Yeo-reum. Haha.

Ha-jin waits and broods in front of Yeo-reum’s house. He checks the GPS tracker, but she’s deleted it off her phone. And boy he’s mad — he kicks the wall and throws his jacket to show it.

Joon-ho looks sour as he waits for Sol outside the Nanta show. When she comes out, he accuses her of being disloyal and watching the show without him. She says it’s his fault for being late and that he can’t become Eun-gyu, even if he’s “taking his place.”

A couple walks into Joon-ho, and he takes out his handkerchief to clean his very expensive shoes. Sol sees the handkerchief (which belongs to Director Yoon) and snatches it away from him, saying that it belongs to a different man. He scoffs, saying that he knew all the eleven men in her life. She says that this man could be the twelfth, but every man from now on will be the twelfth man — no significance, no love, no name. Dragging Joon-ho by the tie, she tells him, “Right now, you’re my number twelve. Let’s go, Twelve!”

Tae-ha drives Yeo-reum home, and she shows a tinge of disappointment when she doesn’t see Ha-jin. She thanks him and apologizes, but Tae-ha tells her that he’s fine. He offers himself up for any future manipulation, but in his mind he suggests that she could jump onto his train as well.

After a moment, Yeo-reum tells him that he did have one good thing about him. He was bad to her but worse to everyone else, which she prefers over someone who’s good to her and better to everyone else. He gives her a sympathetic look and tells her to go inside. Watching her leave, he says good night.

Before Ah-rim leaves the shop for the night, she looks at the bike Ha-jin purchased for her and thinks back to his explanation for helping her out. She decides to take the bike with her as she leaves the shop.

At the support group, Producer Bae and Ha-jin’s mother eye each other, and he thinks back to Mom’s words about her being interested in him. They strike up a conversation about the side dishes, and he explains that his friend found them a bit suspicious. She acknowledges how that could have led to the misunderstanding, but her instincts tell her that this friend must be a woman who likes him.

He refuses to believe it, but she explains that this friend is clearly showing jealousy. She adds that he’s pretty handsome, considerate, and doesn’t have that middle-aged man feel. She hilariously uses the phrase “sexy brain” to convey her compliment.

Producer Bae steals glances at Mom during their jjajangmyun meal, which is interrupted by a call to Gi-eun. Assuming it’s the director, Mom tells her to deny the meeting. But Gi-eun doesn’t listen and tells the man to drop by tomorrow morning. Mom’s annoyed, but Gi-eun clarifies that there are more men in her life than just the director. That catches them off guard, but Gi-eun disappointedly says that it was just the delivery man. Haha. She’s got no time to meet any men because of this god damn job. She asks for two hours to herself and leaves.

Now that it’s just the two of them, Producer Bae asks Mom what it means if your brain is sexy. She says that those kind of compliments are for men who want to compensate for their looks. He says that he was given that comment by side-dish woman, but Mom says she’s wrong. His looks are better than his brain, and she acknowledges that he’s the dandy type — the type of guy she likes.

At his drama meeting, Producer Bae tells his complaining staff that all they need to do is change the male character into more of a dandy. Someone like himself — sexy brain, considerate, and dandy! HA.

Joon-ho reads off the list that Sol compiled and stops at “going on a trip together.” He comments that the implications of an overnight trip don’t apply to them, but Sol warns him to stay alert. She’s actually pretty sexy. She says that Yeo-reum knows, and they look to her for confirmation. But she’s been staring at her phone the whole time and branches off on her own conversation, “Even if Ha-jin calls, I’m not going to pick up.”

They give her an accusing look and tell her that she’s been staring at her phone the whole day. Yeo-reum matter-of-factly explains, “I’m waiting for Ha-jin to call so I won’t pick up. I can’t not pick up if he doesn’t call.” Okaaaay. They shake their heads at Yeo-reum, and so do I.

At the hospital, Joon-ho analyzes Ha-jin’s behavior and concludes that he’s not going to call Yeo-reum anytime soon. In the interview, he says that he expected Ha-jin to cave as he’s done before. Sol says that Yeo-reum’s pride won’t let her call first, but she’s on her friend’s side. Joon-ho argues that Yeo-reum was in the wrong, prompting Sol to scowl at him across the screen. She gets so worked up that she crosses over to his interview domain wielding a wooden block.

Sol tells us that she knew from the beginning that Ha-jin was a player and that she doesn’t believe his “no relationship” claim with Ah-rim. And of course, Joon-ho has to comment on Sol’s poor taste in guys.

Ha-jin stares at his phone, contemplating if he should call Yeo-reum, but he decides on someone else. Tae-ha picks up his phone and is told to meet at the place where he had his company dinner the other (bromantic) night. He says he’s not going, but of course he shows up.

They each get a soju bottle to themselves and start up a tense conversation. Ha-jin asks what Tae-ha did with Yeo-reum that night, and only then does Tae-ha find out that the two haven’t talked to each other since the incident. He reciprocates the question and asks what he did with Ah-rim. But Ha-jin switches to a more serious tone and clears the misunderstanding. “The person I like is Yeo-reum, and I can’t do without her. Kang Tae-ha, you’ve never loved this much, have you?” Tae-ha replies that he wouldn’t tell him even if he had.

Tae-ha’s snide remarks contrast Ha-jin’s sincere confession about Yeo-reum. He says that he ignored all the suspicious little things that could’ve led to fights because he liked seeing her smile. “In those moments, it was more important to me that she was happy and smiling.” Only now does it dawn on Tae-ha what Yeo-reum meant by describing Ha-jin as a good person.

He continues by explaining that it doesn’t matter if Tae-ha likes her or not, what’s important is what she feels. “But now your feelings matter. Yeo-reum has never belittled me in front of other people. She’s never pulled in a third party to resolve our fights, and the old Yeo-reum would have gotten out of that car to fight with me. Are you two close enough to openly share these emotions?” Oh man, he’s catching on.

Tae-ha brushes it off with his snarky comments, but Ha-jin’s not letting his guard down. He tells him that this is a warning, and the next time Tae-ha teams up with Yeo-reum, he’s dead. Ha-jin walks out while Tae-ha downs another shot.

Ha-jin finds himself in front of Yeo-reum’s shop but can’t bring himself to go inside. He sits on the steps and drafts a message, but he deletes it. Yeo-reum does the same, her fingers lingering over Ha-jin’s name on her phone. She gets Joon-ho’s message that Ha-jin and Tae-ha met up, so she immediately calls Tae-ha.

He quickly hangs up on her yelling demands, but she follows up with a message apologizing and asking him to come over to her shop. Knowing it’s a trap, he absolutely refuses to let himself do so because he knows he’s going to cave. Needless to say, he asks his driver to turn around, and he hates himself.

And then he changes his mind and asks the driver to stop the car. He gets out of the car and texts Yeo-reum that he’s not one to be called back and forth on request. His time is precious. Even with a pretty definitive text, he paces around waiting for her reply and ultimately decides to go home. He tells the driver that he’ll pay him twice his normal rate; just make sure that he doesn’t turn around no matter what. Heh.

Ha-jin finds Ah-rim just as she’s about to wrap up her other part-time job. They talk about scheduling the surgeries and about Yeo-reum in a fairly light mood. He also says that he’ll drive her down to the orphanage tomorrow, as it takes multiple train and car transfers to get there. He tells her not to worry about it, and before he leaves, he tells her that he was happy to see her new bike by the entrance.

Ah-rim sits down to eat her belated dinner, a roll of kimbap, as we get our first interview of her. She tells us that she would like to date but doesn’t have the time. She does, however, have someone she likes. It’s a one-sided love. “At first, I just thought he was a warm person. But without a moment’s notice, I started to like him.”

