Heart to Heart: Episode 16 (Final)

by LollyPip

It’s a well-rounded ending for Heart to Heart, and if everyone may not get what they want, they definitely get what they deserve. Hong-do has to decide if she can love Yi-seok without blaming him for his family’s sins, while he can only sit and wait. Patience isn’t the poor man’s strong suit, but if one thing is sure, both of them have changed since meeting each other. For the first time in her life, it’s Hong-do’s turn to determine her own future.

FINAL EPISODE RECAP

Now that the terrible secret is out, Chairman Go spills the whole story to Yi-seok — his father had started the fire with his lighter, and had saved his wife but didn’t know Il-seok was in the shed until it was too late. Yi-seok asks why Young-ji got the blame, and the chairman at least admits that she seemed guilty, as she was holding matches.

Nobody knew the truth until a drunken confession from Dad later, that he was the real culprit. The chairman agrees now that he shouldn’t have let Young-ji keep taking the blame once Dad confessed. He says that if he’d known Dad was going to spend the next twenty-three years being an absent drunken wastrel, he’d have made him stay and take responsibility.

But Yi-seok doesn’t want to hear about his father, and steers the conversation back to Hong-do: Why did the chairman treat her so badly when she came back into their lives? The chairman doesn’t answer, and only says that he should feel sorry for his father and that they’ll reimburse Hong-do for their wrongdoing to her, asking Yi-seok to let it go. Looking disappointed in his grandfather, Yi-seok says he can’t, and leaves.

He goes downstairs to lay into Butler Ahn next, for not coming clean when he showed Yi-seok the picture of himself and Hong-do as children. Butler Ahn at least has the grace to look ashamed for keeping the secret, and doesn’t defend himself.

Yi-seok drives to see Hong-do, replaying in his mind all the hateful things his family said and did to Hong-do, blaming her for Il-seok’s death when they knew the truth all along. He wonders how he’ll possibly tell her what really happened. He tells her the facts of that day, as well as he remembers them, and she admits she remembers lighting the match but that everything else is fuzzy.

Yi-seok gently breaks the news that his father was the one who actually started the fire, and that his grandfather objected to her dating Yi-seok in order to keep the secret. He tries to apologize for his family, but Hong-do stops him, overwhelmed. She asks for time alone to think, and invites Yi-seok to leave.

Meanwhile Dad pleads with his wife for forgiveness, and asks if she was still conscious when he pulled her out of the storage shed. She says she was, and that she’d convinced herself that it really was Hong-do who started the fire. She cries that she’s kept his secret all this time, and asks why he told the truth now, worried that they’ll lose their remaining two children over it.

At least Mom admits to feeling shame and regret over what she did to Hong-do, but Dad is willing to take all the blame. She asks herself over and over, what she’ll do now. Maybe apologize? That would be a start.

Hong-do sits alone talking to a picture of her grandmother, and tells her that it really wasn’t her who started the fire. She feels relieved but also angry, wondering how that family could do that to her.

Yi-seok informs his grandfather that Hong-do knows everything now, including the chairman’s lies. He asks what he should tell her when she asks why he did it, but the chairman just accuses him of being drunk. Yi-seok says that his father may be a coward but at least he feels badly.

The chairman says that he would do the same thing again if given the chance — that was his son, in pain after losing a child, and he wouldn’t force him to admit fault and make him hurt even worse. He does say he felt bad sending Hong-do and her grandmother away that way, but I don’t think it matters that you feel bad if you would still do it again.

Hong-do tosses and turns that night, unable to sleep, and she finally gets up to call Yi-seok. He offers to come over but she refuses, in no mood to see him or anyone else from his family. After a moment, Yi-seok tells her that he started to like her way back when she begged him, red-faced and desperate, to fix her.

Hong-do says that she should have gone to someone else for help, but Yi-seok keeps talking about the time she wanted to ask Doo-soo if he slept well. He says he was jealous even back then, because she was putting all her effort towards someone else.

Hong-do says she misses him, but that if she sees him she’ll only get angry. He tells her to lie down and he’ll talk to her until she sleeps, so she does, and he brings up their first time sleeping together. He tells her it was the first time he was able to sleep through the night in bed with a woman. Hong-do relaxes and listens while Yi-seok talks about nothing, letting his voice lull her to sleep.

Se-ro is waiting for Doo-soo when he arrives at work in the morning, and she tells him what she found out about the fire and how her father started it. She’s ashamed of her family, worried she won’t be able to face Hong-do. She apologizes for bothering him again, saying this is why she needs to leave because she can’t help herself.

