Temperature of Love: Episodes 19-20

by LollyPip

Just as things seem to be calming down for Jung-sun and Hyun-soo both personally and professionally, a new threat emerges that could ruin everything. With the danger coming from the last place they’d ever expect it, they’ll have to decide if they’re willing to fight for what they want, whether that’s their careers, or each other.

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EPISODE 19 RECAP

While Hyun-soo and Jung-sun share kisses in Good Soup’s walk-in refrigerator, Jung-woo drives to Hyun-soo’s house. Seeing her lights on, he tries to call her, but there’s no answer.

A little while later, Jung-sun and Hyun-soo go to his apartment for tea, and Hyun-soo mentions Jung-sun’s mother. Jung-sun says that he was curious about their meeting, but he didn’t ask about it because he didn’t want to make Hyun-soo uncomfortable. He admits that his mother is difficult, and he has a complicated family past.

Hyun-soo confesses that if she’d met his mother before she fell in love with him, she’d have run away. But she says that meeting her after falling for him just makes her love him more, because she feels sympathy. Jung-sun’s smile fades, so Hyun-soo asks if he doesn’t like hearing that, but he smiles again and says that love plus sympathy is just adding to the love.

He takes Hyun-soo’s hand and tells her in the exact same words she said to him, “I love you. I’m in love with you.” She repeats his words back to him: “I know.” They share a little smooch, then Jung-sun moves in to deepen the kiss, but the phone rings right on cue, making them both laugh.

Jung-woo is downstairs in his car when Jung-sun walks Hyun-soo out. They don’t notice him, and he watches as Hyun-soo trips and falls, and Jung-sun offers to help her up, asking cheekily if she wants to hold hands.

The following day, Hyun-soo and Kyung head to Good Soup to do research for her new drama. Hyun-soo struggles to pedal her bike with Kyung on the back, as Kyung insists that walking would be faster, hee.

They interview Soo-jung, the sommelier, who tells them that she learned about wine by drinking what her customers left behind, on top of spending all her paychecks on wine. Next they talk to chef Ha-sung, who says that the toughest thing about studying overseas was that he couldn’t make Korean food because his roommates didn’t like the smell. Grumpy chef Kyung-soo says he likes all food, but he complains that Ha-sung looks down on him.

Later Hyun-soo goes to the roof to talk to Jung-sun, where she gets a call from Jung-woo to meet for lunch. Over sandwiches, Jung-woo says that he sent the script for Nice Soup Does Not Answer the Phone to a famous actress, and Hyun-soo gets excited.

But she immediately wilts, sure that the actress won’t be in her drama because she’s a nobody writer. She perks up again when Jung-woo says that the actress can’t star in the drama due to her schedule, but that she wants to meet with Hyun-soo. Jung-woo teases her for being so happy, but Hyun-soo thinks it’s a promising start.

Jung-woo changes the subject and tells Hyun-soo that they need to rewind their relationship back to when they first met, back when she came whenever he called, with no excuses. Hyun-soo easily agrees.

At Good Soup, Jung-sun works on an oyster appetizer for his new menu, and he has Jung-woo taste it when he shows up. Jung-sun asks why Jung-woo was in the area, joking for him not to expect to see him as often since he’s got a girlfriend now.

Jung-sun tells Jung-woo that he’s back with the woman he talked about in Paris, explaining that her supposed engagement to another man was a misunderstanding. Jung-woo doesn’t reveal what he already knows, instead telling Jung-sun to invite his girlfriend to his proposal event this weekend. Jung-sun is excited by the idea of meeting each other’s ladies at the same time.

Unfortunately, the allergy incident is costing Good Soup a lot of its reputation and customers as the word gets out online. Many previous customers comment that the food is too expensive, and that the young chef is more concerned with showing off his looks than his food. It’s exactly what Jung-sun was afraid of, but he tries to stay positive.

Hong-ah makes herself comfortable in Jung-woo’s office and says that she won’t be using Hyun-soo’s old studio, because she doesn’t want to get jinxed in the place where Hyun-soo failed. She asks him how the casting for her drama is coming along, and he tells her to just focus on the script because it’s most important, though she seems more concerned with the cast and the time slot.

Next Hong-ah shows up at Hyun-soo’s place, armed with gifts for Hyun-soo and Kyung and the announcement that she’s making her writing debut. Kyung falls for the bribe of pretty clothes, but Hyun-soo just quietly takes her work to her room.

Hong-ah follows to pout at Hyun-soo for still being mad at her, and to remind Hyun-soo that she originally said she didn’t like Jung-sun. She says it as if it excuses her behavior, swearing that she didn’t do anything wrong, so Hyun-soo asks why it even matters now. Hong-ah actually bats her eyelashes as she says that Hyun-soo claimed hurt feelings because of that incident, and that she really thought Hyun-soo was marrying Jung-woo.