She thinks back to the night when her bike broke down and confesses that it was that moment. She could hear her breathing in her ears; she’d never felt that way before. “I was surprised and confused. He has a girlfriend, so I know I can’t be caught. But I can’t seem to give up these feelings.” She starts tearing up, her voice starts to shake, and she tells us that she can’t continue the interview.

Tae-ha finally arrives at his destination and pays not double but quadruple the pay. The camera pans out, and we see why. He caved and turned the car around again to come to Yeo-reum’s shop. He walks in, and Yeo-reum can’t help but smile when she sees him. He tells her to stop smiling and checks out her work.

Yeo-reum’s surprised when Tae-ha remembers the type of wood she’s working with and what it means — a love that doesn’t change. He obviously remembers because he was there the whole time she was trying to memorize these back in the day.

On that topic he asks, “Do you believe that there are things that don’t change?” She thinks so, if there’s enough will to do so: “When I dated you, I thought love was based on emotion, but after we broke up, I realized it was an issue of will. It wasn’t about how much I liked you, it was a matter of how much will I had to keep that love.”

Opening up to the conversation, Tae-ha asks if maybe he didn’t have that will. But Yeo-reum supposes that they both didn’t have that will. “We both felt that love, but we really didn’t know how to love or how to protect that love.” Truth.

Regretful and nostalgic, Tae-ha accuses her of showing up in his life at the wrong time. “Why did you show up then, when I didn’t know how good you were to me? If you came to me now, I would be so good to you.” A little too late now.

Back to the main topic of concern, Yeo-reum asks Tae-ha what he and her boyfriend talked about. Tae-ha refuses to be the middle man between the two and tells her that he promised himself he wouldn’t tell. It’s his pride. Then why is he here? Because he just wanted to see her face (and because he’s a bit drunk).

Before he leaves, he turns back to Yeo-reum for one last word: “I’m sorry I couldn’t be there for you when your father died.” His sincere apology leaves Yeo-reum speechless and tearing up.

When Yeo-reum arrives home, Joon-ho and Sol team up against her, not letting her in on their ramen meal. They claim to have always cooked for themselves while she was out on dates with her boyfriend. She tries to join, but they block her and tell her to ask Ha-jin for her ramen. She walks away in a fuss, and the two nod in accomplishment. They’ve even got a handshake to finish it off. Too cute.

Lonely Yeo-reum walks into her room and contemplates calling Ha-jin. She’s so close, but she doesn’t end up doing it. Ha-jin comes home anticipating Yeo-reum’s shoes in his house at some point, but tonight’s not the night. He enters his empty home and stands by his room, flicking the lights on and off.

In her interview, Yeo-reum tells us her reason for not calling. “It’s not a push and pull strategy. When you date, there comes a moment that differs from when you first met. That feeling you get when you think that this is real love, and then it just collapses. At that moment, I felt that our relationship had changed.”

She thinks back to when Ha-jin decided to follow Ah-rim and leave her hanging. “A special relationship that I thought only we shared became just another plain old relationship. Women know that moment intuitively. That’s why I was scared, and that’s why I won’t let this pass.”

Joon-ho gives us the other perspective. “When a man really loves a woman, he’s really good to her. In that moment, you even want to go catch a star for her. But there’s one thing we can’t do. Love forever. It’s just not possible. Yeo-reum really needs to get it together.” We see that she’s watching the interview from below, taking in this warning.

Meanwhile, Ha-jin stares at pictures on his phone and wonders why Yeo-reum’s never the first one to apologize. Suddenly, the doorbell rings and on the other side is Yeo-reum. She walks in, and they lightly bicker about their misunderstandings and lack of communication. She says that she’s still mad at him and tells him not to create any more misunderstandings. He says that she’s done nothing wrong, and they make up with kisses.

Now back to their normal relationship, Yeo-reum suggests that they go on a trip tomorrow. Maybe somewhere overnight. Right then, Ha-jin gets a text from Ah-rim agreeing to drive down to the orphanage with him tomorrow. That’s followed up by Yeo-reum getting a text from Tae-ha about visiting a site for work. They both agree to their meetings with their separate parties. Turns out, they’re both busy tomorrow, and Ha-jin lies that he’s got a seminar. Maybe they aren’t back in their normal relationship anymore…

The next morning, the mismatched couples set out on their own adventures: Ha-jin with Ah-rim and Tae-ha with Yeo-reum. We know where they’re headed, but they don’t. Uh-oh.

 
COMMENTS

Just when you thought things were finally getting better, they actually get worse. But let’s be honest here, these rendezvous were bound to happen. Both Ha-jin and Yeo-reum weren’t going to stop meeting their respective partners, whether it be for work or for some long lost sense of nostalgia. They choose to be blissfully ignorant, and they’re perfectly happy within the boundaries of their ignorance. But it’s only a matter of time before reality hits, leaving them with an irreparable relationship. That looming reality is exactly what Yeo-reum fears, and it’s quite possible that she knows of its inevitability. They’ve changed, and the most frustrating thing about it is their passivity.

Their main problem of miscommunication can easily be resolved by, well, effective communication. It’s hard to believe that these people are so in love when in fact, they barely know each other. They enjoy each other’s company, care about each other, and like to see each other smile. But the ugly details of their life struggles are conveniently hidden away behind these façades. And they’re perfectly complacent with this. How? I have no idea. Lying for that long must be exhausting, and I see them slowly yet surely losing steam. Lack of communication and honesty is an insidious element of a relationship, and it’s creeping up on this couple. Kisses are great and all, but they can’t cure everything.

As these two are growing apart, they’re growing closer to their taboo partners. It’s more evident between Yeo-reum and Tae-ha, who had a pretty decent episode of honesty and real talk. The candid conversation between Yeo-reum and Tae-ha was wonderful. It helped that Tae-ha was drunk (Is it bad that I like Tae-ha better drunk than sober?) because he was willing to be direct, vulnerable, and in the moment. Yeo-reum had such a great way of articulating why they didn’t work out, and it was refreshing just to hear those words come out of her mouth. She’s not just saying the past is in the past like every other time; rather, she’s reflecting upon why the past happened. Being young, not knowing how to love but finding love — that’s where they were.

It’s such a different dynamic than our actual couple, and I’m slowly growing to like the pair of exes more. Sure, they have problems with pride and manipulation — they’re almost sadistically manipulative with each other — but something about being together brings them both down to earth. The relief and smile on Yeo-reum’s face when Tae-ha walked into the shop shows how much they still value each other’s company. They’ve seen each other through the best and worst of times, and they’re just themselves around each other. They know too much about each other to let things be misunderstood or unexplained, unlike Ha-jin.

In a way, they remind me of Sol and Joon-ho, who can be the worst enemies but also the best of friends when necessary. I want him to be the official Mr. Twelve, the missing piece to fulfill the dozen men she will have dated. They’ve waited a long while, and hopefully that unintended patience will pay off in the form of right timing, finding love, and knowing how to love — something our exes never had a chance to complete.

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I want Yoon Sol and The Twelfth Man to be happy.

I want Kang Tae Ha to knock the shiznit out of smug Nam Ha Jin and wipe that smug smile off of his face.

And I want Han Yeo Reum to be happy, I am really on her side.

I think people are used to k-drama female leads being spunky but honest and pure and so on. but how many people are actually like that?

We all make decisions based on split second analyses and sometimes we don't end up telling the whole truth and sometimes we end up telling something not quite fully truth-esque and sometimes the we end up just straight out saying something that doesn't quite exactly not live up to the standard that a reasonable person might possibly regard as 100% truth but who are we to judge what another person regards or doesn't regard as 100% truth anyway, and isn't witness recollection inherently unreliable? Who can say what is or isn't true anyway? OMG I am going to shut up now....

... *AHEM* So, like, anyway, I like Han Yeo Reom. She is not always honest, but that makes me relate to her more not because she's a lying bitch or anything but because she makes mistakes and so do I.

