1% of Anything: Episode 4

by HappilyEverAfter

Just when Jae-in makes us think that rectifying his obnoxious attitude is a lost cause, he starts showing Da-hyun a softer side of himself — a side that’s probably been dormant for the last century or so. We get a peek into the past, which might explain why Jae-in’s as prickly and untrusting as he is, as well as why Grandpa thinks that there may still be some for Jae-in yet.

 
EPISODE 4: “It’s a Business Relationship: You’d better not fall for me!”

Intent on grabbing back her keys, Da-hyun barely notices that Jae-in’s focused on something else entirely until their eyes meet. He leans in for a quick peck, leaving Da-hyun shell-shocked as she immediately backs away from him. Jae-in tells her that it’s natural for them to make some progress since they’re dating, facetiously adding that he’s too conservative to spend the night with her after their first date.

Yelling that she never offered in the first place, Da-hyun snatches back her keys and stomps forcefully on Jae-in’s foot. She tells him that he’d better not mention anything about “progress” to her ever again, and starts to leave when Jae-in, still clutching his injured foot, asks if she’s going to go without even saying goodbye.

Da-hyun turns around with a sweet smile, and tells Jae-in: “Get home safe. Or not. I don’t care.” She gives the same foot another angry stomp before marching off, leaving Jae-in to reel in pain for a good while.

In the car, Jae-in thinks back to their kiss, slightly smiling as he wonders what’s gotten into him. He’s not the only one who can’t get his mind off the kiss; still in shock, Da-hyun wanders listlessly into her room and thinks to herself that Jae-in must be a player.

Jae-in calls Lawyer Park out to a bar, ordering him to block the incoming news reports about his date with Da-hyun at the concert. When Lawyer Park asks Jae-in why he appeared in public with Da-hyun if he knew the reporters would be following him, Jae-in just responds that he knew Lawyer Park would be able to take care of it.

As they talk, Lawyer Park catches Jae-in letting out a small, uncharacteristic laugh and points it out in surprise. Despite Lawyer Park’s prodding, Jae-in refuses to elaborate, leaving Lawyer Park to guess about what’s been going on in his life.

The next day, Jae-in chuckles to see that a few news articles about his date with Da-hyun have ended up on the internet, and over at Grandpa’s house, Employee Kang is currently getting grilled about those very same articles.

As Employee Kang tries to explain that he and Lawyer Park did their best to prevent the news outlets from publishing the reports, Grandpa starts laughing in amusement, thinking that this must be Jae-in’s way of keeping him updated.

Employee Kang asks Grandpa why he’s not worried, and Grandpa grins that this will just make it easier for Da-hyun and Jae-in to get married, which is exactly what Grandpa wants.

Meanwhile, Jae-in’s mother has also caught wind of the news reports and makes a worried call to Jae-in. The scene cuts to Da-hyun at home, telling herself to forget about the kiss, before cutting back to Jae-in, who picks up the call from his mom. He tells her that the articles aren’t completely false, but reassures her that he’s not marrying Da-hyun.

Right as he hangs up, another call comes in, this time from a young woman by the name of SOO-JUNG (Lee Hae-in). She demands, in English, to know if Jae-in’s getting married, and he snaps that he’s not. He asks after his aunt, and reiterates to Soo-jung that he’s definitely not getting married before brusquely hanging up on her.

Outside Jae-in’s office, his employees gossip about the rumors of their CEO’s new girlfriend. Employee Kang claims that he knows nothing about the girl, while Employee Han and Employee Choi wonder if Jae-in will change for the better now that he’s supposedly in love.

When Jae-in steps in to announce that there’ll be a meeting in ten minutes, Employee Han tests the waters and points out that lunchtime is in ten minutes. Unfortunately for her, Jae-in is as unsympathetic of a boss as ever, and as soon as he leaves the office, Employee Han curses Jae-in out, berating Employee Choi for even thinking that someone as compassionless as Jae-in could possibly have a girlfriend.

Meanwhile, at a study-café, Da-hyun gasps in shock when she reads the news article reporting on her date with Jae-in. Her first reaction is a sigh of exasperation, but then she preens at the article calling her a beauty, noting that at least that much is true.

