Was It Love: Episode 13

by lovepark

The father’s identity has been revealed to everyone involved, and now our producer has to deal with the consequences. After fourteen years of keeping silent, it’s hard to admit the truth, but for the sake of her loved ones, our producer is willing to fix her mistakes because it’s never too late to apologize and make amends.

 
EPISODE 13 RECAP

Last year, Ha-nee received a school assignment about genetics, so at home, she checked off all the characteristics she shared with Ae-jung. Despite their many similarities, Ha-nee noticed some differences and wondered how she resembled her dad.

In the present, Dae-oh appears by Ha-nee’s side, claiming to be her father. His sudden announcement stuns everyone, but Ha-nee is hit the hardest as she remembers their past encounters. The fight between the students ends without further complications, though Chan-young’s family acts like the victims until the end.

Dae-oh scoffs at their pretentious attitude, pointing out that Ha-nee is one who’s letting Chan-young off easily, but his statement only ruffles their feathers. Chan-young’s mom asks if Dae-oh is coming to the school sports event tomorrow—suggesting that Dae-oh isn’t really her dad—and Dae-oh blurts out that he’ll be there. As the other party leaves, Ha-nee turns to Dae-oh and compliments his acting skills since he almost tricked her, too. She tells him not to come tomorrow and storms off.

Ae-jung chases after her, apologizing for not telling her sooner, but her words sound like excuses to Ha-nee. Having followed them, Dae-oh interjects, taking the blame for keeping her in the dark. Ha-nee agrees that he should have told her sooner, but the one she wants to hear from is Ae-jung. She asks if her mom can even explain all of this to her, and walks away.

Ryu Jin finds Ha-nee outside her house, and she assumes that he’s here to tell her about Dae-oh. He is surprised to learn that she already knows, but she tells him that the truth changes nothing—her father still abandoned her. Though Ha-nee wants to be alone, Ryu Jin asks for a bit of her time.

Walking home, Ae-jung scolds Dae-oh for his recklessness, and he acknowledges his mistake. However, he would do it all over again if she or Ha-nee are in trouble and refuses to hold back. Ae-jung admits that she wanted to lean on him in the past, but once she chose to raise Ha-nee alone, this became her problem to fix: “My dream is to be Wonder Woman, not Cinderella.”

Sitting alone, Dong-chan looks at a list of dad candidates for Ha-nee, and underneath it is his own list of potential moms. While he wonders about his relationship with Ha-nee, she texts him thanks for standing up for her.

Pa-do arrives at school and apologizes to his son for coming late. He wonders if Dong-chan is being bullied, but his son tells him that the fight was about Ha-nee’s dad. Confused, Pa-do spots Dong-chan’s lists and can barely form coherent sentences.

Dong-chan uses this chance to ask his father about Ae-jung and why he has a photo of her carrying him. Before Pa-do can explain, Director Kim comes, notifying him of urgent matters, and Dong-chan deflates. He asks if his dad will ever tell him the truth, but he already knows the answer: he’ll just lie again.

Ryu Jin takes Ha-nee to his old university and points out the places he and her parents used to hang out. He describes what Ae-jung was like back then—funny, smart, passionate—but one day, an audacious junior came onto the scene and whisked her off her feet.

As Ha-nee tours the campus, she imagines what life was like for her mom and dad, picturing the happy couple making movies, walking together, and laughing during class. She asks Ryu Jin why he brought her here, and he tells her that he thought she might be curious. While he can’t answer all her questions, he can say with certainty that Dae-oh never abandoned them and still loves her mom very much.

Ae-jung waits nervously at home for Ha-nee, but when only Yeon-woo comes home, she decides to go out and search. Yeon-woo stops her from running into the night without a plan, and thankfully, Ryu Jin texts her right then, informing her of Ha-nee’s whereabouts.

She waits for them outside, but when Ha-nee arrives, it is still awkward between them. Though Ha-nee heads inside first without even a word to her mom, Ryu Jin assures Ae-jung that she should be feeling better. Ae-jung thanks Ryu Jin and then apologizes for blaming him for the news articles. He accepts her apology and tells her to go inside to explain things to Ha-nee.

Ae-jung sits Ha-nee down on her bed, offering to tell her everything, so Ha-nee asks if she ever regretted having her. Ae-jung tells her that she would still have Ha-nee even if she went back to the past and promises that nothing will change for their family. Ha-nee asks what that means for Dae-oh and wonders if her mom still likes him.

Before Ae-jung can answer, Ha-nee blurts out her disapproval, reminding Ae-jung that Dae-oh left them. Since it happened before, Ha-nee argues that it could happen again and offers to be her mom’s guardian instead.

Her words trigger an old memory, and Ae-jung remembers the time little Ha-nee asked what a wedding was. She told her that it was a promise made between two people to always be together, so Ha-nee plucked some flowers and proposed to her mom. Just like in the past, Ae-jung agrees that she only needs Ha-nee and wraps her in a hug.