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@Samsooki

Here! Here! I second that notion to kick the shiznit out of Ha Jin's smug 'mug'. hahaha

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this. i really do not get the amount of dislike to hate that she gets. i think yeo reom is likable, relatable, and also hateable. she is like all of us, she likes, she makes mistakes, but she's not a bad person. i agree that we are so used to getting character like AR (which I noticed more viewers seem to like) that although we say we want more "real" characterization, we bash and hate them when they are not cookie cutter candy girls....

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I like Yeo Reum a lot.

She's not some fake Miss Nicey-nice or Ms. Perfect but a well-rounded character w/ her good qualities and flaws (she even admits that the one thing Ah-rim has on her, aside from being younger, is that she is nicer); some posters had trouble w/ Jung Yumi's character in INR2012 for the same reason, but I liked that flawed character as well (Jung Yumi's acting and cute/expressive facial expressions play a part in that).

But it was good that Yeo Reum was the one who gave up being stubborn and went to Ha-jin at the end.

I also like that Tae-ha has kept a good portion of his cockiness; keeps him interesting (and also puts him into the predicaments that he gets into) and would not have been believable otherwise (if he had suddenly become Mr. Nice Guy).

Ha-jin is starting to get more interesting (definitely kinda of an a-hole move to pick taking Ah-rim home rather than staying to hash it out w/ Yeo Reum) but for a while, he was pretty boring (as characters go); Ah-rim finally showed a little something, but that whole nice girl thing isn't very entertaining.

Hope the whole Ha-jin/Ah-rim relationship remains a one-sided love on Ah-rim's part b/c after some teasing from the writers, seems like Ha-jin's heart is really w/ Yeo Reum (having him go back on that would seem like a poor trick by the writers and not in line w/ the character up to this point).

Was wondering why Ha-jin purchased a bike w/ such small wheels for Ah-rim but upon seeing the credits, it made sense (paid product placement).

Also reason why Sol and Joon-ho are so interesting (not to mention entertaining) as characters.

As for Sol's 12th man, I hope the it starts to get going w/ Director Yoon.

While many may wish for the 12th (permanent) to be Joon-ho, I just can't see it since he has given no indication of any interest towards Sol in a romantic way (and no go would suffer thru 11 BFs if he had an interest); plus they are so much better in the "sister-brother" relationship.

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The actress playing Sol is also appearing in Surplus Princess playing a similar char, quirky and bestie. I like the vibe she gives off. Wish there are more actresses like that, besides those who are beautiful first leads, and hateful wanna-be's.

Re "...wanting TH to knock the shiznit out of HJ", and "....being really on YR's side" are 2 sides of the same coin. Since the drama shows HJ and YR together and presents HJ as her BF, anyone who feels warm towards YR will hate HJ for having feelings for AR. And there are many in that boat in the comments.

What if the writer means for HJ and AR to be together in the 1st place, and they are in the process of finding their way back to each other, with YR taking HJ as her stop-gap BF when she is on the rebound from her real love TH, such that YR is the blocker? I recall YR's 1st meeting w HJ: she was drunk, kissed him right there, and they've been together since. By the rules of KD, that far does it amt to being 'true love', on a scale of 1-10?

I see these ppl playing games. The only one who is honest so far is AR.

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Since the adoption issue is raised in every recap by the commenters I think it would be beneficial to repost the link that Because of Reasons linked in recap 7.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2014/09/09/346851939/in-korea-adoptees-fight-to-change-culture-that-sent-them-overseas

I suggest that everyone reads this article, including the comments, to understand why Ha-Jin is so reluctant to come clean about him being adopted. It's especially confusing for us viewers from western countries who didn't have the benefit/misfortune to grow up in a country that has been strongly influenced by confucianist ideals.

Apologies for hijacking a reply this far up the comments.

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Thank you for reposting this link. I learned a lot.

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Thank you. Excellent article. Haven't started in on the comments, but I will read them as you suggested.

I've seen the documentaries mentioned and they were very good. Another I'd recommend is AKA Dan. DramaFever has it: http://www.dramafever.com/drama/4447/AKA_Dan/

Their description:

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"aka DAN" is a documentary series featuring Korean American adoptee and musician Dan Matthews, as he searches for and reunites with his biological family, including the twin brother he never knew he had. This four-part series follows the ups and downs of Dan's journey, exploring themes of personal identity, definitions of family, and love.
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The documentary also show the 2010 IKAA (International Korean Adoptees Associations) conferences in Seoul with attendees from around the world.

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I also should have said your comment was a good slap in the face to remind me just why he might not be so forthcoming.... as I kept screaming in disbelief "Just tell her/them!" Uh, duh. Thanks!

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Always enjoy your comments

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does anyone know the title of the song at the end of episode 8?

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Please! I need the title too >-<

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OMGOMGOMG FOUNDDDD!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C67kIdppbRg

though it might be a year too late! (enjoy!)

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Thanks for the recap Dramallama^^

I'm on Kang Tae Ha-Han Yeo Reum team after watching episode 8. The sweet moments in Yeo Reum's studio was my favorite. There was a honesty that I could see from both party, TH-YR..which is wonderful to see….

Dear writer-nim, please give TH-YR proper kissing scene ASAP…!!!

*crycrypervyfangirl

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Tae-Ha should stay drunk always in order to get Yeo Reum lol

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Noooooo…..!!!! He should be 100% sober to smack down Dr. Jinnie …*Praying the sky fall soon

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He didn't look drunk/too drunk after the drink with Hajin or when he said sorry to Yeoreum though. I hope moments like that will come more when he doesn't drink. :)

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@Gustave154

Hahahahaahaha! Love it! :D

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@Lady Gaga

You're not 'pervy' at all! I can't wait myself because I know it'll be explosive! lol Team TH♥YR all the way!

Thanks for the recap DB! ;)

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I watched this on a marathon run from ep 1 to 8, hmm, another ex-lovers kdrama, ok, so it's not really that engaging but I like that Eric Moon is trying to redeem himself here after that big jerk character he played in Myung Wol the Spy. anyway, I think it is more fun to watch the love story of Yoon Sol and Joon Ho. These two are my fave 3rd leads. Kim Na Gil (yoon sol) from Flower Boys next door and Yoon Hyun Min (joon Ho) from Witch's Romance.

Fated to love You just ended last week,was it? and the second leds were brother and sister so they ended up having no one to pair up with inspite of the fact that both of them are so good-looking but it's ok, their consolation was finding each other and making up for lost time as siblings, love will definitely fond them later if not sooner. but that angle was again used here, as to why, the writers are probably clueless as to the sibling thing in Fated to love you? really? it was a remake of a taiwan drama, surely they have to do their research and it aired way before they started. Do they think they will do a better job with the sibling angle? will it be revealed that they are not siblings after all, nah, I don't think so.
Oh, well, whatever, let's just go with the flow and watch it, if only for Yoon Sol and Joon Ho. I'm okay with that.
P.S. It really shows that Eric is such a ladies man, he's not even acting , just really suave like that ...

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Ha Jin went from perfect boyfriend to biggest jerk. I'm enjoying this drama esp. after this episode, its not your usual cracktastic kdrama fare. It's unpredictable, characters are flawed and shows realistic dating behaviors and I like it.

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It is so sad if this is realistic dating behavior. Everyone in this drama needs therapy.

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It's not rare what the characters are going through / dealing with.

- Don't pay enough attention to your BF/GF
- Lack of communication
- Not being upfront & forward
- Little white lies, ommission sof fact/truth

All that happens in real life. Cute & jolly Sol-Ho is rather not realistic in real life hence we love them more in drama land :)

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I knew both the Sol-ho and Tae-reum kind of couples in real life, they're both pretty realistic.

though in the Sol-ho type couple I knew, the girl would have eaten glass rather than be as openly brokenhearted and romantic as Sol is. They did have similar jokes and teasing though.