Da-hyun recalls that back at the concert venue, Jae-in had told her to pretend like she didn’t know him, and she realizes that Jae-in had probably known there would be reporters around. As she fantasizes about burying him alive, she notices a comment on the article asking if this means Jae-in’s broken up with Soo-jung. That gets Da-hyun to do some research on Jae-in’s ex-girlfriends, who all turn out to be high-profile celebrities.

While she’s reading up on Jae-in’s exes, her idol Ji-soo walks into the café and presents her with a small bouquet of flowers. Ji-soo thanks Da-hyun for helping him out with the slave-contract issue, and tells her that he’s planning to catch up on his studies during this break.

Back at the hotel, Jae-in leaves his phone in his office before going to his meeting, and subsequently misses several calls from Da-hyun. She notes that he must have some shred of conscience after all, thinking that he’s too ashamed to pick up her calls after the news reports.

Ji-soo suggests that they grab lunch together, and Da-hyun hesitates, telling Ji-soo that she was supposed to meet someone today — someone super annoying who needs a lot of help to become a decent human being. Thinking it over, Da-hyun decides that she doesn’t really have to meet him today, and agrees to eat with Ji-soo.

At the office, Jae-in comes back to see his phone filled with notifications from Da-hyun. He laughs to see the angry emoticon stickers she sent him, and Employee Kang clocks his boss’s unusual reaction, shuffling Employee Han out to give Jae-in some privacy.

Jae-in meets with Da-hyun at a café, and starts off by threatening that she’d better not stomp on his foot again. Da-hyun asks if he ever learned any manners as a child, and reminds him that he’s not in any position to be scolding her.

Just then, Jae-in gets a call from Grandpa, which he immediately rejects. Grandpa calls again, and this time Jae-in turns off his phone, right as Da-hyun slams her hand on the table, demanding to know if Jae-in knew about the reporters beforehand.

She orders him to take responsibility for this situation, and Jae-in retorts that he thought she didn’t want to get married to him. (“To take responsibility” is a term used for marriage, say, if the girl is pregnant.) He snaps that he doesn’t want to get married to her either, and an exasperated Da-hyun exclaims that she’s not talking about marriage.

She asks Jae-in if he’s ever thought of apologizing, or if he even knows what he’s done wrong. Like a petulant toddler, Jae-in turns away from her and says he doesn’t. Suddenly, he smirks and asks if this is about their kiss, and comments that she must’ve liked it too — that remark gets him a swift, well-deserved kick to the shin.

Annoyed, Jae-in tells Da-hyun that teachers shouldn’t be so violent, and Da-hyun just responds that this is what they teach students to do to perverts like him. She threatens to kick him where it really hurts, and Jae-in quickly backs his chair away from her to protect the family jewels.

Meanwhile, Grandpa has called Employee Kang out to report to him on Jae-in’s affairs since Jae-in keeps rejecting his calls. Employee Kang weakly complains that he’s supposed to be at work right now, but Grandpa just wants to know what his grandson’s up to, and Employee Kang says that Jae-in is probably meeting with Da-hyun right now.

Grandpa’s delighted to hear that, and curious, Employee Kang asks what it is about Da-hyun that makes her so great. Employee Kang argues that there are probably plenty of women who are smarter, prettier, and kinder than Da-hyun, but Grandpa tells him that none of those women are capable of changing Jae-in.

Grandpa explains that there are some people in this world who can change others around them just through their presence. Employee Kang has zero faith that Jae-in can be changed, but Grandpa remarks that Jae-in’s changing already, and he himself is the only one who doesn’t know it.

At the café, Jae-in beams as he tells Da-hyun that this is his first time receiving emoticon stickers in his texts. Da-hyun scoffs that those stickers are stand-ins for cursing — it’s not something to be happy about. She gets up to leave, grabbing her bouquet, when Jae-in forces her to sit back down and starts interrogating her about where she got the flowers.

When he realizes that some guy must’ve given it to her, he suggests that they rewrite the dating contract to include a clause about not cheating on each other. And while he’s at it, he tells Da-hyun that she’s not to meet with any other man – he’s sure that she doesn’t have guy friends, so any guy outside of her family is off limits.

Da-hyun asks if the same applies to him — is Jae-in not allowed to meet with any women outside of his family while he’s dating her? Jae-in nods that he won’t, and it looks like Jae-in’s won this argument… That is, until Da-hyun starts reciting the names of all the exes she had looked up just earlier, and asks if he’s going to stop meeting with girls like them just because he’s dating her now.