Yi-seok’s mom calls Hong-do out for coffee, and tells her that she really did believe she started the fire, apologizing sincerely. Hong-do asks why she hid it once she knew the truth, and Mom says they thought they were protecting Yi-seok. Hong-do looks her right in the eye and calls bullshit, saying that Yi-seok had a hard time because of his mother.

This is hard to hear, but Mom takes it on the chin and says that Hong-do is right. She’s sorry Yi-seok was hurt by all this, and asks Hong-do not to hate him because of his family — she doesn’t want her son to suffer anymore because of her. It makes Hong-do angry that she dares to ask her to take care of Yi-seok after what they did.

Yi-seok tells Dr. Uhm the whole sordid story, admitting that he doesn’t think he can forgive his family for what they did to Hong-do. He worries about how Hong-do will feel towards him now, but Dr. Uhm assures him that she’ll just see him, and not his family. In fact, she thinks Hong-do won’t be able to let go of her resentment unless she’s with him.

Doo-soo asks if Yang liked his new girlfriend right away, jealous that Yang was so sure of himself, but he approaches the subject very analytically. If love is a scale of one to twelve, at what number does it mean you really like her? Oh you sweet dumb doofus, no wonder it took you seven years to realize you liked Hong-do.

Mom asks Se-ro if she hates her, but Se-ro’s silence answers that question quite well. Mom feels bad, but Se-ro tells her she grew up just fine, so not to worry about it. Se-ro says that she knows Mom was pregnant with her when Il-seok died, and thanks her for surviving the fire so she could be born. She tells her mother that she and Yi-seok just want her to let go of Il-seok and be happy living her own life.

Hong-do tries to go about her life, but she eventually snaps and goes to Yi-seok’s apartment. She barges in demanding answers, saying she met his mother and asks if all mothers are like that. Since she never had one, she doesn’t know. Her voice gets louder and angry tears fall, as she cries that they all knew the truth.

Yi-seok stands and takes it with a bowed head, knowing Hong-do has every right to be furious. He stops her when she starts to head out to ask the chairman why he did it, begging her to calm down. Inconsolable, Hong-do finally wails the thing that really hurts — her grandmother lived and died never knowing that Hong-do was innocent.

She cries that it’s not fair, and Yi-seok can only do what he does best… hold her and reassure her that he’s there for her. Hong-do screams that she wants revenge, and he says that if she needs it, she should take it, apologizing that all he can do is say he’s sorry.

Yi-seok’s dad tries to sneak out in the middle of the night, but Butler Ahn stops him. Dad says everyone treats him like a guest anyway, but Butler Ahn says it’s his own fault for not even trying to be a good husband and father. He takes Dad’s suitcase back to his room, telling him that he can leave after he’s cleaned up his mess. (Three cheers for Butler Ahn!)

Back at home, Hong-do wonders to herself how Yi-seok could be so forgiving, even when he thought she really did kill his brother. In the morning she gets dressed and goes to the Go home, ready to confront Chairman Go.

Before Hong-do can say anything, the chairman admits to his wrongdoings without excuse, and vaguely apologizes. She says he sounds insincere, and tells him she’s not sorry anymore, for dressing up as her grandmother and lying to him. She also isn’t sorry for dating Yi-seok when she’s only a poor uneducated girl.

She tells him that she feels sorry for Yi-seok, being a part of this family, and that she’s going to be with Yi-seok from now on. He’s a good person who does his best to protect his entire family, and now she’s going to protect him. She bravely tells the chairman that Yi-seok belongs to her now, and sails out confidently.

That night Hong-do goes to Yi-seok’s apartment, and the poor guy is just a wreck wondering if she’s here to break up with him. She tells him that her grandmother was a fierce woman, and that she thought about what her grandmother would say about all this. She would have said it was a relief that Hong-do was innocent (after the cursing was over, ha).

Nervously, Yi-seok asks if she would have also told him to never show himself in front of her again, and Hong-do nods that yes, she would have. Or, she adds, she would have said that you can’t ignore Fate. So even if their fate is bad, they can’t break up.

Hong-do says that when they broke up, she hated talking to his back. So now she wants to say this to his face, and she plans to say it a lot: “I love you, Go Yi-seok. I love you, Go Yi-seok. I love you, Go Yi-seok.” This time Hong-do reaches to hug Yi-seok first, and kisses him first. She teases him for crying, and he grumbles that she’s just an ugly troublemaker.