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I agree i find TH/YR/HJ to be a lot more real than Sol-Jol. People act like we always tell the 100% truth in our lives, that we never ever lie, we never ever play things into our favor, we never sweet talk and use other methods to get our way or get ourselves out of sticky situations. Come on now, we have all one point or another for some reason or another behaved in a manner similar (maybe not the same extent) as these character. Heck just last week to get extra time on an essay that was going to be late; I lied to my professor that I had been stuck in the ER with stomach pains that weekend which was why I could write said essay and submit it on time. It was wrong and I know it was wrong but I did it anyways because it gets me out of a bad grade *shrugs*

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@Corgi

You know it's funny you mentioned that about Ha Jin now showing his true colors, because I saw him also as the perfect boyfriend. I was kinda thrown when Tae Ha said to Yeo Reum in her workshop that; "THAT sky will fall", he was indeed getting ahead of himself. I thought that the drama probably wanted to show Tae Ha failing to get his woman back. But this episode and the previous spun me for a loop. Didn't see it coming. :)

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In the up coming episodes, I wonder how Ahrim deals with her crush on Hajin. Is she going to make it clear to both Hajin & Yeoreum that she's interested or just doing it behind every one's back.

It's ok if she goes after Hajin if Yeoreum & Hajin know about it. I just don't like the way she is right now.

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That other girl-ugh! She's acting the victim but she's also busy drooling over another girl's man-2 faced wolf in sheep's skin!

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That man isn't exactly helping the cause either. He needs to come clear, or cut AR loose.

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WORD!

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Oh, and one other thing.

Ah Rim's confessional was moving. I was actually a little surprised by how good it was.

Guess I'm going to watch IOITL next to find other stuff she's been in, and maybe 1994 as well.

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yeah, Ah-rim is lifted straight out of the Candy mould but I have to give credit to Yoon Jin-yi for putting in her mightiest effort to flesh out that character. That interview scene was really good.

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I don't understand why Ha Jin doesn't come clean to Yeo Reum about Ah Rim. If he loves her and always used to consider her emotions, why act different now? He knows he is upsetting Yeo Reum and should realize that his sneaking around is what is causing Yeo Reum to not trust him.

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He sort of told Yeoreum that they're not dating but I can't remember if he told her he's helping the surgeries to fix up Ahrim's friends. That alone would save Yeoreum & her suspicion and save him the headache explaining why he keeps meeting up with Ahrim.

Sure, mom told him not to tell Yeoreum he's an orphan or that guilt trip he has toward Ahrim for being adopted to a good family instead of her. Seeing how Yeoreum taking it the 'wrong' way and how obviously it affects their realtionshipk, he should had come forward with everything. May be he will in the next few episodes. May be it's soon enough to save this realtionship or it's to too late... we'll have to see.

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No actually…I don't see how helping surgeries to fix up AR's friends would get him out of this hole he digs. It doesn't explain why one would fix breakfast for a girl, inviting her in, hiding with her, and THEN chose to walk her home while not explaining a thing to YR. It's such a plot device, one that I wish doesn't have to be used…cause I guess I expected the writers to be more creative than that.

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Yeah it's such a crappy way to get HJ in a bad light. There are easier ways to break HJ and YR for TH to reunite with YR. What are they thinkin.

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Couldn't understand why Ha-jin didn't tell Ah-rim from the moment he realized who she was, but (not exactly explaining why he didn't say it at that very moment) later on, it becomes clear that Ha-jin's mom doesn't want Ah-rim to be a part of Ha-jin's life or for her to know who he is b/c she wants to keep the fact that Ha-jin was adopted under wraps (including from Yeo Reum).

But Ha-jin should just go against his mum and tell Yeo Reum and Ah-rim, but I guess he's trying to be the good son.

While common-place in K-dramas, this one may take the cake in terms of deceased parents.

Yeo Reum - father (or so we are thought to believe)
Tae-ha - father (no mention of mother, so probably her as well)
Sol - both parents (not exactly clear)
Joon-ho - both parents
Ha-jin - both natural parents and adoptive father?
Ah-rim - both natural parents (adoptive parents or grew up in orphanage?)

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@bd5 - interesting observation! But if I recall correctly, Joon-ho's parents are still alive and have migrated to New Zealand.

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The one thing Yeo Reum says that really bothers me is every time she says something to the effect of "If I have to explain the problem to you then you wouldn't understand even if I told you." So completely untrue, and I look forward to more honest conversations with Tae Hee about exactly what he did that was hurtful rather than these generalities.

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As a guy I have been on the receiving end of such an argument when I was younger. Now I'm older, I realize that it was a difference of perception and I really hadn't realized that what I was doing was wrong from her perspective. There was no malice on my part and if there had been some open communication from her even though she felt I should have realized it on my own, things might have turned out different for us both.

Honest and open communication is vital for any relationship to succeed.

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It bothers me too, but it also rings so true because I've heard people say things like that in real life, "Why should I have to explain it to him/her? S/he should just know. If s/he doesn't know without me telling them, that means they'll never really understand me anyway."

And sometimes it's said to avoid dredging up old issues, which can be difficult and painful. In Yeo Reum's case, I think that's probably the case; she isn't interested in re-hashing things she's worked hard to get over and leave behind, so she's telling Tae Ha that if he cares so much about what he did wrong, he'll have to figure it out himself. And I can understand that: she isn't trying to start a new relationship with him, so for her whatever he did wrong when they were together is the past and can stay in the past.

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True! insightful

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It is getting difficult for me to watch this drama because I really really dislike the lies in this relationship... I feel like you can't have love without trust.

I was totally rooting for Ha Jin... but for me, it was the last straw when he lied AGAIN about meeting Ah Rim.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I think Yeo Reum was at least telling the truth, if not the whole truth. She IS meeting with her ex, but it was for work reasons. Ha Jin flat out lied about it, after Yeo Reum was so cool about the whole situation and decided to just forgive him, and trust him. I give up on this character. Which is a shame because I love Sung Joon.

Speaking of Ah Rim, I really wanted to like her, but she annoys the heck out of me. Am I the only one? She seemed like the plucky innocent kind of girl who you can't help but root for, but the way she is being written, she is acting in a way that I don't like. She's not unaware that Ha Jin is in a committed relationship. Yet she still comes over for breakfast last episode and then this one asks him to hang out after the whole huge confrontation? She herself said that she was being misunderstood and treated unfairly by Yeoreum but she's being a complete two faced thing. =/

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She never came over for breakfast, she came to deliver him the regular packages she leaves on his door but he was the one who made breakfast and was waiting to for her to make her regular delivery so he could feed her.....

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That's true, I should have remembered better and watched better. Thanks for correcting me, I appreciate it. I definitely think Ha Jin is the one being untrustworthy and the one who is truly doing the wrong things. But Ah Rim is not free of blame, but I feel like the show is making her seem more innocent than her actions are.

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up to this episode, I'll give cut Ahrim some slack since she just decide to like Hajin in the last episode.

I don't like when she decides to go with Hajin to Gunsan at the end of the episode when she said Yeoreum misunderstood & treated her unfairly.... She knows it will give Hajin more trouble with the GF if they're caught by Yeoreum... yet she did it any way.

No problem if she has interest in Hajin and want to pursuit him but at least let Yeoreum know that she's going after the BF. Then it's all in the open.

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You're right. AR has the right to like him, but after the whole scene where she said everything was a misunderstanding, it just seems wrong. I get that you can't help your feelings, but you can help being honorable and honest :/

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@cinder, yep, I understand some times one can't help their feeling & being rational when they're in love. I hope she'll make Yeoreum know if she's interested in her BF because I don't like the crying foul yet throwing fuel to the fire.