Gritting his teeth, Jae-in tells Da-hyun that she can only believe a tenth of the rumors she reads online, and she covers her mouth in mock surprise, asking if it’s true that Jae-in has a love child in the U.S.

Da-hyun tells Jae-in that from now on, he’d better keep his hands off her — she tells him to stop grabbing her wrist, and all skinship is off limits. Jae-in laughs at her request and remarks that she must’ve never dated before, condescendingly explaining that it’s natural for a man and a woman to have skinship when they’re dating.

Da-hyun retorts that people have skinship not when they’re dating, but when they like each other. Jae-in notes that she must not like him then, and Da-hyun’s “Of course I don’t!” has him threatening that she’d better not fall for him and make things complicated.

Jae-in gets up to leave, jealously grabbing Da-hyun’s bouquet as she chases after him. He dumps the flowers into the trash can, and when Da-hyun tries to retrieve the flowers, he grabs her by the wrist and roughly drags her out of the café (did we not have a conversation about this just five minutes ago?!).

As Jae-in and Da-hyun make their way outside, Da-hyun asks if other people know how horrible of a person he is. He says that they do, but he doesn’t care, and Da-hyun can only futilely throw an imaginary punch behind his back.

When they arrive at the entrance of a concert hall, Da-hyun is reluctant to go in. Jae-in tells her that they’re here because his hotel is sponsoring the concert, and Da-hyun comments that Jae-in must’ve been the type to always get dumped.

Jae-in scoffs at that and tells her proudly that he’s never been dumped in his entire life, and Da-hyun responds that he probably got dumped without realizing that he got dumped, wiping the smirk right off his face. She tells him upfront that the girls probably only liked Jae-in for his status, and when he asks how she can be so sure of that, Da-hyun points out that he’s trying to work in the middle of a date.

Jae-in tells her that this is just killing two birds with one stone, and asks her if it’s so wrong to want to save his time. Da-hyun says that it’s a relief then, because this means he definitely hasn’t fallen for her; people in love don’t try to save time when hanging out — if anything, they go out of their way to make time to spend with each other.

She tells him that since they went to the classical music concert last time, it’s her turn to decide what to do for their date, and she pulls Jae-in away from the venue. Jae-in follows her, but flings her arm away, grumbling about how she has the audacity to grab his arm.

Jae-in’s cousin Tae-ha watches this exchange from afar, a calculating look crossing his face.

Da-hyun brings Jae-in to a store for assembling toy models, and he asks in disbelief if she’s ten years old. She reminds him that her students are ten-year-olds, and she’s doing this for them.

As Da-hyun pores over the toy model, Jae-in notices a little boy nearby begging his mother for one of the models on display. It triggers a memory in Jae-in’s past, when he had attended the funeral of a young boy who had been about the same age as him.

While Jae-in’s relationship to the boy is at best ambiguous, it is clear that this boy was the son of the woman whom Jae-in calls his mother in the present. At the funeral hall, Jae-in had been tossing around a handkerchief when he noticed the boy’s mother sitting despondently against the wall.

He had then walked up to her and offered her his handkerchief, letting her sob into his shoulder as he soothingly patted her back. Grandpa had been watching the two of them from afar, and heaved a heavy sigh as he looked on.

Back in the present, Da-hyun snaps Jae-in out of his daze, and he tells her that he’s going downstairs to buy some drinks. She watches as Jae-in buys the toy model for the boy who had been pleading with his mom, and turns away when Jae-in catches her gaze.

Tae-ha’s mother and Jae-in’s mother are having tea with Grandpa at his house, when Tae-ha’s mom snidely brings up the news of Jae-in dating yet another girl. Jae-in’s mother defends her son, commenting that it’s normal for someone his age to be dating, and adds that Jae-in is just exploring his interests before going back to the main SH Group branch.

Tae-ha’s mom is shocked to hear that Jae-in has plans to return to the main branch, and Jae-in’s mom just says that it’s expected, since Jae-in is the eldest grandson, after all. Indignant, Tae-ha’s mom responds that Tae-ha, too, is Grandpa’s direct blood relative, and Jae-in’s mother tells her that she never said otherwise — after all, the important thing is his skill.