Hyun-soo says she doesn’t want to talk about it because it’s in the past, but that she needs time to clear up her feelings. Hong-ah tells her that she’s not going to work at her old studio or on Unruly Detectives, as if she’s doing it for Hyun-soo, and she calls on their long-time friendship as a play for sympathy.

Jung-sun takes a break from working on his appetizer to text Hyun-soo, “What are you doing? What are you doing? What are you doing?” Of course she reads it as, “I miss you, I miss you, I miss you,” which makes her smile. They agree to meet up, each offering to go to the other, and Hyun-soo makes it to Good Soup first.

They go for a late-night bike ride and end up back in the Good Soup kitchen, where Jung-sun lets Hyun-soo try his oyster appetizer. She marvels at his creativity with food, but he says that writers are creative, too.

Hyun-soo tells him about the actress who wants to talk to her about her drama, but Jung-sun is unsurprised, having seen Man Who Eats Rare Steak and liked it. Hyun-soo squeals happily to know that he watched her first drama, feeling her confidence return.

Jung-woo is up late, drinking alone in his office and staring at Hyun-soo’s script, seeing the connection between the name of the restaurant, Good Soup, and the “Nice Soup” in the title of the show. He calls Hyun-soo to his office despite the late hour, and she goes, having agreed to answer his summons any time.

She’s concerned when she sees that he’s been drinking, and she mentions that he’s been different lately. Jung-woo grumbles, “So you’re not completely indifferent to me,” and Hyun-soo says softly that she’s grateful to him. He asks how the research is going and whether Jung-sun is helping a lot, than stands to go.

Hyun-soo asks him if anything is wrong, but Jung-woo refuses to say, muttering that he can’t control his emotions today. He walks Hyun-soo to the elevator and thanks her, and she tells him not to bear everything alone. She says he can always talk to her, but Jung-woo just gives her a wry look.

In the elevator, he asks if Hyun-soo thought it was weird when he proposed to her years ago, since they weren’t even dating. Hyun-soo replies that there’s no right answer to that. She says that when she was young, she thought love was trust, but now she knows that love and trust are different words, and that you can love someone even if you don’t trust them.

Jung-woo answers that you can marry someone only if there’s trust, but love alone isn’t enough for marriage. Hyun-soo tells Jung-woo that she hopes he meets a good woman because he’s a good man, and he looks like she’s shot him right in the heart.

Jung-sun’s mom finds him on the roof the following day, tending his herbs. She demands breakfast, making Jung-sun snap that he can’t cook for her right now, so she backs down. She surprises Hyun-soo by calling her, and when they both learn they’ll be at Good Soup today, Jung-sun’s mom says she’ll see Hyun-soo there later.

Mom’s boyfriend Daniel arrives with breakfast, and Mom badgers Jung-sun to get married before Hyun-soo gets any older. Daniel argues that marrying late is best, but Jung-sun’s mom insists that Hyun-soo must want to get married soon, and he should be considerate of that because he’s younger than her. Daniel sees very clearly that her comment is directed at him, and they bicker over whether Mom is the one who wants to get married as Jung-sun excuses himself abruptly.

Jung-sun calls Hyun-soo to tell her that she doesn’t have to come see his mother, but she insists she can handle things herself. She says she wants to get to know his mother better, because it will help her know and love him even more.

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EPISODE 20 RECAP

When Hyun-soo arrives at Good Soup later, she’s surprised to see the dining room so empty of customers. She guesses that it’s because of the allergy incident, confessing to sommelier Soo-jung that she found out about it when she was doing her research.

Hong-ah ropes Won-joon into making her a cake for a meeting, and he pleads with her to become successful and go back to the way she was in college. She says that she still won’t come to him, and he quips, half joking that she’d be the one who regrets it if he refused to see her anymore.

Hong-ah spots Kyung doing her interviews, and she can’t help but brag that her drama will be filmed first if Hyun-soo is still in the research phase. Kyung informs her that the synopsis and first two episodes of Hyun-soo’s drama are already written because she started it years ago.

Interestingly, sommelier Soo-jung shoots eye-daggers at Hong-ah the whole time she’s there, and she tells Kyung that she wishes Hong-ah weren’t so rude to Won-joon. Looks like someone has a crush.

Hyun-soo joins Jung-sun’s mom on the roof, and Mom shows her the magazine article about Jung-sun, saying that giving birth to him is the best thing she’s done in her life. She adds that getting divorced was the second-best thing she’s done, though she admits that it was hardest on Jung-sun.