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@dtp_jnr

Yes, you're correct she didn't come to have breakfast, she came to drop off crap! lol Mistake no.1 And I'm pretty sure by her revealed 'selfish & conniving' disposition that she wouldn't have put up much of a fight not to stay!! If Yeo Reum hadn't come they would've had their breakfast and she would've been none the wiser.

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SO agree!
To me, Ha Jin is clearly the party that has done the most wrong. He has lied, and continues to lie, and then demands complete trust without offering any explanation for his actions. How can he get mad about YR trying to find out what is really going on when he is so completely non-transparent? And to choose to walk away with Ah Rim... he voted with his feet. The most important girl in his life is no longer YR, no matter what he may say about killing to keep her, blah blah blah.
To me, he is the most past-obsessed character. YR is trying to overcome her past, Tae Ha wants to move forward and fix the mistakes he made in the past...but Ha Rim is being ruled by the little boy he was (still is).
And I rarely like plucky sweet yong things, and that includes Ah Rim. At least she isnt the whiny, crying clinging vine she was in A Gentleman's Dignity, but shes got her agenda just like everyone else.

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@Cinder

No you're not! I don't like her and no amount of tears can make me at this point. She gets no love. All respect to the actress but this 'oh woe is me' act is pretty old, and I'm unimpressed. :(

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Unlike majority of the people watching this drama, I don't have a problem with Ha Jin's character.
1) To him Ah Rim is a younger sister that he had been looking for four many years, if he had found her now and she was having a good life, he would not have to care so much for her well being as he is.
2) He found her she's living a poor life while he had been having a good life after being adopted so he's bound to look after her the way he is.
3) Ah Rim can be confused since she doesn't know who he is but that's understandable for a girl who has been having a tough life and then a handsome guy is kindly taking care and trying to makeliving comfortable for you for no apparent reason.
4) Ha Jin can't reveal himself to her cos that opens a can of worms for his adoptive parents which they don't want
5) Ha Jin can't tell YR about Ah Rim cos his family doesn't want it and honestly he doesn't have to if they're not married. This is a family secret not just some random secret that he alone carries.
6) Everyone omits the fact that YR and all her friends have been and still are lying to HJ about TH when she clearly still has emotional attachments to him. While HJ who has no such feelings but justone oftaking careof his lil sister is being seen add a bad guy.
7) people hate on AR for sticking up for herself and secretly liking HJ but not planning on doing anything towards those feelings as she said herself cos he's in a relationship while loving TH who is trying to break the couple up and acting towards his feelings.

With all that said, the drama is just getting annoying by the episode, just gonna drop it if the first 10mins of the next episode is still going down the stupid route that is been going for some episodes now....

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You make good points. I do think you're right that at this point, Ha Jin mostly feels only brotherly goodwill towards Ah Rim.

I personally don't find it okay though that he hides his motivations and stuff from his significant other... the person he wants to marry. He says Yeo Reum is the most important person to him but he continues to lie to her.

I agree that YR has some emotional attachments in a way to TH, but I don't think she's considering a relationship at all with him. It's more that it is hard to just forget someone you were in a serious relationship with for years. YR honestly seems to want to make it work with Ha Jin.

That being said, she isn't 100% in the right either. It worried me that YR wasn't opening up to HJ about her financial concerns and the true reasons why she wanted to delay marrying him. She should be able to feel like she could talk things over with the person she loves. Also, YR did not tell Ha Jin everything about what's been happening with TH, which is also not fair.

I'm with you about probably stopping watching this drama if the next episode doesn't get any less frustrating.

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I'm all for Ahrim to go after Hajin just like Taeha going after Yeoreum. But the big difference is Taeha makes it clear to Hajin & Yeoreum he's interested. It's out in the open for all parties involved.

At this point, Ahrim complains Yeoreum misunderstood her & Hajin, treats her unfairly yet she decided to go to Gunsan with Hajin (it's not a must that they had to go together).

In the upcoming episodes, I just hope she's not so naive to complain of being treated unfairly yet she does things that add more fuel to the fire.

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"Everyone omits the fact that YR and all her friends have been and still are lying to HJ about TH when she clearly still has emotional attachments to him. While HJ who has no such feelings but justone oftaking careof his lil sister is being seen add a bad guy."

I understand where you're coming from with your other points, especially with the fact Ha Jin has been lied to by YR's friends. They are wrong for doing that to him; however they are still on his side to be with Yeo Reum not Tae Ha. Yeo Reum has showed every inch of the way that she wants to be with Ha Jin in deflecting Tae Ha's advances etc. There is history there, and it's bad.

But make me understand this alternate universe where a person; a doctor at that can't tell the woman he want to marry that he is adopted? What is the purpose of the service of delivering 1, count it..1 bottle of juice to a person's condo? Doesn't he have a mailbox downstairs? Why can't he buy this juice by the case? Can't he afford it? What's soooo bad about working and making a honest living that makes Ah Rim poor? Then I'm poor as well then and never knew I needed that sort of sympathy myself????!!!! Like another poster said; she has the right to like whomever she wants but the problem I have with her is that she's sneaky and the writers are forcing our sympathies onto her when she is undeserving. Would a rich girl have the same sympathies if she went after my boyfriend and told me that I made her look like she was doing something wrong when it fully apparent she likes and wants my boyfriend? I think not! She'd be getting her hair pulled and dragged like any other. ;)

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You said: "Like another poster said; she has the right to like whomever she wants but the problem I have with her is that she’s sneaky and the writers are forcing our sympathies onto her when she is undeserving."

I actually think the writers are doing this purposefully to take away our sympathies for Ah Rim. In most dramas she would be the lead--the plucky, innocent, pure candy girl. But she's not. I think they are subverting the archetype candy girl here--that she too, like the three other leads, is also flawed.
This show seems to have definitely decided to tackle the messiness of love and relationships head on. No one is perfect, no one is pure, and a lot of mistakes are being made.

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#4 & #5: but Hajin proposed to Yeoreum so they're close to being married. He can tell Yeoreum about his adoption and tell her to keep it secret from his mom.

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Let me get this straight.

1) A boyfriend who yelled at his girlfriend in front of others even though he's the one caught sneaking around with another girl and then chose to take the girl home instead of settling the so-called misunderstand with whom he later professed to love so much 'the woman he cannot live without'.

2) In the end, his girlfriend chose to give in and they 'made love' the night before and all seemed to be fine and dandy only to lie again to be with the girl he 'so called' not interested in, rather than his girlfriend.

Sigh...for me. I'm done. Ha Jin is out. Period.

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+1

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+2

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Their relationship is doomed.

His behaviour raises so many red flags.... basically trying to put the blame on her for something he did wrong. That's what emotional abusers do. That's NOT someone you want to be with.

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+3
if my bf did like ha jin did.. i would like to kick him in his leg or anything then shout to him that he is the one that cause missunderstanding ..
like doesn't tell your gf you have dating and reject her call when u with another girl and invite her to have breakfast with you wasn't enough call "the worst"... he add it with yell to her.. and leave her to following ah rim???wth...
ha jin jerk....
sorry for my bad english..

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So true @Val. Watching the scene was painful. Putting myself in Yeo Reum's shoes, all I could think of was betrayal...in so many ways.

Don't worry about your english by the way. :)

@C, @seanshine, @alua, @val, @ryoko, looks like we are all on the same page! :)

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+4

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Am I the only one who actually rather likes Yeo-reum as a character? Yeah, she's being kind of a bitch to Tae-ha last ep but at least I can see the reasoning behind her actions.

Because as things stand, here is the others, summarised in one word:

Tae-ha: jerk
Ha-jin: jerk
Ah-rim: Candy

I'm guessing Ah-rim and Ha-jin aren't actually siblings, because otherwise.....ewwww.

