Haeundae Lovers: Episode 3

by kaedejun

Cute episode, but not much progress. Once again – the uncles are the awesomest thing to ever happen to this drama. That, and poor Tae Sung hitting his head at every turn.

Tae Sung and the delivery boy make chase, but eventually the scooter comes to a sputtering stop. Out of gas!

But he shouldn’t be throwing a fit – Sora is just shopping for wedding dresses! She shows off a simple wedding gown to Uncle Hello Kitty and Dong Baek, as well as her fiance Min Gu – who acts like an absolute sleaze. Min Gu wants a dress that’s more lavish than this simple one, which ticks off Dong Baek because he hates the fact that Min Gu spends money so carelessly. He asks for a quick word, and the uncles and Min Gu head to the back of the store.

Turns out Sora’s father had given Min Gu some money, which meant that the “loan” the uncles and Sora paid off a few days ago ended up in Min Gu’s hands. Sora doesn’t know this, but basically they have to start from scratch in paying off their loans. Dong Baek is ready to beat up Min Gu, and in front of the uncles, Min Gu is more cowardly than ever. He gets a call just in time from another loan shark, who’s waiting to collect, and Min Gu pretends that it’s his father on the other line. He swears he’ll never break up with Sora and that the uncles won’t beat him, which makes it sound like his father is against the marriage. That worries Uncle Hello Kitty even more – Min Gu has to marry Sora! He’s the only one the father would approve (because he’s a civil servant) and the only one recommended by the matchmaking company!

Min Gu claims that he’s spending so extravagantly to give Sora a comfortable life. Lies. As soon as it’s time to pay for their expensive wedding gown and tuxedo, Min Gu claims to have lost his wallet. He asks Sora to cover the bill first, and then has the gall to ask Uncle Hello Kitty for some money to take a cab back to work.

Even Sora disapproves of his wasteful spending, and she promises her uncles that she’ll sort him out as soon as their married. That is… if they ever get to the altar, as Min Gu seems to think that his dealings with the family will end very soon…

Meanwhile, Tae Sung returns to the house and starts searching for that “thing” Sora kept so safely. He searches everywhere to no avail, and takes a rest by the water tank. Suddenly Joong Shik pops out: “You couldn’t find me you idiot!” Haha – I love how this father loves to play hide and seek, even though he hides in the most obvious of places – like the clear glass water tank.

Tae Sung moves on to search in the father’s room, and he hits a jackpot! There’s a small canister of white powdery stuff in it! Tae Sung gets a taste, to confirm it’s drugs, and promptly spits it out – it’s salt! He roams through the house and ends up in Kwan Soon’s room; Kwan Soon is thankfully listening to music, so she doesn’t notice Tae Sung quickly backtracking out of the room.

However, he’s caught by Uncle Hello Kitty, Dong Baek, and Sora. Tae Sung smoothly lies that he was trying to find the bathroom, and Sora realizes she forgot to show him where it was. He also takes her to task for ditching him in the middle of nowhere; after helping her carry up fish boxes 19 flights, she just ditches him in the middle of Busan?!

Uncle Hello Kitty is outraged that Sora had to do such hard work on her “frail body,” and turns to stomp off towards Haeundae Hotel – only for Sora to tell him to stop and endure it. Is that a smile I see, Uncle Hello Kitty? Did you actually not want to go beat up the people at the hotel and was just putting on a show?! Aww – are you that sensitive and afraid of getting beat up?

Sora gets back on topic: she apologizes to Tae Sung for ditching him and explains that she went to look at wedding dresses, and she couldn’t possibly take him along. Even with that explanation, Tae Sung thinks she went to see Oh Jung Chul. She then heads off to make dinner – spicy seafood soup.

The uncles all gather and eat the kimchi with their hands, sharing their spoons in the one big pot of seafood soup. Tae Sung is disgusted by it all, preferring to eat his own dish without the saliva of others. He opts for just rice and water instead, and overhears Kwan Soon reminding Sora that it’s “tonight.” He takes it to mean that she’s going to meet Oh Jung Chul again, especially since something that’s happening “tonight” is a secret from the uncles.

Kwan Soon has also set her sights on Tae Sung, since Sora is uninterested. She thinks Tae Sung is way better than Min Gu anyways.