She asks Hyun-soo if she wants to go shopping, saying that she wants them to become closer. Hyun-soo asks why, so Jung-sun’s mom admits that they’re both dating younger men, plus Hyun-soo is dating her son, so she thought that going on double dates might help her relationship with Daniel. Of course it’s all about her.

She does say that she feels bad that Jung-sun works all day, and she tells Hyun-soo that his face lights up when he talks about her. Hyun-soo’s happy reaction proves to Jung-sun’s mother that she feels the same way, and though Hyun-soo has to turn down her shopping invitation because of work, the atmosphere between them seems more relaxed.

Meanwhile, Hyun-soo’s parents spend the day at the hospital getting their physicals. Dad mentions Mom’s frequent headaches and suggests she get some tests run, and she says there’s no point when they’re just simple headaches, but she agrees to the tests to make him feel better.

Won-joon finds Jung-sun in the kitchen designing the cake for Jung-woo’s proposal. When Hyun-soo joins them, Won-joon is amused at how he seems to be suddenly invisible to them, and they hardly notice when he lets himself out.

Joon-ha shows up unannounced again as Kyung is typing up her interview notes. He flops on the couch and says he’s just here to take a nap, then he asks if Hyun-soo is dating Jung-sun. He wonders what happens to Jung-woo then, which is the first that Kyung’s heard that Jung-woo likes Hyun-soo.

He asks for ramyun, and when Kyung refuses to make it, he goes to the kitchen himself. But he drops a pan on purpose, and before Kyung knows it she’s making the ramyun for him and fending off his annoying flirtations. HA, this guy has the helpless act down to a fine art.

Jung-woo comes to dinner at Good Soup, then he and Jung-sun head to the roof for a beer. Jung-woo mentions the decrease in customers, and Jung-sun admits that he feels like he’s back at square one.

Jung-woo asks why Jung-sun named his restaurant Good Soup, so Jung-sun tells him that it’s inspired by his old online handle. He says that he likes nice things, and soup is a universal food that he considers nice because you can eat a whole meal out of rice and soup. He wanted to combine that sentiment with French cuisine, just like his fusion dishes.

From his pocket, Jung-woo produces the ring he intends to use for his proposal and gives it to Jung-sun to hold until the big night. Jung-sun approves of the simple band, saying that he wants to use a ring like this for his proposal someday.

Jung-woo tells Jung-sun that he likes him, and Jung-sun parrots his words right back. But Jung-woo continues that they have different priorities, and that he’s seen many relationships broken. He wonders how it will be if their friendship breaks, but Jung-sun stops him to say that there’s no need to worry about that before the time comes.

Jung-sun adds, “But Hyung, I don’t think it will ever change between us. Because you’re you.” Jung-woo grins, but he says cryptically that he still needs to take this to the end and find out. When Jung-sun asks what he means, he just holds out his beer for a toast.

On the day of Jung-woo’s planned proposal, Jung-sun is in a great mood as he and his team prep for dinner service, while Jung-woo looks contemplative and preoccupied at his office. He calls Hong-ah in to tell her that he’s read her script and that it was good. He promises to hire good actors for her debut drama, and tells her that he’s found a good director, though he can’t say who it is yet.

Hong-ah asks about Hyun-soo’s drama, but Jung-woo just says that it’s being edited at the moment. Hong-ah reminds him of his promise not to neglect her drama in favor of Hyun-soo’s. She tells him that Hyun-soo and Jung-sun are in love and there’s no room for Jung-woo, claiming that she’s telling him so that he gets less hurt.

She’s surprised to run into Director Min on her way out, and he doesn’t answer when she asks why he’s here. He goes in to see Jung-woo, who’s heard that he’s leaving his company and wants to scout him. Director Min is surprised since Jung-woo doesn’t like him, and Jung-woo says feelings are feelings, but talent is talent. Director Min relaxes and asks why Jung-woo is working on a Saturday, and Jung-woo says that he has something important to do today.

Jung-sun spends the day preparing for Jung-woo’s proposal, only stopping to call Hyun-soo and invite her to dinner tonight, recalling Jung-woo’s idea to introduce their ladies at the same time. Meanwhile, Jung-woo waits until the last minute to call Hyun-soo, making it clear that due to her promise, she can’t refuse to come out for dinner. She calls Jung-sun to cancel dinner with him, which he accepts graciously.

Jung-woo looks serious as he picks up Hyun-soo, and the drive to Good Soup is silent. When they arrive, Hyun-soo is delighted to be taken to Good Soup, but Jung-woo knows the real reason she’s so happy. She reminds him that she has something personal to tell him, but he says it can wait until they get inside.