In bed later, Hong-do tells Yi-seok that she met with his grandfather. She says she might have been understanding if he’d been honest and admitted that he’d blamed her because he had no other choice. Yi-seok sighs that he’ll never change, and apologizes for all the hardship she’s been through because of him. He offers to pay her back by loving her forever. Cue adorable banter and a sexy tickle fight.

Yi-seok sees Se-ro off to the airport, and she tells him to take care of everyone and not fight. At the station, Doo-soo stares at the message from Se-ro telling him when she’s leaving today, which is less than two hours away… then suddenly gets up and runs out. Run, man, run! Go get your girl!!

Se-ro waits at the airport as long as she can, staring at her own phone, and finally decides Doo-soo isn’t coming. But he’s there, running around the airport looking for her, and they just miss each other a few times. Luckily her plane’s been delayed, and he manages to find her when she stops to do some shopping.

Doo-soo starts right in fussing at Se-ro for not answering her phone, but he calms down and tells her that he doesn’t really know what he’s feeling. He thinks it might be the start of something, but he’s not sure if it’s enough to hold onto her. All he knows is that he wonders what she’s doing and thinking about her all the time, and is curious about nearly everything about her.

Se-ro kicks Doo-soo squarely in the shin: “That means you like someone!” You tell him, girl. She reminds him that he lost Hong-do because he spent too much time thinking, and instructs him to call her and think about her every day. I love how perfect Se-ro is for him, because if ever a man needed a woman to tell him exactly what he should do, it’s Doo-soo.

Se-ro is already sighing that she misses Doo-soo before her plane is even off the ground, but she’s in for another surprise. Her mother takes a seat right next to her — she’s going on a vacation. She’s not even bothered when Se-ro is annoyed, because she’s going to visit a friend, not her daughter.

The chairman calls for Butler Ahn to help him find a book, but Housekeeper Geum-shim answers instead. He tells her to push the ladder so he can look in a different place, but it’s too heavy, and he gripes that she’s not strong enough to do anything. Offense gives her strength, she pushes him all the way across the room and tells him he’d better straighten up, because everyone is gone and he’s just pitiful.

Hong-do sees a sign in the coffee shop window that they’re hiring a part-timer, and stops to talk to the owner (cameo by Daniel Choi). He hires her on the spot, impressed by her red cheeks, because to him they mean she’s fired up.

Hong-do calls Yi-seok to tell him about her new job, admitting that her dream was always to work in a bakery. The owner even offered to help her get into baking school, and her effusive praise of “President Choi” has Yi-seok growling with jealousy.

He goes looking for Dr. Uhm, but she’s on a date… with Butler Ahn. They go for a walk, both of them visibly nervous, and Butler Ahn hilariously runs for his life when Dr. Uhm stops to pet a fluffy little dog. When she’s disappointed that they won’t be compatible because she loves dogs, he insists he’s not scared, he’s just, uh… allergic. Right. Dr. Uhm complains that her shoes are uncomfortable, transparently hoping Ahn will pick her up again — which he does, and runs off with her. So cute.

Doo-soo gets a package at the station from Se-ro, which is filled with framed selcas that she took of the two of them when he was unconscious in the hospital. That’s hilarious. She’d posed him in silly positions with flowers in his hair, and there’s even a picture of her with a sleeping Yang. Doo-soo’s happy grin is just gorgeous.

Yi-seok picks up Hong-do for a date, and in voiceover she asks him what he thinks love is. “Love is Cha Hong-do.” Awww. She says she thinks love is touching something, like when she touched his face and ears in his office — it’s being together. Yi-seok thanks her for being born and for loving him, and she returns the sentiment. They run down the street, happily screaming their love for each other.

Sometime later, Mom is heading off on another trip, and Dad complains that she’s never home because she’s too busy traveling the world. She invites him to go with her, but he’s too busy with the bicycle business. Mom just strides out like a boss, with Dad calling after her that he’ll meet her in Hong Kong later. Ha, he’s totally whipped.

Doo-soo yells into the phone, frantic to find someone who can tell him where Se-ro is at the moment, since she seems to have gone missing. The person on the other line isn’t helpful, but Yang runs in with a drumroll, and Se-ro steps into the hall and gives Doo-soo a salute. He grabs her in a huge hug and tells her he missed her, and her thrilled reaction is pure Se-ro: “Yay!!”

Yi-seok and Hong-do are comfortably domestic at her home, with her baking and him tending her indoor garden. She asks him how he’d like her to address him, and he grins sheepishly before mouthing hopefully, “O-ppa?” Hong-do giggles and shakes her head, too shy to call him Oppa.

