DNA Lover: Episodes 7-8

by Dramaddictally

Feelings take shape, jealousies abound, and kisses are a-comin’. At this point, all four of our leads have made up their minds about where their hearts lie, but unfortunately these feelings don’t align on all fronts. As much as our characters try to control their emotions, I see some non-genetically determined hurts in their futures.

 
EPISODES 7-8

“In my world, there are two types of men. The ones that I’m madly attracted to genetically but that keep hurting me. And the ones I’m not genetically attracted to at all but that keep saving me.” Is it just me, or has our heroine hit on a basic life truth? Chemistry doesn’t always lead you in the healthiest direction. And sometimes you should just pick the firefighter.

But anyway, what a problem to have, right? So-jin utters the above quote to herself as she’s laid up in a hospital bed with sudden gastroenteritis — while her new crush competes with her life-long best friend to stay by her side. While neither of these men were totally sure of how they felt about her last week, they are very certain now, and even ready to act on it.

So, how did we get here? Well, this week’s genetic nonsense has to do with gut germs. If two people eat the same foods, the germs that develop in their guts will attract each other like magnets. (Or some such “scientific explanation.”) The plot point here is that our leading lady decides that the reason Yeon-woo and Mi-eun seem like such a perfect match is because they like and eat the same (expensive) foods. And so, if So-jin can get our hero to scarf down the cheap convenience store stuff that she loves so much, their stomachs will soon be exerting a gravitational pull toward each other.

This plan comes about when Yeon-woo asks So-jin out on a dinner date to a fancy-schmancy restaurant that he frequents — and the two run into Mi-eun with one of her many men. This isn’t so strange because it’s a place that Yeon-woo and Mi-eun go to regularly together, and they both love it. The two pairs end up sitting at the same table and both women are instantly jealous.

So-jin learns that in the past Mi-eun and Yeon-woo dated for three years, breaking up twice and getting back together. So-jin witnesses their similar tastes and their easy manner with each other, and starts to think they have everything in common, while she’s on the outside. She wants to develop the same kind of kinship with Yeon-woo that Mi-eun has — hence, the plan to get their gut germs hooked on the same instant ramen.

And on Mi-eun’s side we’ve got some development this week as it’s revealed that her feelings for Yeon-woo are stronger than what she feels for any of her other partners. Even when they’re broken up, it feels to her like they’re still dating. Or, it did until So-jin entered the picture.

We learned last week that Yeon-woo liked dating Mi-eun precisely because she was polyamorous. In Episode 6, he said he liked the “comfortable distance — a relationship that’s not too far and not too close.” So, the player and the polyamorist worked out well when they were both distant and staying within the bounds of their lifestyles.

However, we’ve got problems on both sides now. Yeon-woo appears to be changing up his game for So-jin (and Mi-eun recognizes this). And the fact that Yeon-woo is actually getting close to someone triggers Mi-eun’s jealousy and makes her want him more. At one point, she’s says she knows “it’s not right” to want him for herself — given her philosophy on relationships — but the hurt and rejection she feels seem to be changing her attitude.

The worst of it comes on her birthday, when she drops by Yeon-woo’s apartment hoping to spend the evening with him, and he turns her away without a thought because he has plans with So-jin. Mi-eun’s feelings increase the more he distances from her and pulls toward So-jin — despite the fact that our heroine’s food-matching plan fails!

So, what the heck is going on with Yeon-woo? While last week’s strategies struck me as manipulative inauthentic, he’s letting his genuine feelings shine through in these episodes. He asks So-jin to dinner, wants to get to know her for real, and also feels bad when he learns that she was trying to develop a closeness with him through food, and he didn’t even try the foods she recommended.

To make up for it, he invites So-jin to dinner at his house, where he cooks for her — combining convenience store ingredients with his own favorite delicacies. And of course, that’s how she develops the gastroenteritis.

But even with a stomachache that’s causing her to sweat, she’s so worried about making a good impression that she doesn’t mention it to Yeon-woo. Instead, when he invites her to cozy up on his couch and watch a movie, she sternly tells him that she needs to go home. Afterward, she darts to the nearest public toilet — and calls Kang-hoon to the rescue when she falls on the floor in pain.

Yeon-woo learns about this when he calls So-jin to alert her that she left her jacket behind. Kang-hoon answers the phone and says to meet them at the ER. This prickles Yeon-woo given that he’s a doctor and his crush just ran out in pain and called another man for help. But also, he has questions about the relationship between Kang-hoon and So-jin.