Knowing that Joong Shik can’t possibly be the leader in his condition anymore, and that everyone is bowing down in deference to Sora all the time, Tae Sung figures out that she must be the leader of the gang now, and on top of that is dating Oh Jung Chul.

That evening, as Tae Sung contemplates over everyone’s distrust of his capabilities back in Seoul, he sees Kwan Soon and Sora sneaking out. Thinking that it’ll be a drug-rendezvous, he follows them. They head to the pier and take out their fishing boat, and Tae Sung hops on for the ride without their noticing. They take the boat out a little ways and turn off the ignition. Next thing Tae Sung knows, the two girls are in their bathing suits and jump right into the cool Busan waters. It’s an evening swim!

Though Tae Sung is initially befuddled, he finds himself becoming interested in Sora’s curvaceous body. Well – at least we know he’s a healthy, normal man!

The girls return to the boat and lie on the deck to dry off. Kwan Soon asks Sora how she feels about marrying Min Gu… and I’m surprised that Tae Sung doesn’t hear this part of the conversation or else he’d know that she’s not dating Oh Jung Chul!! Sora is mostly worried, but she’s marrying Min Gu because he promised he’d take care of her father. Somehow, that sounds like a very facetious lie.

Kwan Soon hands over her wedding gift – it’s a set of lingerie! Sora blushes, but she decides to keep it hidden in the safest place she knows – her drawer onboard the boat! Well that Tae Sung hears!

They head back home, and Kwan Soon leaves first to meet her friend by the snack stands. Sora realizes she left her cellphone on the boat and heads back. However – Tae Sung is rifling through the cabin onboard, searching her drawer!

He finds the lingerie – and hilariously sniffs it and squeezes it to see if there are drugs in them. Sora notices his flashlight going about in the cabin, and she picks up a long pole with a net to defend herself. “Who are you!?” she cries as she pokes him with it.

Tae Sung makes a run for it, but Sora is quick – she knocks down barrels of oil in his path, forcing him to slip and fall. The two of them struggle in the oil as Tae Sung tries to get away, and Sora tries to get a good look at his face. It gets to the point where Tae Sung is holding her down from the back, and he touches her chest! Awkward! She finally pins him down, and uses her foot to take a look at his face.

Sora gasps – Tae Sung?! (Or… Nam Hae!?) Now that he’s caught, Tae Sung tries to keep his wits about – “This is the first time I’ve felt like this!”

HAHA. Not that phrase again! Sora wishes he’d just stop saying that, as it makes her uneasy considering that she’s about to get married. So Tae Sung just takes it a step further and starts crying! Haha – that throws Sora way off, and she forgets why he was even in the boat going through her stuff anymore.

They go back home, and Sora showers, all the while feeling so confused by Tae Sung’s weird confession. Tae Sung takes advantage of her being in the bathroom to go through her things, but finds nothing. He does spend more than a second looking at her picture with her father, perhaps touched by their closeness.

He comes out of her room before Sora catches him, and she tells him that he’s to be off packing by the morning. Tae Sung refuses – he won’t be so easily kicked out, no matter what Sora and the uncles say! He goes to get washed, asking Sora to also bring him some fresh clothing from his room.

Sora is impressed by how neat and organized he is – plus all the expensive colognes that he has. She starts comparing Tae Sung to Min Gu, and really – Tae Sung wins in the looks department. That charismatic face…. those tight! washboard! abs! But when it comes to profession, Min Gu wins, through and through. Well, I wonder who’s better: lowly civil servant with debt, or a prosecutor?

On a rooftop overlooking Haeundae Hotel, Go Joong Shik cries out: “I’m never going to let my hotel be taken away! From now on, it’s war!” He’s dressed in his old, nice suits as well, and for a moment it seems that he’s lucid. The uncles dutifully promise to never let the Yangs get away with their betrayal, and then tell Joong Shik it’s time to go home. Heh. Dong Baek has to carry him off on his back, and Uncle Hello Kitty wonders if it’s going to rain soon since Joong Shik is reverting back to his self from 10 years ago.

But in Haeundae Hotel, another kind of storm is brewing. Joon Hyuk informs Tam Hee that Yang Man Ho wrote up a will while in the States. In it, he details the son he lost, and the truth about his coup. Once he dies, it will all be made public. Tam Hee wants the will to be silenced forever, and in exchange she’ll make sure Joon Hyuk keeps his position forever.