Dae-oh stops by Sukey with a gift for Ha-nee, but the bar is closed. While he peeks inside, Sook-hee appears behind him and tells him that she does not deliver, heh. She tries to shoo him away, but Dae-oh recalls her telling him that Sukey isn’t just a bar which earns him one pass.

Sook-hee hands Dae-oh a glass of ice— Ae-jung’s go-to drink—and listens to him explain his situation. When he describes Ae-jung’s adamant refusal of his help, Sook-hee calls it understandable since a mom never retires, but adds that moms are still women.

She informs him of Ae-jung’s habit to say the opposite of what she means, and when Dae-oh doesn’t catch her drift, she spells it out for him: she isn’t okay. If Ae-jung wants to be Wonder Woman, then Sook-hee advises him to be Superman.

The other ladies at the bathhouse tell Grandma that they never believed the rumors and encourage her to sue the reporter for defamation. Grandma says that she’ll boil everyone who gossiped and turns to the ladies, asking what she should do to them.

Satisfied with her little revenge, Grandma returns home with groceries to make something nourishing for her family, but finds Ae-jung in the kitchen making kimbap. Joining her daughter, she expresses her happiness since everything is fixed, but Ae-jung doesn’t reciprocate.

Ae-jung tells her that Ha-nee learned about her father and seems anxious about him disappearing again. Putting on a smile, Ae-jung says good riddance, but Grandma sees through her act and asks if she won’t be lonely in the future. Despite her daughter claiming to be happy, Grandma looks unconvinced.

Pa-do and his men enter a closed restaurant, but the entire premise is empty. The mysterious man calls him again and asks if her brought the item. Pa-do doesn’t know what they want, but they don’t believe him, threatening to take something precious from him if he doesn’t cooperate.

Looking out the window, Pa-do notices a van outside, but before his men get downstairs, it’s gone. In the safety of his own home, Pa-do drinks his flask while Director Kim asks what they want. Pa-do tells him that he doesn’t know either.

Dae-oh brings some drinks and snacks to the office, but turns around when he finds CEO Wang lying on the couch. Before he can escape, CEO Wang sits him down to catch up, and Dae-oh agrees to stay for now. While CEO Wang reminisces about their fated meeting eight years ago, Dae-oh threatens to call the police if he doesn’t stop talking. Heh.

Despite the threats, CEO Wang asks if he ever got revenge, and Dae-oh tells him that he couldn’t. CEO Wang nods his head knowingly since there’s no such thing as revenge when it comes to love, only lingering feelings. Even back then, he knew Dae-oh still loved and missed her.

Looking back to 2012, Dae-oh published his debut novel, but instead of celebrating, he drowned his sorrows. As Dae-oh bemoaned his failed love life, CEO Wang was sitting at the same bar and asked if his story was true. Handing over his business card, he offered Dae-oh a chance to meet her again.

Ae-jung gets ready for the school sports event when Dae-oh texts her pictures of a food truck and shoes he got for Ha-nee. She marches out of her room, determined to put a stop to this nonsense, but Ha-nee blocks her path. Ae-jung lies about needing to help set up and scurries away.

Meanwhile, Ryu Jin reads the new headlines that are now on his side and learns from Manager Myung that CEO Song is being canceled. Manager Myung is happy that everything worked out and mentions the rumors about Ah-rin being the original target.

Manager Do talks about the same things with Ah-rin, glad that the reporter won’t be bothering them for a while. However, Ah-rin is in a foul mood since Ryu Jin isn’t the father, which prompts her manager to ask about the director. He cautiously suggests she stop liking him if he really is the father.

Ah-rin barges into Ryu Jin’s room and asks if Dae-oh is the father. Ryu Jin is stunned to hear her call Director Cheon by his real name and wonders if the rumors are true about her age and name being fake. Ah-rin argues that she’s just worried about Ryu Jin’s mess affecting her and leaves in a huff.

Also bothered by this turn of events is Bo-hye as she thinks back to Yeon-woo’s confession and remembers the time she fought with her son about Ae-jung. It was around the time Ae-jung disappeared when Yeon-woo overheard Bo-hye talking about the two never meeting again.

Angered by her meddling, Yeon-woo packed his bags and ignored Bo-hye’s claims that Ae-jung vanished on her own accord. She argued that she did this for his happiness, but Yeon-woo pointed out that Bo-hye was obsessed with him because of her own loveless marriage.

His words stung, and Bo-hye slapped him in response. Though she immediately regretted it, the damage was done, and Yeon-woo pushed her away, accusing her for making his life difficult.

A call brings Bo-hye back to the present, and Ah-rin asks her CEO if she could cause some trouble for Ae-jung. Instead of discouraging her, Bo-hye gives her the go-ahead and advises her to do it properly since she’ll take care of the consequences.

At school, Ae-jung rebukes Dae-oh for bringing a food truck, but he says that this is the least he could do. He then hands Ae-jung a gift for Ha-nee and tells her that she did a good job raising her. However, now that he knows the truth, he can’t sit back and watch her raise their daughter alone.