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(no criticism for any of the actors though, they are doing well in their roles, it's just that the characters are supremely unlikable)

and as usual, Sol and Joon-ho >>>>>>> everyone else in this drama. I want Joon-ho to be her true No. 12 too, they have such a great mix of comfort and chemistry that it makes their genuine and comfortable friendship as believable as their more charged more-than-an-oppa moments.

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I'd like Dir. Yoo to be her #12 and keep their lovely friendship the way it is.... but doesn't seem writer-nim is on my side... oh well XDD

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Tae-Ha: not a jerk, he's just a guy who likes a girl.

Ha-Jin: not a jerk, he's just a rather smug guy in love with his long legs who likes a girl.

Ah-rim: not Candy, she's just a poor beautiful waif from an orphanage with a backstory to end all tragic backstories who happens to like kim-bap and work like 15 part-time jobs to make ends meat.

Love them ALL.

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@samsooki Sorry, my friend but I have to disagree with you.
TH- perhaps it has to do with different POV ( male vs female)but personally,I think he is a jerk. He was in a relationship with YR, got comfortable with the relationship and didn't bother to maintain the relationship. They were physically together and YET YR felt abandoned/ lonely. The girl was smart and left his sorry a$$ behind.
At the present, like a little boy in the playground, doesn't like some other little boy( Yes, you, HJ!) is playing his old but abandoned toy( now suddenly realized is a prized possession). Well, unless such toy is willing to return to you( or the other little boy), she can assess her worth as to whom she should " belong to", no, more like want to stay with.
All 4 leads have a lot of growing up - it's human relationship we're dealing with.... Stop " playing around"....

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@cingdoc, there's always a phase in the relationship when the romance dies down and gets stale a little. That doesn't make the other person a jerk for not paying enough attention to the GF/BF like they used to. He's the only one that hasn't cheated or lied.

I find it's funny Hajin doesn't like Yeoreum seeing Taeha so often yet it's ok that he sees Ahrim often and Yeoreum should not be mad at him... hypocrite?

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@samsooki and @ Phi,
Sorry, last comment was incomplete due to interruptions from RL....
Cont-
Yes, TH didn't cheat or lie but to YR(& to me) he was still a jerk for making her feel pathetic, being the only one who ( at that moment) was present in the relationship emotionally vs TH's notion was that he 's still there( physically).
I think there was the core reason YR left and ended the relationship. All that time,TH was puzzled as of why( haha, he still thought he was doing nothing wrong).(Another reason why he's a jerk- the dude was clueless and conceited).
HJ- another jerk...
Yes, you searched endlessly for your dong saeng, and I support you for your effort. But, the moment that you began to lie to EVERYONE about her and your relationship, you became a j.e.r.k....
If you have no unpure intentions, then why did you hide her real identity to YR? lie about the innocent meet ups? apologized to YR about the misunderstandings, made up ....just to began the next day with more lies and spend time with AR ??
Yeah.... About our tragic AR.... the quintessential " candy" with the multiple part time jobs.... I am sorry about her struggles but I think she grew up fine. She became strong and independent ( like her oppa taught her how to fend for herself).... But that does not give her a free pass to continue her show of affection toward HJ, knowing fully there is a girlfriend involved....

Sorry, I think I should stop... it's late and my brain is mush....
In a nut shell, everyone in DoL should stop lying- to yourself, to your gf/bf, now or exes...the web in ALL of your lives is way too tangled up ...

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@cingdoc, it is wrong that Taeha or any one didn't pay attention to their GF/BF and sure he/she deserved getting dumped for that. But, imo, being clueless, not a mind readers is irritating but that doesn't equate jerk (to me). Even if he was crazy busy with work, he had much to blame for that break up. That said, Yeoreum is also at fault for bottled everything up and not telling him. The moment she did, it's a break up. If that happens in real life, how many relationships one will go through?

May be there're more to be seen, a middle version of events between Taeha's memories of their good parts and Yeoreum's memories of the bad parts. Yeoreum said she dumped Taeha and it wasn't really so. I also wonder why Yeoreum led Sol & Joon Ho to believe Taeha knew about her father's death but not come to the wake AND broke up a few months later....

This part of their convo at the wine bar

Yeoreum: I'm so easy to you?
Taeha: You're not easy to me. May be back in the day, but not at all now. You're tough and difficult. You should have acted just like now

I think much of Yeoreum's hate/resistance to Taeha now is partly to get back at him but a big part is she doesn't want him to think she's easy to falter.

Lastly, I agree with @mookie, Teaha/Ahrim has the right to like/pursuit and Yoereum/Hajin has the right to not accept.

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@Cingdoc TH was a jerk 5+ years ago but i disagree vehemently with ur words Unni:

At the present, like a little boy in the playground, doesn’t like some other little boy( Yes, you, HJ!) is playing his old but abandoned toy( now suddenly realized is a prized possession).

When YR was back in his view at the hotel, TH eyes were brimming with nothing but an dream he has been yearning for, is coming true. What he said to her about his love towards her then, whether in the past or still hitting him that moment was not toying with her. He was going to answer HJ's call and send her to the care of her bf IF fate did not intrude and her phone dies. He was dissuading YR not to be with HJ first and foremost because he has reasons to believe he is cheating on YR, if he has no grounds to, he would not intrude because at present he is operating on considering what is best for YR. He did nothing manipulative to keep her in his bed that night, she was the one passed out on his lap, and he did not want to disturb her sleep. How he tended to her that night was too tender, coming off too naturally if he was just regarding her as sth to toy with at the spur of the moment. I choose to interpret how he acted that night as very telling he still has genuine feelings for her all along, even stronger as years passed instead. He has a right to still love her, and regrets his ass off as YR has a right not to, it is to each his or her own to take care of as YR said. But he is taking it so seriously from e1 to be called a child at play with a toy he does not want and just want to fight with another boy he dislike as if for no reason. No, that is too harsh a take on sth as precious

He has shown me he has the best intention for her. He was the one coming up woth the idea, helping her out of a sticky situation over the lunch date, it is so far from being a jerk of him to stay and put her at ease not to mind him right away. It was opposite of being a jerk to pour his heart out and walk away, he did not ask her for anything back, but instead owning up to being a jerk back then and admit fault. That is not being a child, playing with a toy.

How is it being a jerk when he is actually helping out HJ, offering to chauffeur the other woman so HJ can comfort YR?! How is it being a jerk when he shows up just because she calls, all for asking him about her bf she misses?! How is it being a jerk when he is forthright about his feelings for her, aware of himself having no chance and nudges her not to give him ideas by making him honey tea? That is reassuring her he gets and respects her stance and will try his best not crossing the line. How is he being a jerk sincerely apologizing for neglecting her when she was mourning the death of her father, when he was not aware of his death, not out of toying her nor wanting her back, but simply, genuinely apologizing for a hurt she has moved on but he still manned up to it?

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+1 for this comment
+2 for that last paragraph

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@mookie( my fav dong saeng) and @ Phi
I totally knew I shouldn't post comments when I'm tired and brain dead....
Perhaps I was harsh in calling him a jerk ( now). I believe time has helped him and made him realized how precious his relationship he shared with YR.
I have to clear up a point though- I stated he was a boy who fight with another boy ( HJ) for the toy ( YR) but I didn't mean that TH toy with YR's affections.
I can see that he sees her in a different light and wouldn't mind a second chance or at least let her know his ( genuine) feeling for her. However, there were flashes of " immaturity" from TH- the unforgettable pool hall fight.... the mad dash through traffic to appear nonchalantly in the job site just to see YR .... and denying his knowledge of the whereabout of YR's camera( all the while it was in his possession). Now, one can argue that all these were TH's effort to ( finally) show YR he cares( deeply) for her( still). My question - is it too late? Can he have a second chance??? If I'm a friend to YR, I would offer an advice- Bf/ gf's behaviour usually will not change. If YR wants to renew her relationship with TH, then she needs to remember( and I think she does, hence her guarded self) . TH- please prove me wrong.... Even if YR does not get back with you, please treasure your next relationship ?