And, the truth is, Kang-hoon has some questions about that himself. He’s been pushing down whatever he feels for So-jin, so that not even he was fully aware it. But his attraction to her is rising to the surface and jealousies are developing on the men’s side as well.

By the time he and Yeon-woo are both standing outside her hospital room, Yeon-woo wants to know: “What are you to So-jin?” Why would she call him when she has a crisis? Kang-hoon is very pragmatic saying there are people you want to share struggles with and others you only want to share good things with. He tells Yeon-woo not to mind him. But Yeon-woo replies, “Are you okay if she only runs to you with her struggles?” Kang-hoon, dependable friend that he is, says yes, he’ll stick by So-jin no matter what.

But that’s before the trip-and-fall kiss. When So-jin is released from the hospital and back at home, Kang-hoon drops by with porridge. As he’s leaving, she chases after him to give him a bundle of parsley, trips down the stairs, and lands atop him in a wide-eyed kiss. They stay mouth to mouth, blinking a few times, before she starts enquiring if he’s okay. He is, but also, is she going to get off him?

The fact that she’s not disturbed by their closeness is a bad sign for him, considering how uncomfortable he is in the situation. Another bad sign? Afterward, he touches his lips with his fingertips, like he’s re-feeling the kiss — and she wipes off her mouth with the back of her hand. (Yeah, our firefighter is about to get his heart trampled.)

The next kiss that comes about is far more two-sided and happens when So-jin is in the hospital again. While she was getting her gastroenteritis treated, they discovered a growth in her uterus that needs to be removed. Immediately, Yeon-woo wants to be her surgeon, but So-jin is hesitant. She seems to be worried about keeping up a good impression. However, Yeon-woo really wants her to trust him, like she does with Kang-hoon (and this is the drama’s way of giving her a reason to).

And so, Yeon-woo will be her surgeon and Kang-hoon will be her guardian at the hospital. Both of them promise to be there from start to finish. As it happens, Kang-hoon gets called to a fire emergency before she goes into the OR (and leaves while she’s napping, poor thing). And Yeon-woo is called into an emergency surgery. So-jin is alone, terrified, and almost in tears on the operating table before Yeon-woo makes a last minute entrance to perform the surgery.

Later, in her room, Yeon-woo is also there to take care of her. When he leaves to get food, she tries to pass gas to make sure everything is normal post-surgery. Just as she does, he walks back in and smiles happily, saying she seems to be doing just fine. Lol. She’s totally mortified, but he uses it as an opportunity to show his sincerity. He’s not the kind of guy that cares about that and he was really worried he’d miss her surgery. As he talks, she leans toward him on her hospital bed and kisses him. He kisses back, and Kang-hoon arrives just then to witness it and end our episodes.

Well, on the upside, our hero is putting forth some genuine effort this week rather than trying to dupe our heroine into believing they have a telepathic connection. But for some reason, I still don’t really like him (Siwon notwithstanding). Maybe it’s the way he tried to pressure her into trusting him before she was ready, which screams red flag to me, or maybe it’s the way he dismisses Mi-eun that’s really bothering me.

The second leads are definitely more interesting characters to me than the main leads. And Mi-eun in particular is complicated, although I’m not sure the drama knows what it wants to do with her or say about polyamory. In all the discussions between Yeon-woo and Mi-eun they relate over their emotional distance in relationships. I find this strange on Mi-eun’s side, given that she’s said aloud that she’s simultaneously in love with multiple people. Does love mean no emotional attachment?

Mi-eun has many boyfriends and no one to spend her birthday with. That is, she has no real connection or companionship. She fits her partners into a fixed schedule — so what happens if she (or they) want to see each other on an off-day? We see the outcome when she tries to meet Yeon-woo on her birthday: he turns her away without even considering her disappointment. He sees her as a close friend (or distant lover), and she’s clearly got strong feelings for him.

Is the drama headed for some very profound take on the messiness of love? I don’t think so. And I’m even a little worried that we might see our polyamorist shifting stances. Or even, being vindictive. There’s a moment when she realizes that Kang-hoon has feelings for So-jin and tells him not to wait, but to act. Is she trying to drive a wedge between So-jin and Yeon-woo? And if so, will it make her question herself or become even more steadfast in her beliefs? All I know is that even if I feel as detached from these characters as Mi-eun is from her boyfriends, there’s something in this story that I can’t turn away from.

 
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