[Drama Recap] Love Rain Episode 9

Here we recap and discuss episode 9 of Love Rain.  Caution, spoilers below.  Don’t read if you don’t want to know what happens.

Ha Na is completely caught off guard by Joon’s confession and finally says that it’s the first time that she’s heard this before when she finally gets her tongue back.  The mood quickly reverses as an incredulous Joon asks her if she was really that unpopular in school to have never been confessed to.  LOL, totally did not see that one coming.  Sudden cocky Joon is back and he’s bragging about how many girls liked him.  Ha Na says she knew that already and stutters out how she first saw him with a girl on the bed of his hotel room in Japan.  Joon tells her to prepare herself for him liking him and they’re then spotted by Yoon Hee.  She asks her daughter who’s beside her, and Ha Na says he’s nobody and runs off to meet her mom, leaving an annoyed Joon pouting like a kid.

When they’re inside their home, Yoon Hee says she’s prepared everything for dinner, but Ha Na keeps trying to come up with excuses to go out briefly to talk to Joon.  Her mom counters everything though and Ha Na just has to say she’ll be right back.  However, Joon’s nowhere to be found.  She does, on the other hand, run into In Ha, and the two immediately recognize each other even though they’ve never met before.

We then cut to Yoon Hee meeting In Ha.  He asks her why she lied to him about her husband, to which Yoon Hee can only apologize.  He brings up how they promised not to say sorry to each other and how it breaks his heart that he couldn’t find her and be with her.  All the feelings that he suppressed in the past come pouring out of his present day self and he confesses how much he missed her.

Meanwhile, Joon has gone back to his car, but decides he needs to at least get Ha Na’s answer and so goes in search of her.  He sees his dad meeting with Yoon Hee and walks towards them, but is ambushed and dragged off by Ha Na.  Since he only saw him from the back, Joon did not recognize his father and asks Ha Na who that was.

We then cut back to In Ha asking Yoon Hee what he should do now.  Her answer to him is to remove her hand from his and tell him that she forgot everything.  She lies and says she doesn’t remember very well and that why she’s sorry since he remembered everything.  Yoon Hee says she just wants to continue raising Ha Na alone like she has been and asks him to let her cherish their memories.

We then cut back the kids and Ha Na is still amazed that her mom was able to meet with her first love like this.  She swoons over how romantic it was and imitates how In Ha asked to see Yoon Hee.  Joon, however, doesn’t care and asks Ha Na about her answer to his confession.  Ha Na tries to avoid the question and asks if he’s talking about whether she’s moving in, but Joon clarifies for her.  She’s trying to stall for time again and ties to run off when she sees her mom walking back to the house.  Joon grabs her though and demands an answer now.  Ha Na honestly admits that she doesn’t know anything about him and that they’ve only fought so far.  Joon gets mad and pettily says that his confession didn’t mean much to him either and storms off.  Rough night for the Suh family men.

Back at the home, Ha Na asks her mom who her guest was, but Yoon Hee is evasive and says it was just someone.   Not quite the answer that Ha Na wants to hear and so Ha Na is forced to admit that she knows who he is from reading her diary before.  She asks her mom if they’re going to start seeing each other now, but Yoon Hee says that he’s just an old friend.  Ha Na is persistent, though, and says she even someone slow like her can see how much her mom misses him even now.  Yoon Hee tells her that she has no regrets about leaving him and that’s why it won’t work between them now.  Suddenly, she says she feels tired and retreats to her room where we see her testing her eyes.

In Ha has just finished a lecture when he sees Ha Na has come to see him.  We see them talking on a bench before cutting quickly back to Ha Na packing up her belongings to move to Seoul.  She tells her mother that she got a job as a gardener and that she’ll be able to live there for a while.  In Sung and Cho Soo are surprised when she shows up with her stuff and plants at the cafe, but Sun Ho quickly greets her and shows her to her room.  He tells her she can stay as long as she likes, but Ha Na says she found a place already and she’ll only need to be here for three weeks.

