Boyfriend - Episode 5 & 6

Director Choi confronts Soo Hyun in front of half the company, demanding to know exactly what’s going on with the employee she appears to be dating. She refuses to answer other than to say that she’s done nothing wrong, and she turns to leave with Driver Nam.

But Jin Hyuk steps forward and tells Soo Hyun that he has some money, so they should go get ramyun together again, letting everyone watching know that he’s not being coerced or harassed. After a long pause, Soo Hyun smiles and says that she’ll buy.

They leave with Driver Nam and Secretary Jang, and Secretary Jang tells Driver Nam to drop off Jin Hyuk somewhere unobtrusive, assuming (hoping?) that this was all for show. Soo Hyun agrees and tells Driver Nam to pull over somewhere quiet — to drop off Secretary Jang. Driver Nam beams while Secretary Jang just looks gobsmacked at being ganged up on.

After being left by the side of the road (literally), Driver Nam watches Soo Hyun and Jin Hyuk drive away together and says that twenty-five years ago, he was as cool as Jin Hyuk. He bellows for Secretary Jang to eat with him, but she just rolls her eyes, sticks her fingers in her ears, and waves for a taxi.

Feeling shy, Soo Hyun offers Jin Hyuk an out by offering to take him straight home, but he insists on taking her to a tea house he knows. He tentatively introduces Soo Hyun to the owner as a friend, feeling more confident when Soo Hyun doesn’t correct him.

When the owner goes to get their tea, Jin Hyuk tells Soo Hyun that she’s the wife of his father’s photographer friend that gave him the old camera. Soo Hyun notes that the tea shop looks like a church, and Jin Hyuk confirms that the owner bought a church cheaply and converted it.

He goes to help the owner with the tea, and he admits that he brought Soo Hyun here because he needed calming. The owner asks if he’s confessed to Soo Hyun yet, and Jin Hyuk asks if she would accept him if he did. Peering at him closely, the owner tells him that he’s ugly today, so he should do it another time.

After serving the tea, the owner makes an excuse to leave them alone for a while. Jin Hyuk asks Soo Hyun if she feels calmer, and she says that she was alarmed because of him, but that she also calmed down because of him.

He apologizes for startling her and says he doesn’t regret it, but she warns him that things are going to get difficult at work from now on. He tell her that he’s made his decision, which is why he stepped in, and when she says she’s not joking, he says that he’s not, either.

He admits that he wants to be someone meaningful to her, looking at her expectantly, and seems disappointed when she doesn’t offer him a similar confession.

Hye In sits alone in a cafe, thinking about the day she graduated high school. She’d turned down invitations to hang out with her friends, saying that she was going to eat with her father, but he’d never showed up. Jin Hyuk had surprised her with flowers, knowing that her father would be too busy working to come, and he’d taken her to eat then to visit her mother in the hospital.

Secretary Jang ends up back at Dae Chan’s restaurant again, and she asks him to text Jin Hyuk and have him come by. Dae Chan jokes that she must be a loan shark, making her laugh, but she goes too far when she teases that he doesn’t look very smart so he snaps at her to send her own text.

They quickly end up trading insults, and Dae Chan sends the text to Jin Hyuk just to get Secretary Jang to stop talking.

Woo Seok comes home just as his mother is getting a report from Dae Chan on what happened at the hotel. Chairman Kim tells Woo Seok that Soo Hyun has lost her mind, and she asks Woo Seok if he really means to sit back and let Soo Hyun ruin Donghwa Hotel.

Woo Seok argues that the hotel is Soo Hyun’s to do with as she pleases, but his mother retorts that it belonged to them first. She says she’s planning to hold a board of directors’ meeting and get rid of Soo Hyun.

Back in the car, Jin Hyuk asks Soo Hyun if she ever got the painting she was trying to get in Sokcho. He mentions that there’s an exhibit on famous paintings in his neighborhood and Soo Hyun playfully accuses him of lying, since she knows all the art galleries and there’s no one in Hongdae-dong. But Jin Hyuk insists that it’s there and offers to show her sometime.

Soo Hyun tries to bring up work again, but Jin Hyuk just says that they shouldn’t be awkward with each other or it will make things even harder. He jokes that he’s not dumb enough to start calling her “noona” at work or anything, which makes her laugh.

Assuming that she erased the picture of his phone number, Jin Hyuk offers to give it to her again, but Soo Hyun rattles it off from memory. Jin Hyuk beams, then wonders why she never used it and pouts that he still doesn’t have her number.