Later they stand on a busy street, and Yi-seok reminds Hong-do to hold her head up, walk proudly, and look people in the eye. He takes her hand and leads her down the road, looking so proud to be with this beautiful, confident woman, that he could burst. They walk together, happy and in love.

COMMENTS

Oh, warm fuzzies — I love it. It was a beautiful, simple ending, which feels very true-to-life to me. Rather than try to change Yi-seok’s family, or hold their past actions against them, Hong-do and Yi-seok made the smartest decision they could make — to simply love each other, and let everyone else go hang if they didn’t like it. They didn’t try to change how his family felt about her, or insist they become better people if they wanted Yi-seok and Hong-do to stay in their lives. They just realized that nothing they did could ever make anyone change who didn’t want to change, and that it wasn’t their job to change anyone anyway, and got on with their life together.

Not to say that some of those changes didn’t happen. They just didn’t happen because of anything Yi-seok and Hong-do did. I’m so used to seeing dramas where the lead couple doesn’t end up together until one of them makes a significant personality change, or someone’s family accepts them, or they tell the family to shove it and withdraw their presence in their lives. Yi-seok and Hong-do did none of these things. They loved each other just as they were without even trying to change each other, and just kept on living.

I do like that Mom especially was able to change and improve her life. Out of everyone in the Go family, she was the least at fault, because she truly did believe that Hong-do was responsible for her son’s death. But once she realized she was wrong, she went straight to Hong-do and asked forgiveness — not for herself, but for Yi-seok. She knew that Hong-do could have abandoned him because of his family’s treatment of her and nobody would have blamed her, and she wanted above all for her son to be happy. It was a subtle but powerful moment, when Hong-do asked her in the cafe how she could ask her to stay with Yi-seok, and Mom only bowed her head humbly.

As for the chairman, the less said the better. I wanted so badly to like him, for him to do something to redeem himself, but he held onto his pride until the end. I don’t think he ever had evil intentions, just that he thought that sacrificing someone else for the good of his family was acceptable collateral damage. It was fitting that eventually, he was left alone with nobody to care about him, having nobody to blame for his isolation but himself. Even the previously-smitten housekeeper was so totally done with him.

I think Doo-soo and Se-ro will go down as one of my favorite second-lead couples in my drama-watching career. Anyone who’s read my recaps for this show knows that my feelings about Doo-soo have gone from one extreme to the other, but in the end, I understand why he treated Hong-do the way he did. He wasn’t being purposely abusive, possessive, or controlling, and he didn’t intend to run her life for her. He just didn’t know what to do with a woman he liked, because it had never happened to him before. It’s good that he and Hong-do didn’t end up together, because he would have completely smothered her personality trying to “protect” her.

But Se-ro is perfect for him, because she’s been independent for so long that she doesn’t need a man to protect her or do things for her, and she’s willing to tell Doo-soo exactly what to do in a relationship. Even if she has to spell it out by outlining everything, even how often he should think of her. And once Doo-soo stopped fighting it, and stopped trying to be in charge, I think he was a lot happier letting Se-ro call the shots. If you’re going to do everything wrong, best to just let someone who already knows the ropes show you how it’s done.

But for me, this show was all about Yi-seok and Hong-do. I’ll be honest, there wasn’t much about either one of them that I liked at the beginning of the drama. Hong-do frustrated me with her complete inability to do anything, and Yi-seok was just such an arrogant pompous ass I wanted to smack him. But thanks to the beautiful writing and the masterful performances by Choi Kang-hee and Chun Jung-myung, these two made such a slow and gradual shift in their personalities, you almost didn’t realize it was happening at all. It’s amazing to think back to early episodes, and not even recognize the Hong-do and Yi-seok who were originally introduced to us. They started as people who were hiding who they really were out of fear, and by accepting each other the way they were, they were able to grow into the people they were meant to be. Who could guess that Hong-do had such a wicked sense of humor and that core of steel? And I don’t think anyone knew there was a big squishy insecure huggy-bear hiding behind Yi-seok’s sneer and snarky cynicism.

I could go on forever listing everything that I loved about Heart to Heart, but I’m guessing you all know them already and love them, too. I’ll just say that this show will definitely hold a place of honor in my heart for its wonderful characters, its crazy but realistic family, and its beautiful touching love story. I have a feeling this is a romance I’ll be revisiting many times in the future, and finding new things to love about it for a long time to come.

 
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