After she gets settled in, Sun Ho formally introduces her to the gang.  Cho Soo and In Sung have relatively normal greetings but when it’s the stylist who works for Joon’s turn, Ha Na gets hit by a moisture spray and told she should water her skin too along with her plants.  She then gets Cho Soo to help her fix up the garden, while the others loaf around inside.  She asks him where Joon is and is told that he’s coming back from Paris tonight.  Cho Soo asks her what her relationship is with Joon and warns her not to fall for him because he’s a real player.  Sun Ho then interrupts their conversation and says Ha Na should come sign her contract.

Right after she signs it, Ha Na finds out that Joon is the actual owner of the property and Sun Ho just leases from him.  She tries to take back the contract, causing Sun Ho to ask her if anything happened between her and Joon since he told Sun Ho that he was going to convince her.  She tells him that Joon only talked about weird things, and from that Sun Ho already figures out what happens.  He tells her that Joon probably intended for there to be a garden here all along and that there used to be a garden full of white flowers when he lived here with her parents before they split up.

Sun Ho then gives her a tour of the place but can’t shake the feeling that he’s forgetting to tell her something.  He hands her the keys to the cafe and she decides to relax in her room.  She then thinks back Joon saying his confession didn’t mean much and convinces herself that it’s okay to be here.  She then sees a sliding door and goes to investigate.  We then cut to Sun Ho, who remembers that he forgot to tell her that Joon is also staying here right now.  Oops, lol.  Seems like that’s a deal breaker kind of thing to forget.

Ha Na is busy exploring the room and sees a pair of colorful underwear.  When she realizes what she has in her hands, she tosses it right in time for Joon to catch it as he walks in.  Mi Ho then walks in and says she still doesn’t want to be separated from him after being together for 4 days and Ha Na notices a giant picture of her on the wall of the room.  Both of them storm out of the room separately and ask Sun Ho why the other is there.  Since asking Sun Ho won’t do anything, Joon drags Ha Na to the small guest room outside so they can talk in private.

Joon asks her what she’s doing there and she says she’s here to work.  He then asks if she’s okay with living with a guy she just rejected, but Ha Na says she never rejected him.  When Joon tells her to leave, she points out that he’s the one who says it wasn’t a big deal.  Why should she care about someone who goes puts pictures of another girl in his room and goes on overnight trips with her?  Joon accuses her of being jealous, which Ha Na denies and adds that she’s not going to leave because she already signed the contract.  Joon thinks she’s playing a game with him though and says that if she’s going to stay here, she should at least be honest about it.

As they walk out of the guestroom, Sun Ho is waiting for them and tells Ha Na not to worry because Joon says he’ll leave if she stayed there.  Joon, however, denies this and says he’s staying.  He tells Sun Ho to take responsibility and send her away, with Mi Ho trailing behind him of course.  Sun Ho tells Ha Na not to mind Mi Ho since she’s his sister and that they’re going to have a party to celebrate her moving in.  Ha Na seems down at first but forces a smile onto her face and starts clapping.

Tae Sung finally makes an appearance again and we see him change out of his gardening clothes get dressed up in a suit.  Apparently, he’s the director of the entire resort, and the arranged marriage thing makes more sense now.  He’s gone just a quickly though as we cut to In Ha bringing Yoon Hee a bouquet of baby’s breathes.  She doesn’t want to speak with him, but he follows her around until she finally does.  He says it’s okay that she’s forgotten because he’s missed her enough for the both of them.  She doesn’t even have to accept him right away because he’ll try hard enough for the both of them.  I guess this drama was due for some cliché lines about love; I’m just surprised it’s not raining.  In Ha begs Yoon Hee to take him back and hands he the bouquet.

Back at the cafe, they’re all preparing a barbeque for Ha Na’s first day.  They even share the food with the patrons at the cafe.  Meanwhile, Mi Ho is dancing by herself at a club while In Ha sits at the bar by himself.  She goes over to him and starts displaying her aegyo until Joon finally cracks a smile and takes a picture of her with his phone.  Mi Ho is happy about how it turned out and tells him never to take pictures of other girls except for models.  She then asks Joon who Ha Na is and if he hates her because he was forced to use her as a model.  Joon ignores her question and tells her to take her picture out of his room or he’s throwing it away.  She refuses and says he’s her soul mate because he was the first non-family member she saw.    Mi Ho tries to lean in for a kiss, but Joon blocks her with his hand, not that that will actually discourage her.