They go upstairs to the roof, where Jung-sun has set up a romantic table for two. Hyun-soo gets the idea that something special is going on, but she’s still in the dark about what’s happening.

Jung-sun gets the message that they’re here, and he heads up to the roof, excited to finally meet the woman Jung-woo loves. When he steps outside, Jung-woo is facing him, but Hyun-soo’s back is to him. Jung-woo sends Jung-sun a wave, then Jung-sun’s gaze turns to the woman he’s with.

His face falls as Hyun-soo turns towards him, though she’s clearly happy to see him. Suddenly everything that Jung-woo has ever said about what he would do if they were competing for the same woman rushes through Jung-sun’s mind, and he realizes that this is what Jung-woo meant.

Jung-woo stands and says that he wants to introduce them properly. Laying a possessive hand on Hyun-soo’s shoulder, he never takes his eyes off Jung-sun as he says, “This is the man I like the most. This is the woman I like the most.”

 
COMMENTS

Oh, this is going to be very, very bad. I feel like a kid peeking through my fingers at a scary movie, unable to look but dying to know what happens next. But I’ll get back to this in a minute.

At first I couldn’t understand why Hong-ah keeps hanging around Hyun-soo, trying to win her favor back, when Hong-ah admits that she hates Hyun-soo for “stealing” the guy she likes and being successful first. Then I realized… it’s so that Hong-ah doesn’t have to feel like the bad guy. She knows that her behavior towards Hyun-soo was wrong, both regarding Jung-sun and in almost taking over her drama, but if Hyun-soo doesn’t hate her for it then she doesn’t have to hate herself for it. So Hong-ah keeps kissing up, buying Hyun-soo gifts and pouting at her, hoping to crack Hyun-soo’s chilly wall so that she can tell herself that if Hyun-soo forgives her, then what she did can’t be that bad.

And although one of Hyun-soo’s best qualities is her ability to to forgive, I’m glad that in this situation, she’s holding firm. She knows that Hong-ah has no right to her friendship or forgiveness after what she’s done and the way she’s behaved. I like that Hyun-soo was honest and said that she needs time to work through her feelings about the way Hong-ah lied and tried to keep her and Jung-sun apart. She doesn’t even know the half of what Hong-ah is doing behind her back with her new drama, but she’s on her guard, which is going to help her stay strong when she discovers that Hong-ah is still backstabbing her professionally.

On the other hand, I don’t understand Jung-woo at all. He obviously loves Jung-sun, and holds no real hatred towards him for loving Hyun-soo. So I can’t comprehend why he put Jung-sun in the position of making his proposal meal for Hyun-soo, knowing how much Jung-sun (and Hyun-soo, for that matter) would be hurt when they discover how he set them up. In a way I can see why Jung-woo would try to get his proposal in there first, because of what the two men discussed regarding wanting to know they tried everything they possibly could to win the heart of the woman they love. Jung-woo is hoping that Hyun-soo may realize that she does have some feelings for him, and you can’t blame a guy for trying.

But the way he’s going about it seems calculated to cause the most distress possible to the two people Jung-woo says he cares about most in the world. Not to mention that he’s risking looking like a heartless bastard in the process. All through this episode it seemed to me as if Jung-woo knew that this proposal is futile, because he looked downright miserable at a time when a man should be happy to be planning his future with the woman he loves. At this point it’s as if he’s only doing it to stick it to Jung-sun and Hyun-soo, and I just don’t get it.

Even with Jung-woo’s secrecy, I really appreciate that Hyun-soo knows how Jung-woo feels—she’s not blind to the obvious cues, and he isn’t exactly trying to hide his feelings. It’s refreshing that for the most part, everyone in this drama is working with the full knowledge of who is feeling what (with the exception of Kyung and Joon-ha). I particularly love how Hyun-soo handles Jung-woo’s feelings for her… she’s gentle with him because he’s her boss and because she cares for him as a friend, but she doesn’t ever lead him on or do anything to make him think that she returns his affections in that way.

I have no idea what’s going to happen now that Jung-woo has sprung his trap, but whatever it is, it won’t be good. If Jung-woo, Jung-sun, and Hyun-soo just had friendly connections, that would be bad enough. But Jung-woo has the power to professionally destroy both Hyun-soo and Jung-sun, and if he’s as angry as I think he is, he’s going to threaten to use every bit of that leverage to get his way. He’s always seemed like the kind of man who would be more than willing to crush anyone who stands in his way despite his friendly demeanor. The way his proposal was calculated to have as much impact as possible on Jung-sun and Hyun-soo, I have no doubt that Jung-woo is prepared to bring his full fury down on them both.

 
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