When she snaps at him, he just grins at her use of his name, then admits that he’s only teasing to get her mind off what happened today. He says that her position and status means he should treat her respectfully, but she says there’s no need, and he agrees that it’s not necessary between them.

He’s gently chastised for using the word “we” (which implies closeness), but he asks if there’s a reason not to, and he leaves after a reminder to Soo Hyun not to think too much tomorrow.

He heads to Dae Chan’s restaurant to meet Secretary Jang, who says that he did something very daring (read: dangerous). He says he only told the truth, but she’s worried about what might happen tomorrow, so she tells him to lay low and let things blow over since there’s nothing between him and Soo Hyun anyway.

Jin Hyuk says that attitudes like hers are the very reason he and Soo Hyun decided to publicly acknowledge their friendship. Secretary Jang also gets hung up on his casual use of the word “we” and calls for a soju, ha.

Later, sitting on the swings at his playground, Jin Hyuk sighs over what Secretary Jang said to him while drunk. She’d told him that she’s Soo Hyun’s only friend, and that Soo Hyun never even got a chance to date. She’d said that he’s too young to understand what it means to go up against her in-laws, who are so tied up with Soo Hyun’s father’s political activities that they’ll never break apart.

Soo Hyun lies awake that night, mentally replaying Jin Hyuk’s brave statement of friendship in front of the entire company. She recalls him saying that he wants to be important to her, and she drifts off to sleep with a smile on her face.

Woo Seok gets a briefing on what happened in the Donghwa lobby, and he asks his secretary to get him any information he can find on Jin Hyuk.

Soo Hyun manages to get to work with a minimum of fuss from the employees, but when Jin Hyuk arrives, everyone stares at him like he’s got two heads. He steels himself and pastes on a sunny smile before walking into the HR office, but Han-gil wastes no time asking him what his relationship is with Soo Hyun.

He tells everyone honestly that they met elsewhere, and only later realized that she was going to be his boss. Director Kim cuts off Han Gil’s intrusive questioning, in a bad mood because she’s gotten a picture of her husband from her investigator, confirming that he’s cheating on her.

Secretary Jang sheepishly admits to Soo Hyun that she drank so much that she left her wallet at the bar. She complains that Soo Hyun and Jin Hyuk call themselves a “we” now, and nearly throws up when Soo Hyun refers to Jin Hyuk by name, but Soo Hyun just smiles indulgently.

Jin Myung downloads a dating app onto Dae Chan’s phone, determined to find him someone to spend time with other than the snails. He carefully poses Dae Chan for a profile photo with his hand covering his beard, ha. Secretary Jang just happens to have a profile on that same app and gets matched with him, and she thinks he looks familiar but can’t quite place him with his hand covering half his face.

In a meeting with his adviser, Soo Hyun’s father says that he’s not interested in a two-party merger, but his adviser warns that Chairman Kim is pushing hard for it. Soo Hyun’s father is against the idea of a company dictating political moves, especially since the other party doesn’t share any of his party’s ideals.

At lunch with Jin Hyuk, Hye In starts to mention the anonymous post that started this whole kerfuffle, but Han-gil interrupts them so she says she’ll tell him later. People are openly staring and talking about Jin Hyuk in the cafeteria, so he makes an excuse to leave.

Driver Nam and Soo Hyun are on their way somewhere in the car when they see Jin Hyuk sitting alone in a cafe, looking pretty down. Soo Hyun texts Jin Hyuk his own advice to listen to the radio on his phone if he’s bored. He responds that he was considering playing hooky since the weather is nice, but he didn’t want to do it by himself.

He says he could play hooky with his boss, and invites her to take the afternoon off and go to that art gallery in Hongdae-dong. She starts to reply that she’s too busy, but instead she agrees to help him skip work.

Jin Hyuk manages to get the afternoon off by being adorable, and Soo Hyun gives Driver Nam the rest of the day free. He says he’s meeting with her father, and she assumes her dad heard what’s going on and wants details, but Driver Nam assures her that she’s done nothing wrong.

Soo Hyun predicts that her mother will probably call her about two seconds before her mother calls her, furious. Soo Hyun lies that she’s in Busan on business and hangs up, and Driver Nam agrees to convince her dad to go along with the lie.

Jin Hyuk is a happy little blur as he gets ready for his date, then he meets Soo Hyun near his house. She’s confused why they’re outside under a bridge, so he turns her around to show her that there are paintings hung on each column down the entire length of the bridge.

She asks if this is the “art gallery,” and he tells her, “There are paintings, there’s you who likes paintings, and there’s me who likes you who likes paintings.” Soo Hyun side-eyes him for sliding that part in, and asks him to move his hand, which he’s kept resting on her shoulder.