Tae-ha’s mom scoffs, and reminds Jae-in’s mom that Jae-in isn’t really her son — the two of them don’t share a single drop of blood. It’s not like they’ll become mother and son just by hanging around each other, Tae-ha’s mom says condescendingly. Jae-in’s mother isn’t one to back down, though, and she reminds her sister-in-law that she, too, holds shares in SH Mall.

Grandpa stops the catfight, and Tae-ha’s mom leaves in a huff. Jae-in’s mom apologizes to Grandpa for the commotion, but not without reminding him that she considers Jae-in her true son, and that therefore, Jae-in is also the grandson of Daehan Electric’s chairman. Commenting that Jae-in sure takes after his mom, Grandpa tells her not to worry.

Back at the toy store, Da-hyun is still struggling to put together the pieces of the model. Jae-in comes up behind her, and seeing her futile attempts, he envelops Da-hyun in his arms as he assembles the pieces for her.

He asks when they plan to leave since she’s been at this for an hour already, and Da-hyun complains that there must be something wrong with the instructions. Jae-in just tells her not to ruin her perfect image in front of her students by attempting to assemble the model when she’s with them, and he begins to put it together for her.

After a while, they decide to leave, only to be met with a sudden downpour as soon as they step in front of the exit. Jae-in has another flashback, this time to his teenage years.

A middle-aged woman (Jae-in’s biological mother?) had been waiting in front of the airport, looking for someone. Clearly excited to see her, Jae-in had been about to run across the street to greet her, when he saw a Caucasian man and a little girl get there first. His face falling, Jae-in had watched the woman pick the little girl up as the happy family of three got inside the taxi.

In the present, Da-hyun gifts Jae-in with a new toy model package, and suggests that he try making it in his free time. He shoves it away, saying he’s busy, but Da-hyun insists, and he relents. She starts to wonder if they should just make a run for it through the rain, and Jae-in decides instead to borrow an umbrella from the store.

Da-hyun says that he should’ve borrowed an additional one then, and Jae-in just asks, what for? Hugging Da-hyun close to him, they walk through the rain, joking and laughing with each other.

 
COMMENTS

Watching the first two-thirds of this episode, I was ready to recommend Da-hyun for sainthood — how could anyone have the presence of mind to tolerate someone as rude and obnoxious as Jae-in? He’s not even remotely apologetic when Da-hyun points out the wrongs he’s done to her, and his utter lack of respect for her private space is absolutely demeaning.

I couldn’t believe that he had the gall to suggest that Da-hyun enjoyed the kiss when she had clearly been so upset by it the night before (in what world would two painful foot-stomps imply pleasure?), and I was flabbergasted once again to see him grabbing her wrist right after Da-hyun had explicitly told him to stop.

What’s the most problematic about this is that in dismissing her concerns and invalidating her very valid objections, he’s essentially depriving her of having a voice in this relationship, business or not. I’m proud of Da-hyun for being able to speak up for herself, and I love every moment when she takes Jae-in down a notch, but if he’s only momentarily chastised and not thoroughly humbled, then Employee Kang is right — Jae-in will never be able to change.

Nevertheless, I’m on Grandpa’s side in that I don’t think Jae-in is a total lost cause; given the snippets we saw of his past, it’s clear that he used to be a very compassionate, loving boy. In fact, he was surprisingly mature at the funeral, possessing the sensitivity and kindness to comfort a grieving adult in a way that nobody else could.

I’m intrigued by Jae-in’s past and what events brought his current mother to adopt him as her own, as well as what caused his birth mother to leave him for a new family. It was pleasantly surprising to see Jae-in’s current mother defend their relationship against the barbs of Tae-ha’s mother, though I’m worried that Jae-in’s mom will start causing trouble for Da-hyun when she learns of Grandpa’s true intentions, considering how worried Jae-in’s mom had looked when she asked if he would marry Da-hyun.

So although Jae-in still has a lot of work to do in the personality department, his date with Da-hyun at the model toy store had all the beginnings of a cute relationship — for once, his teasing was good-natured, lighthearted, and not at all meant to provoke. Jae-in’s growing crush on Da-hyun has its moments, but it usually materializes in the form of possessive jealousy or obnoxious demands, which makes it pretty hard to root for him sometimes. Thank goodness he finally showed a side of him that’s worth rooting for, and I can’t wait until that becomes his one and only side, period.

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