Not that Joon Hyuk cares about the position. Granny – Shim Mal Nyeon – used to be Tae Sung’s old nanny, and she’s already on her way to the meeting; she’ll be the one to lead the search. Tam Hee says that she’ll pay off Granny, but Granny overhears. I love Granny – she doesn’t give a crap about Tam Hee, speaking to her informally and calling her by her old name Bok Ja. Granny is loyal to one madame – and that is Tae Sung’s mother. She thinks Tam Hee’s son Ga Joon is no match when compared to how smart Tae Sung was as a boy.

Shower scene with Kim Kang Woo!

The uncles return home to find muddied clothing on the floor, footprints all over, and some sexy lingerie. They freak out, thinking that Tae Sung must have done something to Sora. What’s worse is when they hear Tae Sung from inside the bathroom, yelling for her to bring his clothes before her uncles comes back. He comes out with just a towel around his waist.

I love that the uncles’ eyes go from his bare chest, to his “down there,” and back to his chest. Hee. They are outraged though – really outraged. Thinking that he must have done something to their pure Sora, they start beating him up. I’m so impressed… by the fact that his towel stays in place!

The uncles can fight… but Tae Sung is quicker, and he dodges their blows swiftly. Eventually Uncle Hello Kitty manages to grab him by the waist – but only grabs the towel! The towel falls off, and everyone stares at Tae Sung’s bare nakedness.

At that same moment – Granny says that the real Tae Sung can be identified by the unique scar on his butt – a star-shaped scar. Close-up! Close-up! Close-up! YAYYY!

And we see a nice little star on Kim Kang Woo’s tushy, with everything else blurred out. Hee. Although it reminds me terribly of a maple leaf…

Sora sees it too, and she screams the living hell out her. Wow lady – are you really that innocent? Dong Baek covers her eyes while the other uncles hurry to cover Tae Sung’s lower body. They still think he did something to Sora, but eventually Sora confesses the truth. She went out swimming with Kwan Soon – when the uncles had warned them not to – and she got into a fight when Tae Sung was rifling through her drawer on the boat. The lingerie is hers as a wedding gift from Kwan Soon.

The uncles turn to Tae Sung – does this mean he saw Sora in her bikini? In her stunning, scarlet bikini?! Tae Sung: “Yes…but if you keep it up I’m going to let this towel go!” Oh yes! The uncles warn him instead to never speak a word about her bikini; it’s funny how they’re so adamant about protecting Sora’s image and chastity, while not caring about Kwan Soon at all.

Suddenly there’s a crash outside. The uncles and Sora hurry outside to see a bunch of well-dressed gangsters breaking the fish tanks and ruining the store. They even beat up Joong Shik! The uncles join in on the fight, and despite Soon Shin and Yong Do’s ages, they can still fight. Sora is left to care for her bleeding father.

Tae Sung comes outside, and watches the ruckus, with absolute no interest in joining the fight. As each uncle gets thrown into Tae Sung’s arms, they beg him to help – they apologize for calling him a pervert, and Dong Baek offers to cover his rent. But Tae Sung refuses – he doesn’t like getting involved in other people’s business. Actually – he just doesn’t want to get involved because as a prosecutor, he can’t get involved in a gang fight and jeopardize his case.

Sora brings her father into Tae Sung’s room, as it’s much safer to keep him there while she joins the fight outside. She refuses to call Min Gu, as it’s better that he doesn’t know. A louder crash makes Joong Shik cry out in fear, and he quickly hides in Tae Sung’s closet.

Sora manages to land a few punches before joining her uncles in a tired heap on the floor. The gangsters were sent by Tam Hee, and the leader sends the message that she wants them all gone. To leave Haeundae forever. Well, that’s not likely. Sora slaps the leader, which makes him even more angry. Before he can punch her, they hear Tae Sung making a call.

Tae Sung called the police! He reports that there are gangsters violating the fourth amendment and being violent at the Uncle’s Fishery. The gangsters inch closer to him – what the hell was he thinking? But Tae Sung suggests they start running. Them being gangsters means they’ll get a stiffer jail sentence if caught. On top of that the nearest police station is 3 minutes away, so they should be arriving at any moment.

Truth be told – they all hear the sirens in the distance. The gangsters run off to their cars, but this is not the last time. If the Go family isn’t gone soon, the whole store will be taken apart.