While cleaning Jin Hyuk’s room, his mother sees Soo Hyun’s heels still sitting on a table, and she asks Jin Myung what he thinks they are. Jin Myung says they might be a gift for Mom, or not, and she grins that they’re probably not.

Jin Hyuk shows Soo Hyun his favorite painting, which appears to be just a collection of tiny white squares on a blue background. He says that he didn’t get it at first, but then it mesmerized him to think of how hard it was to make all those squares. Soo Hyun is familiar with the artist and says she likes their work, too.

The title of the piece fascinates Jin Hyuk as well, and he tells Soo Hyun that it’s a line from a poem. He recites the poem from memory: “Among a multitude of stars, one stares down at me. Among a multitude of people, I stare up at that one star.” Soo Hyun takes up the next line: “Where, when, and as what will the two of us — you, one so warm, and me, one so tender — meet again?”

Jin Hyuk is surprised, and he finds it an interesting parallel to their story of meeting in Cuba, then again in Seoul. Soo Hyun notices his use of “we” again and admits that she’s getting used to it.

She tells him that nothing much will change between them going forward, and turns down his invitation to dinner. He wilts at that, so she asks what she’s supposed to do when he gives her that puppydog face.

Driver Nam and Soo Hyun’s father have dinner together, and naturally Dad asks about the scandal article. Driver Nam says that the man in the article is an admirable guy, telling Dad how Jin Hyuk responded to the nasty anonymous post. Dad worries that Jin Hyuk will make things harder on Soo Hyun, but Driver Nam doesn’t think that will happen.

After work, Secretary Jang heads to Dae Chan’s place to get her wallet, which he’s got hanging from the ceiling. She freaks out at the clothespin he used, wailing that the wallet was very expensive, and he grumbles that he did that to keep it from getting anything on it.

Jin Hyuk and Soo Hyun show up while they’re still sniping at each other, and Secretary Jang complains that she feels like she needs another drink. At Dae Chan’s assumption, Soo Hyun says she’s Jin Hyuk’s work sunbae (it’s his turn to side-eye her), and she yanks Secretary Jang down to sit with them.

Dae Chan insults Secretary Jang further by saying that Soo Hyun looks like her hoobae, HA. Secretary Jang revs up to lecture Jin Hyuk, but Soo Hyun just shoves food in her mouth to shut her up.

Hye In shows up, but when she sees Jin Hyuk and Soo Hyun sitting together and the way they look at each other, she leaves again. She passes a store, sparking a memory of running into Jin Hyuk here once and him helping her pick out a journal.

Jin Myung arrives at the restaurant for work, and he immediately recognizes Soo Hyun from the news story. He figures out that Jin Hyuk was the ramyun guy, causing both Jin Hyuk and Soo Hyun to look sheepish.

After sending the ladies home, Dae Chan and Jin Myung pump Jin Hyuk for information. He forbids Jin Myung to call their mom and tell her about this, which just makes them even more curious.

Woo Seok’s secretary reports that there’s nothing special about Jin Hyuk or his family. Woo Seok recalls his first time meeting Soo Hyun — she’d said she was supposed to make him like her and asked him about his preferred type of woman. He’d said that he didn’t really have a type until that day, when he’d discovered that she was his type.

In the car, Secretary Jang tells Soo Hyun that she can’t protect Jin Hyuk from the trouble their relationship will cause. Soo Hyun says she knows, but no matter how hard she tries to run away, she can’t. She admits that the timing is frustrating, wishing that she’d experienced these feelings when she was younger instead of now, when she’s older and divorced.

She says that she doesn’t know for sure if she likes Jin Hyuk, only that she keeps wanting to learn more about him. But she sighs that her life won’t let her continue this, and Secretary Jang expresses grudging sympathy for what she’s going through.

Soo Hyun’s mom calls, having learned from someone at the hotel that Soo Hyun isn’t in Busan. Soo Hyun says she’s driving and hangs up on her mother, but when she pulls into her parking garage, her mother is there waiting.

Jin Hyuk is feeling happy when he gets home, but he loses his smile as he remembers Soo Hyun saying that she was trying to stop things between them before anything started. He looks at her shoes and the stuffed owl she won for him, and he frowns recalling the things he overheard his fellow employees saying about him today.

After spotting her mother, Soo Hyun drives away again, fighting back tears as she thinks of all the fights and nasty comments she’s been forced to endure. She remembers Jin Hyuk saying that he decided to be her friend, and that he wants to be someone important to her.