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+++3 ;)

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@Cingdoc

We r watching a different drama and having totally different focus. So, yes, i am even disagreeing more after you cleared out ur thoughts.

What you are emphasizing is exactly what i disagree, the focus is not to be competitive and fight with another dude for an object. And all those actions you call immature, i call it's someone in love, it has nothing to do with being a child and immature. He was hit by HJ first, the guy who should be so gd to YR he saw cheating, u are asking him to be a saint to not fight back when hit THEN calling him childish. I am not condoning hitting peeps but i do not see how else he could react in situation.

And No. He went to see her simply just to see her and he did not let himself off easy beating on himself later and harshly snubbed by YR. It could've been in a reckless accident, but is rushing to a place to make chance to see a girl being a jerk now? I'd rather this than the chance meetings by fate. He kept her camera under gd care for a few measly hours more, he did not scheme for her to leave the camera behind. He did not force her for a ty meal even when he is hoping for a gesture. It is so minor I call it seizing a chance for himself, taking fate in his hands.

Moreover is he begging for a second chance?! He had moments too emotional like that too entitled line of she will come back to him, but that was when he found out her Dad's fatal accident did not happen and he was wrung through the guilt and his own sadness too, had a close relationship with Dad. I gave him big bonus actually inmediately in a subsequent meeting with her at the same exact workshop, he apologized for what he was at fault, did not even ask her about what happened knowing her account was not the entire truth. He also showed up knowing YR is now at ease with him. I see such comfortable clarity of where they r at, her point of no interest in him is delivered to him loud and clear. He showed up not just to see her, but to ensure she is ok, with the new knowledge fr HJ they did not make up yet and through the week, he had not once bother her. His is not operating on his agenda but reacting to her out of concern instead of his wants which we have seen him trying so hard to rein in. We need to watch the drama as it progresses rather than stuck on a certain vantage point judging and labelling the characters when they have grown out of it for the better.

Whether he deserves anything is not a question for me, nor YR's friends only YR has a say. If bystander fingerpointing, advice/pressure from close ones are what's ruling matters of the heart, that is not the love i know of.

It is not a must i need an endgame of YR/TH, what they had at end of 8, the honesty, the friendly intimacy, how easy they are communicating raws emotions without games is more delectable than ordinary love between a couple imo.

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@mookie,
Ok.... We can have different POV ...

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samsooki, I love you. Your comments never fail to bring me laughter. The Notting Hill reference for Tae-Ha...I am still in stitches. I will adore the drama forever and a day if they somehow prodigy that.

"she’s just a poor beautiful waif from an orphanage with a backstory to end all tragic backstories" *dead*

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selina, i LOVED you in Ghost. big fan.

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she’s just a poor beautiful waif from an orphanage with a backstory to end all tragic backstories who happens to like kim-bap and work like 15 part-time jobs to make ends meat.

You forgot "also has a hot rich doctor dodging his girlfriend to take her to dinner and make it look like they're dating"

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If I were Ah Rim I would have said this to the interviewer:

"At first I was afraid of summer
I was mortified (huge bummer)
Kept thinking I could never live without kimbap in me inside
But then I spent so many nights
Thinking how you threw me down the hill and did me wrong
And I grew strong, like
How I learned to get you to pay for new bike..."

:)

Practically writes itself. :D

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@Samsooki

Man.. I laughed my butt off at your comment. Hilarious! ;)

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HAHAHA you're funny! +1

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"...Ah-rim voices her frustrations. She accuses Yeo-reum of being suspicious right away, never giving her the benefit of the doubt and even tracking her down where she worked. Ha-jin receives this information with shock, spectating Tae-ha scoffs, and Yeo-reum looks to him with apologetic eyes. Looks like the tables have turned."

The only thing I was thinking was the nerve of THAT AUDACIOUS B***H!!! :( This is a girl I must sympathize with? Ahhhh.. No!

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I like Ahrim since she seems kind & bright but when she says she should hides her feelings for Hajin since he has a GF then boom called him shortly later to say she's going to Gunsan with him makes me on the fence with her.

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I completely disagree, I don't see how Ah-rim was wrong to call Yeo-reum out. I wasn't expecting that, but Ah-rim certainly didn't deserve Yeo-reum's ill treatment of stalking and glaring. If anything, Ha-jin should be the one responsible of clearing things up.

As far as I can see, Ah-rim has:
1) went to a plastic surgeon to ask for help and to give information about the patients
2) treated Ha-jin to dinner to thank him for his help

So nope, don't see how she is a b***h. Just a nice girl caught between one couple that has no idea how to communicate with each other.

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I completely disagree, I don't see how Ah-rim was wrong to call Yeo-reum out. I wasn't expecting that, but Ah-rim certainly didn't deserve Yeo-reum's treatment of stalking and glaring. If anything, Ha-jin should be the one responsible of clearing things up. I think it is indicative of the state of their relationship that Yeo-reum went around investigating Ah-rim instead of broaching the subject with Ha-jin.

As far as I can see, Ah-rim has:
1) went to a plastic surgeon to ask for help and to give information about the patients
2) treated Ha-jin to dinner to thank him for his help

So nope, don't see how she is a b***h. Just a nice girl caught between one couple that has no idea how to communicate with each other.

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"Ha-jin doesn’t accept any more excuses and expresses his anger asking, “If you don’t trust me, why are you dating me?” Yeo-reum falls silent, but Tae-ha decides to step in and call out Ha-jin for being a hypocrite. He’s the one caught doing wrong and now he’s yelling at Yeo-reum."

Ha-Jin is really a 'piece of work'! I'm glad that TH was there to see it all. This is where I will admit that Yeo Reum and Ha Jin have done wrong to each other. They both have been in this sort of predicament that have caused them to not trust each other. So this I can understand to a certain degree. BUT! Yeo Reum has not made such an impasse toward their relationship by choosing the other person over her own boyfriend. What he has done is inconceivable and unforgivable. Tae Ha could've made sure that the skank got home safely. There are just no words.. :(

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They can call TH a jerk, asshole, manipulator and all the other names in this book but Kang Tae Ha is the realest,most honest character of the bunch. The rest are just...

NHJ is a serious 'piece of work' when he was shouting at YR at the beginning of the episode I was laughing my ass off. Dude, if you want to be trusted, stop doing shady shit. It's that simple and it's free! And to all the HJ apologists who try to justify him keeping this "secret" from his girlfirned - No, just no!

I don't care how conservative Korea is, or the stigma attached to orphans, to a woman with whom who've proposed marriage, this is not something that should be some deep dark secret. Does he think YR's love is so fickle that she'll dump him when/if she finds out he's an orphan? When does he plan on telling her, when he's on his death-bed? He seriously needs to man the hell up and tell his mother that he's going to tell YR the truth, and his mother is also wrong for pushing him and YR into marriage with this "secret" still in the dark.

Anyway, like I've said the only character's I like at the moment are TH, JH and Sol. I like AR to an extent, and it's not her fault HJ is not be honest with her and confusing the hell out of her. Also, it did seem like she had no intention to try to get between YR/HJ so she gets props for that. All this foolishness could be resolved in an instance if HJ would just tell the truth, but then we wouldn't have a drama.

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Ack!! Grammar and such.

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"They can call TH a jerk, asshole, manipulator and all the other names in this book but Kang Tae Ha is the realest, most honest character of the bunch." ~~ True! Sure neglecting your BF/GF is a no no and perhaps deserved being dumped back then but I don't think he deserve all that name calling. Like you said, he hasn't lied or cheated or immorally stepped over any one.