Sora thanks Tae Sung for helping, but he coolly says that he just doesn’t like noise, and the fighting was getting to him. Haha – the uncles really can’t decide whether they like him or not. Dong Baek even hates that Tae Sung acts like he’s better than him, since Dong Baek lacks nothing. I love Uncles Soon Shin and Hello Kitty’s look: “Are you seriously saying that?” They do wonder how Tae Sung knew the law so well about violence, but they reckon it’s because he may have worked in an Attorney General’s office before.

Meanwhile, Tam Hee still thinks this whole search for Tae Sung is a bad idea. What if a bunch of fakes come stampeding into the hotel? That would ruin the hotel’s reputation, and there would be too many fakes to sort through! Granny assures that the scar is not easy to replicate, and Joon Hyuk adds that they’ll have DNA testing to find the real son. Beaten, Tam Hee leaves, asking for some extra time to convince her husband out of this “futile” endeavor.

Sora brings over some medicine to Tae Sung as a way of apologizing and thanking him for earlier. She even offers to put on medicated patches, but Tae Sung just takes them, saying he’ll do it himself, and closes the door on her. (Good – for a moment I was afraid he was going to let himself be weak for her.) Tae Sung can’t reach the ridiculously red handprint that’s on his back, thanks to Sora’s beating, and so he puts it on the floor and puts his back on top of it. Smart!

Sora bursts into the room again – she forgot her father! Joong Shik has fallen asleep in Tae Sung’s closet, and Sora leads him out of the room. Half asleep, Joong Shik shuffles out, stepping right on Tae Sung’s tight abs on the way out! Joong Shik: “Oh, he’s really a body builder.” Hee.

Out on the rooftop, Sora has set up a netted tent for her father to sleep in. She treats his cut on the forehead, and then applies acupuncture to help him sleep. Unable to sleep, Tae Sung wanders upon this scene, watching Sora lovingly care for her father until he falls asleep. She explains that ever since he injured his head, he’s always had migraines. Now he can’t fall asleep without some acupuncture.

She invites Tae Sung over to give him some acupuncture, since he must be in pain from all the beatings as well. She thinks he has insomnia too – despite his protests – because of his dark circles and reddish eyes. However, he refuses acupuncture – until Sora asks if he’s afraid of needles. Of course not! He lies down on Sora’s lap, clenching his fists as Sora’s needle comes ever closer to his forehead. It cracks her up to see Tae Sung so nervous, and cross-eyed, but she finally places four needles into his forehead.

Fanning ever so slowly, Tae Sung eventually falls asleep in her lap. And Sora realizes that she just might like this “Nam Hae” after all…

Comments:

Not much really happens in this episode, but it sure does build up the relationship between Tae Sung and Sora more. Tae Sung is inexplicably charmed by Sora, though not necessarily liking her just yet. (I’m sure he’s attracted to her curves though… what man wouldn’t be?) On the other hand, Sora is realizing that Tae Sung isn’t all too bad, even though he spouts off nonsense like “This is the first time I’ve ever felt this waaaayyyyyy!”

I have to admit that I like Tae Sung much better now than when he’s around his family. With his superiors in Seoul and his family, he’s super stiff; respectable, but stiff. At least in Busan he’s more quirky and weird. And he’s quite an incompetent prosecutor. At least in Seoul he manages to look like a “cool” prosecutor, but in reality, he can’t eavesdrop well or put two and two together. I thought that the locals explained to him the history of Sora’s family and her father’s gang, and yet he seems to be confused over what they’re doing in front of Haeundae Hotel in a picture. It’s as if he knows who they are, and yet forgot about who they are. Also – how could he still not figure out that Sora is not dating Oh Jung Chul!? He’s also pretty bad at searching for clues. However, this incapable side of him makes me like him more because it gives him character. And, he fits right in with the rest of the uncles. (How I love the fact that maknae Dong Baek is the roughest of the three in language and actions!)

The only real plot point progress is the search for Tae Sung. I can see that it’ll turn frustrating and ridiculous because once the announcement goes out, Tae Sung is going to think he’s Nam Hae, and everyone will forget his little butt scar until the very last moment. If he remembers that he’s Tae Sung, knows that he’s adopted, and hears about the butt scar, he’d be reunited with his father that much more quickly.

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