Soo Hyun drives through the streets, going nowhere in particular, too upset to notice that she’s about to run out of gas. She ends up stranded in an unfamiliar area, and she has to call a service to bring her gas. While she waits, she tells herself, “I’m good at holding back. I am,” as her voice wobbles and tears stream down her face.

She ends up back in Hongdae-dong, standing in front of Jin Hyuk’s favorite painting. He finds her there, and he looks happy and relieved to see her. He aims the headlight on his bike at the painting and joins Soo Hyun, and he wonders out loud what they should say is the reason they met here tonight.

Soo Hyun tells him, “You caught me. I’m usually good at holding back, but here I am.” He says that he read in a book that having an interest in someone is a fight between the certainty and doubt of liking someone, and that when the doubt fades and the certainty takes hold, that’s when love begins.

He asks Soo Hyun, “What if we leave these feelings of certainty and doubt to fight with each other, and find out if we like each other?” She turns away, unsure, but Jin Hyuk firmly takes her arms to turn her back to face him. He asks, “Why don’t we say that we’re now in a ‘some’ relationship, and met here again?”

He waits patiently for her answer, and so many emotions cross Soo Hyun’s face as she considers what this means. Finally she comes to a decision, and she looks him in the eye and says, “Okay. Let’s say that we’re now in a ‘some’ relationship.”

After mutually agreeing to see where their feelings take them, neither Jin Hyuk nor Soo Hyun are sure what to do next. Jin Hyuk invites Soo Hyun for a romantic ride on his bike, and he puts his gloves on her cold hands. He says her small hands are cute, and she tells him that if he keeps calling her cute, she might start to think it’s true.

Jin Hyuk jumps on his bike and coaxes Soo Hyun to sit behind him, firmly wrapping her arms around his waist. They both grin wildly as he pedals to nowhere, just enjoying each other’s company.

They stop at a small coffee shop, where Jin Hyuk buys a little cake to celebrate their “some” relationship status. He removes the two Christmas ornaments from the top of the cake and suggests they each take one as a keepsake.

He mentions that Soo Hyun has never worn the lipstick he got her and asks if she doesn’t like it, but she says that it seems more like a Spring color. Jin Hyuk says that now that they’ve ridden a bike and are having coffee together, it’s Spring for them.

Later, they both end up putting their Christmas ornaments next to the shoes they’ve saved from their meeting in Cuba. They also decide to change each other’s contact info in their phones — Jin Hyuk tries out an informal “Soo Hyun” but decides it’s too soon and goes back to “Director”, while Soo Hyun bites the bullet with “Jin Hyuk.”

Woo Seok calls out Director Choi, his mother’s mole at Donghwa Hotel, to ask about the rumors. He barely holds in his temper as Director Choi criticizes Soo Hyun for being too soft, then says in a tightly controlled voice that Soo Hyun may seem cold, but she has a warm heart.

He asks, oh-so-sweetly, why Director Choi confronted Soo Hyun in front of so many employees, and Director Choi belatedly realizes that he’s not here for an anti-Soo Hyun gossip session. He says that Soo Hyun keeps avoiding him, but Woo Seok reminds him that Soo Hyun is not his friend.

He tells Director Choi that companies usually give hotels to the eldest son, which would make him Soo Hyun’s replacement if Soo Hyun is kicked out. But he says that Soo Hyun made Donghwa Hotel successful, so it wouldn’t be right to take it from her.

He says that he doesn’t deserve the hotel — and neither does Director Choi. Director Choi claims that he has no such aspirations, and Woo Seok’s smile is positively predatory.

The next morning, Soo Hyun decides to wear the lipstick from Jin Hyuk after all. As she’s heading into work, she spots Jin Hyuk nearby zipping up his tie, and even Driver Nam sees Jin Hyuk and gets a giggle out of his zipper tie.

The HR team is busy working on the opening for the Sokcho hotel, and Manager Lee volunteers Jin Hyuk to handle the celebrities. Han Gil points out that that’s the most difficult job and Jin Hyuk is very new, but Jin Hyuk says he’d like to try, and Eun-jin (the office flirt) is assigned to help him.

Jin Hyuk’s friend, the tea shop ajumma, invites him to bring Soo Hyun over to try out a new tea. Soo Hyun smiles at his texted invitation, but she replies that she has another commitment, so he says they can go another day.

At Dae Chan’s restaurant, Jin Myung says that he hopes his brother and Soo Hyun end up together, and they both agree that Soo Hyun is awfully pretty. Dae Chan comments that there’s something wrong with Secretary Jang, but Jin Myung says that she’s cuter and a better catch than him (Dae Chan: “Hey, I have a knife in my hand…”).