Ae-jung tells him that she doesn’t need his help, but Dae-oh argues that he doesn’t want to be her prince charming, either. He says that he’ll be a superhero to her Wonder Woman and offers his everything to them. Unfortunately, Ha-nee finds them together and thinks Ae-jung lied to see him. She tells her mom that she doesn’t like Dae-oh and leaves.

Pa-do drives Dong-chan to school in silence until Dong-chan finally asks why he isn’t talking. Before Pa-do can speak, an unknown number calls him, and he pauses for a moment before hanging up. Dong-chan asks about the call, but Pa-do tells him that it was nothing.

Tired of all his secrets, Dong-chan asks if he’s ever going to explain anything and questions if Pa-do is even his real dad. He gets out of the car, and Pa-do is forced to let him go. On the way to school, Dong-chan sees Ae-jung and Ha-nee, but as he greets them, some men pour out of a van and grab him.

Ae-jung and Ha-nee run to help but get caught in the mess. As Pa-do looks for Dong-chan on foot, the van passes him, and the mysterious man calls him. He orders Pa-do to bring the item unless he wants to see Ae-jung and the children get hurt.

Dae-oh stands outside the school, calling Ae-jung’s phone, but she’s too busy fending off the bad guys. When she tries to call the police, the kidnappers chuck her phone out of the moving vehicle just as they pass the school. It lands by Dae-oh’s feet, and after picking up the phone, he sees Pa-do running after the van.

Dae-oh catches up to Pa-do and asks where Ae-jung and Ha-nee are. When Pa-do doesn’t answer, he yells at him to explain. Seeing the others run, Yeon-woo chased after them and wonders what’s wrong. Pa-do looks between the two men, debating whether or not to tell them, and all the while, Ae-jung fights off the kidnappers in the van.

 
COMMENTS

The crux of this episode was about Ha-nee and her reaction to Dae-oh being her dad. Her anger and fears are warranted, especially since from her point of view, the adults in her life were actively keeping her in the dark which made her feel like a fool. All this time, she thought Ryu Jin was her father when the real one was the guy next to her. Both Ae-jung and Dae-oh had times when they could have told her the truth, but they remained silent which only furthered her misunderstandings. Thus, even though she finally learned the identity of her dad, she isn’t curious about him because she feels betrayed. Part of Ha-nee’s quest to find her dad was to figure out what kind of person he was and why he wasn’t in her life. At first, she wants Yeon-woo to be the one because he’s kind but then she realizes that he wouldn’t be the type to leave her mom when she’s pregnant. Slowly but surely, Ha-nee comes to the conclusion that her dad must have been a terrible person to abandon her mom, so it’s only natural that her first reaction to Dae-oh is to keep him away from Ae-jung. In her eyes, you simply have to replace actor with director, so the same misunderstanding she had about Ryu Jin still applies: Dae-oh left Ae-jung to further his career and never showed up to help until now. The fact that he kept his identity a secret (from Ha-nee’s perspective) only cements her misunderstandings about him.

Surprisingly, the only person to counter this idea has been Ryu Jin. Though he’s still a terrible person for what he did to the couple, I’m grateful for the way he treated Ha-nee and helped her through some of her turmoil. He seems to the be the only one who realizes how curious she is about the past and answers her questions to the best of his ability. He tells her that she was loved and is still loved by her family, including Dae-oh. However, the person Ha-nee needs to hear this from is her mother, but unfortunately, Ae-jung doesn’t keep the ball rolling. She thinks reassuring Ha-nee about their current situation is enough, and though she recognizes Ha-nee’s abandonment issues, she doesn’t address them. She thinks if the “problem” (aka, Dae-oh) is out of sight, then he’ll also be out of mind. However, we know this isn’t going to work because Ha-nee has been curious about him for her entire life. Now that she knows the truth, there’s no way she will forget him just because he isn’t in front of her eyes. It is hard to explain everything to your child, but for Ha-nee’s sake, I wish Ae-jung would give her daughter the reassurance she needs. When Ha-nee tells her that Dae-oh left them and could leave them again, I want Ae-jung to explain to her daughter why their relationship failed and admit her own shortcomings. Even if Dae-oh wasn’t the best boyfriend, it doesn’t mean he abandoned them like Ha-nee thinks. He really didn’t know about her existence, so it seems selfish of Ae-jung to not tell Ha-nee that her father didn’t really leave them… it was Ae-jung who left.

The last scene of the episode was (probably) intended to be serious, but I couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. First, there was the perfect timing of Ae-jung and Ha-nee running into Dong-chan, then the bad guys decide on a whim to kidnap all three of them instead of immobilizing them on the street. The craziest part, though, was when the phone gets thrown out of the van and lands just a few feet from where Dae-oh is standing. Miraculously, the phone is unscratched (the power of PPL), and it becomes a chain where Yeon-woo chases Dae-oh who chases Pa-do who chases the van. It’s a series of unbelievable coincidences, but it’s so ridiculous that it’s funny. Maybe that wasn’t the scene’s intended purpose, but nevertheless, after a whole episode of brooding and fighting, I enjoyed the shenanigans.

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