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And it now occurs to me - Yoon Ho (is that his name? Our 3rd lead) knows that HJ was an orphan, he knows the whole story of Ah Rim. How has Dr. Blabbermouth kept this secret to himself?

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I love the that quiet moment when Yeoreum & Taeha chatted calmly in the studio. I'm still on team YR-TH but if it doesn't work out I hope at least this will bring closure to Yeoreum about the past relationship and move on with not so much hate (I do think she's overacted a bit). Perhaps a friendship or a better working partnership will come out of this if the sky doesn't fall? lol

I see her pain for being neglected but also hope she also learn more of what the root cause of the problem was with was lack of open communication. The moment she vented, it's a break up. In real life, at least one should give the other party a chance to know and correct things before making such decision.

I don't know, may be that is why she is now more patient and let it slide again & again with Hajin about Ahrim.

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Can't seem to find eps. 9 of ds drama. Why is that pls? Or...could this be the last episode for this season? I need to know what those four are up to.

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This drama is still airing. This means that episode 9 will air next monday, 15-09-2014.

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Wasn't captured in the recap but there was my favorite bits in this episode:

In the studio, when Yeoreum asked Taeha if he'd like a honey tea, and his reply was: "don't seduce me. You won't come to me any way. If I love you more than this, I may die" ~ True to Taeha's cheeky style of teasing, yet it rings truth and it just awwwh inducing off the laptop screen... lol

And this quote from Taeha:
What the heck is this crush? My body isn't my body and my heart isn't my heart. I can't do anything with my own will power ~ Yep, love does weird things to a person.

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+1

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+2!
Oh, where is the "like" button when you need it?

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+3

That quote at your ending, I love it! And how much he had to pay ahjussi for driving him back and forth, how true! (I don't wanna call! I shouldn't call! But..but…damn it, I guess I'll call…I miss him too much)

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hahaha the taxi part was awesome. It was a lucky night for that driver ahjussi! I'd give Taeha my business card/phone number and call me if he goes drink! lol

May be we'll just list the episode fav quotes next time :)

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I've been liking Ahrim right upto near the end of EP8. In the interview she starts to like Hajin but because he has a GF, she should hide this feeling.... yet she calls Hajin the next that she'll go with him to Gunsan. Is she naive or she's not really kind & innocent that we see. I hope it's the former.

I have no problem if she goes after Hajin if she at least make it known to both Yeoreum & Hajin so it's fair game. That makes me on the fence with her till we see more in the upcoming episodes.

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“But now your feelings matter. Yeo-reum has never belittled me in front of other people. She’s never pulled in a third party to resolve our fights, and the old Yeo-reum would have gotten out of that car to fight with me. Are you two close enough to openly share these emotions?”

The nerve of Ha Jin to say these words! He shouted at Yeo-reum in front of other people. He followed Ah-rim instead of settling the issue with her girlfriend. He did not call after the incident to clear things up. Its not about Tae-ha or Yeo-reum, its about you, $tupid!

Still like the show though.

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Loving how this drama is going!

Every character is understandable even though what they do makes you so infuriated.

TaeHa loved and thought that was enough. He didn't realize he had to work at it as YeoReum was doing so much of it for him. He never stopped having that love for the girl which is why he's dug his way back into YeoReum's life. I can understand that.

YeoReum has been so hurt by her past love and how being the one that puts more effort in leads to being the one that is hurt more. So she guards her heart with a steel cage and doesn't let HaJin in completely because she is afraid of being vulnerable. By showing herself fully she's opening herself up to the pain that she felt with TaeHa. I can understand that.

The girl that HaJin knows is not the real YeoReum. And he knows she has secrets so I think he thinks its fine to have secrets of his own. If he trusts YeoReum he expects the same level of trust from her but he doesn't realize what she's been through. She finds it hard to be trusting and he doesn't know that because she's never told him. I can also understand that.

And finally little AhRim. Imagine going what she's been through growing up and working non stop to provide for herself and her loved ones and suddenly one day out of nowhere a handsome rich guy comes over and cares for you in so many different ways. Would you not fall in love? This is a girl who has never dated and is probably completely naive in this area. She's completely crushing on him and the only thing she knows is to just be near him. I don't think she's aiming to snatch him away I think she just wants to be near the guy that she likes. I think you can't hate on her when technically the guy is leading her on. I think we're so jaded by the other characters that we automatically feel like she's jaded and manipulative as well. But I think it really is that pure onsided oppa crush that she probably doesn't mind being anything more than that. I can understand that too.

I really do think these characters feel real and that's why I like this so much. The feelings of frustration watching them interact is kind of when you see your friends doing stupid things in relationships and wanting to shake them to make them realize what they're doing wrong. That's probably why we like Sol and Joonho so much

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Yes - someone else who grasps the whole point of the writing and the characters.

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Janey, well done! Thanks for thinking that through and sharing it with us. These are pretty real characters and that's what makes the show so watchable. And +1 to bd5 as well.

I can't wait to see what happens when HJ learns that YR and TH were each other's great loves.

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Hehe...is that what a clear mind can do?? conveying so clearly and objectively and to the point.... I agree with you totally....Thank you for your comment
Note to self- don't try to post when you are busy at work and also, don't try to reply/post much later on when you are exhausted and half asleep ;)

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I like your comment a lot. You seem like a really sympathetic and kind person.
:)

I do get that Ah Rim has had a hard life, and that she is a bright and kind person. I do think she is being led to believe certain things by HJ. It's understandable that she would like HJ with him being so kind to her. I just don't think it's okay that now that all the information is on the table, to continue meeting up with him. I don't think it's a pure one sided crush when it's potentially hurting someone else. Personally, if I were in the situation, I would remove myself from the drama... and also I would not trust a man who creates these kinds of misunderstandings with his fiancee.

I'd have more respect for her if she said that she liked him, but that he was confusing her and that he had to choose between them. To be fair, AR might be heading to that point, but it is hypocritical of her to say YR had nothing to worry about and was being accusatory for no reason.

I still think Ha Jin is being a jerk to Yeo Reum... he should man up and speak the truth :)

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i just dont understand why in the world cant hajin tell ah rim tht he's her brother?! poor girl had to had feelings and all its just so saad!!!

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Sorry guys, I just wanted to be clear about something - is Hajin Ahrim's blood-related oppa? If not this is almost too incestuous.

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We're not sure. I think no.

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Still loving this drama. A LOT.:)

And i absolutely agree with Janey.

Dont think there is anyone who is really bad, or one-dimensional good here. They are very real (just all terribly good looking!)

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I havent watched any episodes of this drama... But I regularly read all the recap in DB.. And I'm enjoying it.. Thank you...

And I totally ship TH-YR to be back together in their own way.. When reading it they sound so childishly in love... Kekkeke

And strangely I ship HJ-AR to be together.. I hope they aren't in blood relationship.... And hope that they meant each other...

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On the record. I love reading your recaps. Yeorim for being insightful with Tae-ha in that moment she is purposely vague and honestly, very irritating when he wants a straight up answer to his defects. If she is so happy with Ha-jin I don't see the harm in listing Tae-ha's fault. Whether she knows it or not, she is dragging back and forth on 2 men. I'm glad she has a spine but this version of her in some ways rub me the wrong way. Granted Tae-ha is a bit sarcastic but when his sincerity shows it shows. I think she's a big girl to understand that. I wait with baited breath for the next episode.

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though I feel bad for Tae Ha, I really want to see Yeo Reum and Ha Jin together still in the end. Glad to see korean dramas finally with couples paring up early in the episodes or already paired up with lotsa natural interaction, goofing with each other and random natural kisses like how real couples will behave~. It's Okay It's love has lotsa natural interaction too :)

Can't wait for next episode of this drama~

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