Jin Myung has been flipping through the dating app, and he shows Dae Chan the profile of a woman that he thinks is perfect for him. She’s got her face covered with a scarf in her profile picture, and a note saying that she’s got high standards, which Dae Chan finds rude but Jin Myung takes as confidence. Jin Myung sends the woman a message on Dae Chan’s behalf, and of course, it’s Secretary Jang.

Director Kim brings a report to Soo Hyun on how the event planning is going. She asks whether she should invite Chairwoman Kim, and Soo Hyun tells her to send an invitation to her, and to Woo Seok as well.

Her mother literally shoves her way into Soo Hyun’s office, visibly upset. She tells Soo Hyun that the way she envisions a hotel before she builds it is the same way her mother envisions being the wife of the prime minister. She warns that anyone who gets in the way of her vision will pay, even her own child.

Soo Hyun ducks her head and lowers her eyes like an obedient child, but when her mother stops talking, she says, “You’re my parent. You’re my mom and I’m your daughter.” Her mother growls that value is more important to her than being related.

Jin Hyuk happens to be leaving work at the same time as Soo Hyun, but they only get a chance to nod at each other before Soo Hyun drives away. Jin Hyuk notices that something seems off with Soo Hyun, so he texts her that she looks prettier than a model wearing the lipstick he gave her.

Director Choi arranges for Jin Hyuk to be invited to the Sokcho hotel opening as a reporter, planning to make Soo Hyun explain herself in front of everyone. Manager Lee worries that humiliating Soo Hyun could harm her father’s candidacy, but Director Choi only cares about his own advancement.

At a meeting regarding the new hotel in Cuba, the architect that’s doing the renovations suggests that they get rid of the garden in the middle of the building. But Soo Hyun tells her not to touch it, believing that the garden is the soul of the hotel.

On her way back, she stops to pick up something at her tailor’s, and she buys a tie for Jin Hyuk while she’s there. As she waits for it to be gift-wrapped, she hears Woo Seok’s voice behind her, saying that he wants to wear a certain suit this weekend to impress a woman.

He sees her and comes over to ask if she heard anything. She just says no and walks out, but he cheers up when the saleswoman tells him that Soo Hyun bought a tie for a man.

Jin Hyuk visits the tea shop ajumma and tells her shyly that he and Soo Hyun are in a “some” relationship. Ajumma says that she didn’t recognize Soo Hyun at first, but she knows now that Soo Hyun is Jin Hyuk’s CEO, and she seems concerned about whether or not they can have a normal relationship.

Jin Hyuk says that he’s willing to take the risk, because whenever Soo Hyun smiles, it makes him happy. Ajumma comments that this doesn’t seem casual for him, and Jin Hyuk looks surprised, then grows thoughtful.

Driver Nam wants to pick up Jin Hyuk and have a soju with him, and he asks Soo Hyun why she’s being so careful, because it’s okay to spend time with people who make you happy. He declines a call from Director Kim, but Soo Hyun says that she’s been stressed with the Sokcho hotel opening and needs to relax.

She drives to the tea shop after all, then just sits in her car, unable to go inside. Jin Hyuk finds her with her head on her wheel, and he knocks on the window, scaring her to death. He invites her inside for tea, but instead she suggests they go for a walk.

As they walk, Jin Hyuk gives Soo Hyun his scarf, which she says smells nice. She asks how he’s doing with the hotel opening and asks if it’s difficult inviting celebrities, but he says it will all work out. He asks her how he made the Donghwa Hotel a success in such a short time, and she says that she recruited top talent from hotels around the world, and used what she learned of other top hotels as a model for Donghwa.

Since she clearly knows how to take risks, Jin Hyuk asks why she’s so hesitant with him. She says she’s not sure, and he makes a face and keeps walking. But she catches up and slides her hand through his arm, and Jin Hyuk, thrilled, adjusts her grip until they’re holding hands. Awww, they’re so happy.

When they get back to the car, Soo Hyun gives Jin Hyuk the tie, fibbing that it came with a gift for her father. Jin Hyuk looks like he might explode from the pleasure of getting a gift from her. He says that nobody’s ever given him a tie before, and Soo Hyun admits that she’s never given one, either.

At home later, Jin Hyuk googles how to tie a necktie, and practices in the mirror.

Driver Nam takes Soo Hyun’s advice and meets Director Kim for drinks, and she tells him about the picture she saw of her husband with another woman. Driver Nam offers to beat her husband to a pulp since her brother isn’t here to do it.

Director Kim grumbles that her brother was weak and died, but Driver Nam disagrees, saying that her brother was the best of them.