Joon gets back to the cafe and sees the others playing a drinking game where two people have to pick between two words, typically used to test a couple’s compatibility.  If they say different words, they have to drink.  Joon has no interest in joining them, but stops when he hears it’s Sun Ho and Ha Na’s turn.    He decides to join in from where he’s standing and whispers his answers at the same time as the other two.  Sun Ho guesses the wrong answer every time, but Joon is excited that he matches Ha Na’s.  Cho Soo is reluctant to give Ha Na her “punishment” because she seems to be enjoying it too much, but eventually hands it to her.  Before she can drink it though, Joon grabs the glass out of her hand and takes it for her.  He tells her to stop drinking and runs back to his room.  LOL.

Back at the resort, Yoon Hee is staring at the bouquet that In Ha gave her.  She receives a text from him telling her to make sure she eats well and sends her an audio file that he’s been saving all this time.  She plays it and it’s a recording of the day that he got discharged from the military.  He asks her how she’s doing, and you can hear Dong Wook and Chang Mo in the background telling him he can do a better job than that.  As he starts singing the song that he wrote, Yoon Hee breaks into tears.

We’re now back at the cafe where Joon can’t sleep and is reading on his couch.  Apparently there is no real wall between his room and Ha Na’s and he peeks through his bookshelf to see if she’s there.  When he sees she’s not, he walks out to the cafe and sees her passed out on the couch.  He brings out a blanket to cover Ha Na, who is now awake and pulls him down to sit next to her.  She’s still drunk and angrily asks where he’s going even though she’s been waiting to talk to him.  Ha Na wants him to apologize to her for accusing her of acting innocent when she really is just innocent.  She tells him she never had a boyfriend, never kissed anyone, and only had a crush on one guy.  Ha Na then starts speaking without honorifics, which angers him.  She then drunkenly says that she afraid to like him because she doesn’t trust him.  Ha Na even playfully threatens to kill him if he keeps saying that she dumped him.  Joon decides to take advantage of this opportunity and kiss her quickly on the lips.  He pretends like nothing happened, but Ha Na gets angry at him for taking away her first kiss.  Ha Na then closes her eyes and makes like she’s going in for another one and Joon is all prepared for it, but she passes out midway.

The next day, Joon is giggling like a school girl by himself in his room as he thinks about what happened.  He peeks through the bookcase again and sees that Ha Na once again isn’t there.  She’s apparently already hard at work on the garden as he goes outside and sees her using a power saw to cut some wood.  He asks her if she’s embarrassed about them kissing, but Ha Na denies it ever happening.  Joon then tricks her into admitting that she remembers, and Ha Na angrily goes back to work.

As she’s working, Joon is happily eating breakfast on one of the tables next to her.  After he finishes, he takes a picture of her and asks her why she’s making the garden.  He says he’s not sure he wants her to work on the garden since their styles don’t match.  She says not to worry and she’ll take his taste into consideration and gets mad at him for snapping another picture of her.  He jokes with her if he’s the first person to take a picture with her as well as being her first kiss and the first guy that’s confessed to her.  As he leaves, he tells her she’s pretty and that they should have dinner later.  She tries to say she has plans already, but he doesn’t listen.

We now see that Yoon Hee is having her eyes checked at a hospital.  Seems whatever is affecting her eyes is happening earlier than normal.  As she leaves the hospital, she debates whether to call In Ha, but eventually decides against it.  Not that it mattered as once again he’s pulling the stalker thing again and is walking behind her.  He takes her to his home/studio and tells her to excuse the mess, even though he specially cleaned up for her.

We’re not forced to endure some bad English as Hye Jung is at Joon’s photo shoot and introduces him to someone who is apparently interested in working with him.  Fortunately, even though Hye Jung’s English was atrocious, Joon’s actually was pretty good.

Back to In Ha’s house now, and we see him making food for Yoon Hee.  As they talk, Yoon Hee admits she misses the old gang and asks how they’re doing.  In Ha responds cryptically that some people got better, and some people got worse.  He then smiles and says he’s one of the latter group because she wasn’t with him.  Hah, okay I actually liked that one.  Yoon Hee says she’s had a rough day and thanks him for inviting her over.