Director Choi runs into Woo Seok at the driving range, and he gloats that the HR team is having trouble getting celebrities to attend the new hotel opening because they’re afraid of Taekyung Group. Woo Seok doesn’t comment, but he looks disturbed.

It’s true that Jin Hyuk is having trouble, so he visits an entertainmeent company in person, but he’s left to wait in the lobby for hours. Finally an assistant tells him that the actor is busy that day, so he heads back to the hotel to regroup.

The entire office is shocked to see Woo Seok walk in and offer to help with their celebrity problem. He asks Jin Hyuk for the invitation list, and Manager Lee grabs it from Jin Hyuk to hand it over. Woo Seok says that he knows most of them and tells Jin Hyuk (who has no clue who he is) that he’ll handle it.

Jin Hyuk asks who that guy was, and Eun Jin tells him that Woo Seok is Soo Hyun’s ex-husband. Director Kim chastises Manager Lee angrily for giving Woo Seok the list without her permission.

Soo Hyun takes the other gift she bought (a sweater) to her father, who tells her that he’s heard what’s going on from Driver Nam. He asks if she’s okay, then says that it’s one thing if Jin Hyuk is someone important, but if this is all just happening by chance, then it hurts him to see her the center of gossip.

Soo Hyun just says she’s used to people being overly interested in her life, but she reassures her dad that it’s not his fault. She invites him to the hotel opening in Sokcho, but he says a politician would only ruin the mood and promises to visit later.

Back at work, Hye In pulls Jin Hyuk aside to warn him that Woo Seok and his mother are scary people, but Jin Hyuk just says that no matter how big they are, he’s still himself. Hye In says that there’s a rumor that they’re eyeing the hotel, so Soo Hyun can’t afford to make them angry.

She asks if Soo Hyun will have his back, and he grows serious, not liking the question. Jin Hyuk listens and thanks her for her concern, then goes back to work.

On the day of the hotel opening, Soo Hyun’s mother orders her husband to go with her, but he stubbornly reads his paper. She grabs it and crumples it into a ball, warning him to get up before she does something worse.

Chairwoman Kim is offended when Soo Hyun isn’t there waiting to greet her the moment she steps out of her car, as if she has nothing else to do. She’s preparing to start the event, but when she runs into Jin Hyuk in a hallway, she notices that he’s not wearing the tie she got him (and she admits that it actually wasn’t free).

He pulls it from his pocket, confessing that he can’t figure out how to tie it.

Soo Hyun takes it and puts it on him herself, making him puff up happily at the intimate gesture. Soo Hyun tells him to wipe the grin off his face, but Jin Hyuk just giggles that he can’t, hee.

Nearby, Woo Seok sees them smiling at each other, and he turns and walks away.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony goes off without a hitch, and afterward, Woo Seok finds Jin Hyuk taking photos in one of the hotel rooms. He comments on Jin Hyuk’s tie, saying that the person who gave it to Jin Hyuk has good taste, then he leaves again.

Chairwoman Kim sits down with Soo Hyun’s father to discuss the merging of political parties. He tells her that it won’t happen because their values are too different, and Chairwoman Kim accuses him of using Taekyung Group then not following through on his promises.

She obliquely threatens him, mentioning information that she has on him and the “vulgar” gossip about Soo Hyun. She says that he and Soo Hyun need to get back in their places, but Soo Hyun’s father asks her to refer to Soo Hyun by her proper title and not her name.

Chairwoman Kim purrs that family should be close, but Dad reminds her that they haven’t been family in years. She says firmly that he’ll go back to where he belongs soon and they’ll be close like family again, but he tells her not to be so sure about that.

In a bad mood now, Chairwoman Kim finds Jin Hyuk in the lobby and decides to talk to him. She says he’s better looking in person, then asks nastily if Soo Hyun was lonely. Jin Hyuk just politely tells her that he has to work, but she forbids him to leave her presence without permission, accusing him of acting out because he’s close to Soo Hyun.

Something in Jin Hyuk’s expression goes hard, and he turns back just as Soo Hyun and Secretary Jang come around the corner. Soo Hyun hears him tell Chairwoman Kim that he thought he’d learned everything, but he missed the manual on how to treat VIP guests. He apologizes if he offended her and bows, and Secretary Jang stops Soo Hyun from getting involved as Chairwoman Kim lets out a dark laugh.

She says that she can see why Soo Hyun fell for Jin Hyuk, asking where he found the manual that taught him how to seduce rich, lonely women. Secretary Jang leads a distraught Soo Hyun away, so she doesn’t hear him say that he doesn’t need such a manual and offer to show Chairwoman Kim to her seat.

Chairwoman Kim mentions the saying about a dog chasing a chicken in vain. She says darkly that dogs that don’t know their place lose everything they have and starve to death. Woo Seok finds them then, and he tells his mother that she’s needed elsewhere, interrupting the tense exchange.

Shaken, Jin Hyuk takes a moment to calm down, suddenly understanding Soo Hyun’s reluctance to get close to him a lot more clearly. Hye In finds him, having witnessed the whole confrontation, and he’s visibly shocked and upset that Soo Hyun had to live for so long being treated that way.

Later there’s a press conference, where Soo Hyun answers questions about the hotel in Sokcho and the one she’s planning in Cuba. Jin Hyuk stands with the rest of the photographers, so he’s there when one reporter asks Soo Hyun about the rumor that she’s been dating.

He wants an official statement from her on the subject, but she says that it’s not an appropriate subject for this event. The reporter ignores her and asks if it’s true that the man is actually a stalker.

Soo Hyun looks at Jin Hyuk, who smiles and nods as if to convey that whatever she says, he won’t hold it against her. He starts to leave to take the pressure off, and she remembers him asking her what kind of relationship they have.

In a clear voice, Soo Hyun says, “We’re in a ‘some’ relationship.” Jin Hyuk freezes and turns back to look at her in shock, and he sees her looking right back at him, smiling.

Two people have never been more suited to each other, yet encountered so much opposition. Despite being the one who’s older and (presumably) wiser, our high-flying hotel CEO is locked in uncertainty while the free-spirited Jin Hyuk does his best to coax her out of her comfort zone. She wants to go, but a lifetime of conditioning make it difficult for her to trust him, afraid that the freedom he represents won’t be worth the cost.

Finally they’ve put a name to what’s happening between them! Even if it’s a vague and tentative “some” definition, at least Jin Hyuk and Soo Hyun have acknowledged that what they’re feeling is more than friendship, and have expressed a willingness to see where it leads. I’m so glad that this drama didn’t turn out to be the whirlwind romance I was expecting, because I much prefer this slow burn and careful exploration of emotions and relationships. It makes me feel that, if and when Jin Hyuk and Soo Hyun do enter into a true romantic partnership, they’ll have a solid foundation to carry them that much further.

I love Jin Hyuk’s little satisfied expressions every time he challenges Soo Hyun to take a chance on him and she does, like it’s a tiny victory just to convince her to have tea with him. In a way it is, because she’s so closed off that every invitation he extends is a challenge to her to step outside of her comfort zone. So whenever she softens, relents, agrees to take a risk, Jin Hyuk understands exactly how significant that is for her and doesn’t take those moments lightly. I think that’s a big part of what makes Jin Hyuk so irresistible to Soo Hyun — he instinctively understands her on a level that nobody has ever even attempted. I think that if it seemed like Jin Hyuk had to work to understand her, Soo Hyun would run away, afraid to be a burden after a lifetime of suppressing her own wants to make everyone else happy. But understanding her is so effortless for Jin Hyuk that Soo Hyun feels safe letting him see her weaknesses. He’s not perfect — his giving Soo Hyun advice not to let people at work upset her, then getting upset himself is proof of that — but he seems pretty perfect for Soo Hyun.

I’m tired of Secretary Jang acting like she has any right to tell Soo Hyun what to do, including going behind her back TWICE to tell Jin Hyuk to back off and repeating several times to Soo Hyun’s face that she shouldn’t be seeing Jin Hyuk. I do think she means well, and that she genuinely cares for and worries about Soo Hyun, and I can see how she thinks Soo Hyun needs protection since she’s never even been allowed to date. But Soo Hyun is also a grown woman who has earned the right to choose who to date, and she’s found a pretty great guy who obviously adores her. Secretary Jang may think that she’s only trying to help, but in fact she’s trying to control Soo Hyun’s life exactly the same way she complains that Soo Hyun’s mother does. As a friend she can certainly voice her concerns, but then she needs to back off and let Soo Hyun live her own life.

This show seemed so trope-y at first, but the deeper in we go, the more it’s shattering those tropes. It’s getting to the point that I suspect we were purposely set up to take the show lightly, so that the big moments land harder. Jin Hyuk’s public statement of friendship, then his advice to Soo Hyun to openly show their friendship at work, are so unusual in a drama of this type that I’m still reeling at how simple a solution it is, yet most dramas have their characters sneak around and go to ridiculous lengths to hide a relationship, often for much flimsier reasons than Jin Hyuk and Soo Hyun have. But for once that’s not what’s happening — Jin Hyuk is correct that the best way to handle this is to just be open and honest, both to show that they have nothing to hide and aren’t ashamed of their relationship, and to strengthen their bond by standing solidly side-by-side instead of letting others’ opinions create a wall between them. Sometimes Jin Hyuk can seem very young, but when it comes to human nature, his lack of self-consciousness and willingness to be honest about his feelings seem way ahead of his time.