Meanwhile, Ha Na is busy working in the garden at the resort when she gets a call from Joon telling her dinner’s at 7.  He doesn’t even give her a chance to confirm and immediately hangs up.  As he hangs up, he overhears his mom telling someone to stop calling her and to be good to his own wife.  Dun dun dun…  After Hye Jung hangs up, she turns around and is surprised to see Joon standing there looking disappointed at her.

Despite her protestations earlier, Ha Na rushes back to the cafe and goes through her different dresses to see which one she wants to wear for her date.  She then sees the pictures that Joon took of her during their shoot and gets an idea.  Meanwhile, Joon is finishing up his photo shoot and rudely walks away from his mom before she can even thank him for doing a good job.  She asks him to have dinner with her, but he flatly refuses her.  As he gets into the elevator, Hye Jung lays on the guilt trip and says he’s stubborn like his father.  It actually works and Joon gets out of the elevator and decides to go eat with her.

Meanwhile, Ha Na has reached their meeting place and wonders if she’s going to look weird.  We then cut back to Hye Jung explaining to Joon how her old relationship are over now and other men mean nothing to her.  She even says that she didn’t know the other man was married.  Hye Jung then pleads with him to come back home, but Joon says he’s tired of this.  She snaps at him again about how In Ha is seeing the first love that haunted their relationship through their marriage and how Joon is exactly the same.  Apparently, she got pregnant with Joon and that’s the reason why they got married in the first place.  Ah, a wedding born out of duty.  That makes sense considering In Ha’s personality.  Joon, however, doesn’t care to be blamed again for them having an unhappy marriage and walks out.

We cut back to Ha Na who is still patiently waiting for Joon.  She’s annoyed that he’s the one who called her but is making her wait.  Right as she gives him a call, he shows up and she starts to give him a piece of her mind but stops when she sees the melancholy look on his face.  They sit down next to the fountain to talk and Joon notices that she let her hair down.  Ha Na is embarrassed and tries to say she didn’t really put much effort into it, but trails off.   Joon then brings up how she’s happy that her mom got to see her first love again and that he wishes that his parents would get back together again.

Seeing that the mood’s pretty dead at this point, Joon asks her to tell him a funny riddle like she had on her phone in Japan.  Ha Na says she hasn’t come up with anything recently, but comes up with a pun that makes him laugh.  Joon smiles at her as she thinks and when Ha Na turns to tell him another one, Joon moves to kiss her but stops before their lips touch.  He tells her that he’s going to do it for real this time and that she can back out now if she wants to.  After a 3 second countdown, he then leans in again and kisses her once more.  They’re interrupted by the fountain going off and Ha Na jumps up to avoid getting wet.  Joon stands up and grabs her though so he can kiss her yet again.

Final Thoughts

I actually enjoyed this episode, but for some reason it seemed off to me.  I mean, it did what it was supposed to do: we see Ha Na and Joon’s budding relationship building up and In Ha trying to respark his own relationship with Yoon Hee.  Something about how it was done though seems very off.  Maybe it goes back to the playboy falling in love for the first time thing again.  Or maybe it’s weird for me to see Joon be so upfront about his feelings, but we also saw Jang Geun Suk as completely try to suppress them as In Ha.  Maybe it’s a subconscious jealousy of Jang Geun Suk going out on a date with Yoona lol.  Whatever it is, it’s kept me from enjoying this episode as much as perhaps I feel I should have.

We are treated to a few interesting tidbits though.  First of which is Tae Sung apparently being party of a family of some influence if he’s the director of a resort.  Guess he’s pulling an “Undercover Boss” type thing or maybe he just likes working in the garden in his spare time.  I had thought they were going to pull him out and forgo the love triangle and just use the barrier that Joon and Ha Na overcome for their relationship, but maybe not.  It seems like he does feel something for Ha Na, but no way the family lets him just marry some girl off the street like this.  We know Mi Ho for sure likes Joon, but as he’s completely uninterested her, her importance to the story is fairly minimal.

The other interesting piece of backstory we learn of is that Joon was apparently born out of wedlock.    Considering how much In Ha has always missed Yoon Hee, it never made sense to me why he’d marry Hye Jung.  That she jumped him in a moment of weakness and got pregnant makes sense as In Ha would feel obligated to marry her.  I’m still not on board with Hye Jung suddenly getting possessive as soon as Yoon Hee shows up in terms of plot, but I accept it as a necessary evil.