It’s to be expected that the closer our cute couple grows, the more aggressive their enemies become, but that doesn’t make it any easier to watch. Luckily, Jin Hyuk’s example is beginning to give Soo Hyun courage, and she’s growing more confident in her ability to stand up against those who would prefer she remain meek and obedient. The tension is building until something is bound to snap, and if she’s lucky, that “something” might just be Soo Hyun’s willingness to let others control her life for one more minute.

I love that Soo Hyun finally took this step to announce their relationship status, because until now, her relationship with Jin Hyuk has been all about him taking the risks and her following along complacently. Which has been fine until now, since she’s so inexperienced at showing her true self to anyone. It makes sense that she needed to be led into this, or she would have just given up on it like she’s done with every other personal relationship in her life. But after that confrontation with Chairwoman Kim, Jin Hyuk needed reassurance of Soo Hyun’s feelings for him, and you could see how much it meant to him for Soo Hyun to announce to the world that they’re dating.

But aside from the big dramatic gesture, I love how the tiniest things seem so important to Jin Hyuk, which also makes sense now that we know Soo Hyun better. He’s bowled over by something as simple as her meeting him for tea or holding onto his arm because he understands the amount of courage those gestures cost her. Soo Hyun is fighting against a lifetime of conditioning and social pressure in order to simply sit with him in a car, and he knows full well how significant it is for her to even admit that she likes him to herself, much less to everyone she knows, friend and enemy alike. It’s so sweet how Jin Hyuk reacts to each tiny moment like it’s a big one — his inability to control his face when Soo Hyun was tying his tie was adorable — and it really proves how sincere his feelings are for her.

I continue to find Woo Seok a fascinating character, the way he supports Soo Hyun from the wings with not just his mother, but her other detractors, too. Even though you can tell that it hurts him to see her with Jin Hyuk, he cares about her and respects her enough to help her fight her battles even if she may never know it. And if he did manufacture an affair to let her out of their marriage, I can understand why he did it now that we know more about Soo Hyun herself — she’d been too conditioned to obedience by her mother have asked for a divorce no matter how miserable she was, and she would have fought Woo Seok’s request for a divorce under any other circumstances. By throwing himself under the bus and making himself the bad guy, Woo Seok could let Soo Hyun out of a situation that made her miserable, and make sure she was well provided for by giving her the hotel as compensation. I still worry that jealousy and rejection may get the better of him and that he might turn against Soo Hyun and Jin Hyuk, but for now he does seem to be trying to accept the situation graciously and do what he can to support and even help Soo Hyun. So I’m giving Woo Seok the benefit of the doubt unless and until he does something to lose my trust.

I’m scared that Jin Hyuk may try to play the Noble Idiot now that he’s seen the true horror of what Soo Hyun has gone through at the hands of her former mother-in-law, so it’s good timing that Soo Hyun is finally making an effort to take charge of her own life. Jin Hyuk may seem perfect, but he’s still young and he’s never inexperienced cruelty like Chairwoman Kim is capable of, so I wouldn’t blame him if he thought that letting Soo Hyun go would be the right thing to do for her. I have a feeling that their roles are about to switch, and that it will be Jin Hyuk who soon needs coaxing and convincing. I’m looking forward to seeing Soo Hyun grow more confident, and to her being the one that reminds Jin Hyuk that what’s important isn’t money or power, but the genuine love of a true heart.

It's been so long since Park Bo Gum played a drama. Ever since Love in the Moonlight, he's been on my radar since then for his innocence and kind attitude.

This episode 5 & 6 was really sweet in nature. Even as someone who watch them both, I feel like the love blooming between Jin Hyuk and Soo Hyun was too much to hold back and handle. Ofcourse Soo Hyun would not be able to held her self back. I feel her. Jin Hyuk is too good to be true for her. But the timing was very bad. If they had known each other way earlier, things would be different. Soo Hyun would be much much happier than now.

What I love most about episode 5 & 6 is when both of them finally take a step forward each other, to try to be someone meaningful for each other. And by kerp hearing Jin Hyuk said, "My feeling is not based on curiosity. And I believe letting someone in your heart, even temporarily, I believe it's meaningful.