Love in Contract: Episodes 11-12
by Unit
Things go from bad to worse this week, as our professional wife is faced with the fallout from her exposure last week. And while we may not like some of their methods, the men in her life actively try their best to prevent her house of cards from totally crashing down.
EPISODES 11-12 WEECAP
There’s an unease that comes when a volatile situation seems to wrap itself up too nicely, and that’s the exact emotion I felt throughout this week’s episodes. Last week’s face reveal turned out to be blurry pictures and the public couldn’t make out Sang-eun’s face. Thankfully, she took advantage of the situation to clear the air with Kangjin group on the nonexistent marriage plans she has with their son. (And maybe it’s just me, but I don’t understand why these chaebols arrange family meetings during mealtimes. How do they manage to digest their food in such passive aggressive situations?)
Life goes on for our main couple, with Ji-ho getting a promotion at work, and his ex-wife wanting to get back together. And in a non-teamwork effort with Ji-eun, Hae-jin also tells Ji-ho to give up on Sang-eun because he doesn’t really know her. Why won’t this guy respect Sang-eun’s choice and just mind his business? Sheesh!
Rather than break up, though, Ji-ho makes a “What I Know About Sang-eun vs. What I Want To Know About Her” list. He has a whooping 496 items on the Want To Know list, but he ends up ditching them in favor of a make out session. And it’s always the quiet ones who are the most passionate. Heh. Anyway, they end up getting interrupted by an incoming call from Gwang-nam that Sang-eun is only too disappointed to receive.
For a while now, Sang-eun has been such an inattentive friend to Gwang-nam. He knows everything (or at least most of the things) going on in her life — because he takes his time to ask, and listens to her! I know Sang-eun has a lot on her plate right now, but for someone who’s her best friend, she barely knows what’s been going on in Gwang-nam’s life. And I don’t like the one-sided nature of their friendship lately.
Soon, the other shoe drops for Sang-eun, and it starts off with Helmet Man who surprisingly turns out to be one of her former clients. The dude has been on a downward spiral since his mother’s death, and became fixated on her. Between begging Sang-eun to drop the charges against her brother, and blaming her for how his life has turned out, Helmet Man’s sister releases an exposé on The Secret Life of Kang Hae-jin’s Fiancée.
The news spreads like wildfire, and family members of Sang-eun’s other clients release their wedding pictures too. With her seemingly scandalous life in the public eye now, Sang-eun has been effectively turned into a gold-digger — at least, that’s the story Hae-jin’s agency wants to go with. And though Hae-jin refuses to throw her under the bus, Sang-eun also agrees to take the fall for the situation to minimize damage to him.
As a professional, Sang-eun is worried about the risks to Ji-ho and Hae-jin. But more than their reputation as a judge and celebrity, both guys (and Gwang-nam) are worried about her. And while Sang-eun appears to be strong on the outside, Ji-ho can see past all of that. “Should I distance myself? Or should I hug you?” he asks, when she suggests they take a break. And she goes for the second option, because, why not?
Meanwhile Hae-jin goes on to be the hero that no one asked him to be by calling for a press conference. It’s giving immature lover boy vibes because anything he says can and will be used against Sang-eun. Ji-eun cannot care less about what happens to her rival in love, but to prevent Hae-jin from further worsening the situation, she takes over the press conference. And it’s not like she’s worried about Hae-jin as her client either (because client confidentiality doesn’t exist to her). She’s only doing it because Ji-ho asked her to.
Reading from a written speech Ji-ho prepared, Ji-eun admits that all twelve of Sang-eun’s marriages were real, and each one ended based on mutual agreement between the respective parties. (And the clients themselves can’t admit that the relationships were faked because it’s also bad for their image.) Ji-eun also tosses in some threats of legal action for effect. But then she goes off script by adding that Sang-eun and Hae-jin are genuinely in love.
According to her, a touching love story between Sang-eun and Hae-jin is the best way to wrap up the situation, but she doesn’t sound very convincing to Ji-ho. Either way, by helping him handle the situation for Sang-eun, Ji-ho is now in her debt. And that’s fine as long as she doesn’t strong arm him into getting back together, because his answer is still going to be in the negative. Duh!
But indeed, there are people who exist with zero understanding of the word “no.” Because after plunging her into this mess, why is Hae-jin still asking Sang-eun to marry him for real? In other words, turn Ji-ho into a mistress? I think not. Sang-eun also has no plans of doing that, and she finally admits to him that she’s not biologically related to Eena group. And if she was, I still doubt she will marry him, so he should just accept his reality already.
Even the real boyfriend is staying still, passing up on his promotion, and returning to his cold shell to avoid talking about Sang-eun to his team members — who to their credit, manage to hold on to their curiosity without pushing for an explanation. The explanation finally comes in the form of Sang-eun herself, who tells them about her job and admits that Ji-ho was also a client who she fell in love with. Awwww. Ji-ho’s eyes are full of gratitude, warmth, and adoration, and his expression just melts me.
I cannot overemphasize how much I love that our main couple wades through these murky waters on a united front rather than the usual noble idiocy that seems to plague other K-drama couples in similar situations. Still, the worst is far from over as Mi-ho stubbornly pushes for a Sang-eun × Hae-jin wedding and threatens the Eena group chairman to make it happen.
With the way she insists the wedding is for Sang-eun’s happiness, you’d think that Sang-eun asked for that life. Mi-ho is such a word that rhymes with “witch” — actually, she’s that too. And she soon sets her scheming eyes on Ji-ho after going through the men in Sang-eun’s client list and cornering Gwang-nam into admitting that Ji-ho is Sang-eun’s boyfriend.
But Ji-ho is not just a judge because he looks (deliciously) good in a robe. He has all the information about Eena group’s adoption of Sang-eun for business purposes, and intends to charge them with unprecedented abuse! Hae-jin better watch and learn because this is how to use your powers for good.
Ji-ho is more logical and helpful in handling Sang-eun’s situation compared to Hae-jin’s impulsive methods. This is probably why Gwang-nam trusted him with the situation over his own boss Hae-jin. (Plus, we got to learn from their interaction that Ji-ho registered his marriage with Sang-eun to prevent her from getting any more divorces on her record.) And this is why Jamie the cat likes him more. By the way, where is Jamie?
Ji-ho puts a call across to Mi-ho and they agree to meet up. But as they face each other on opposite sides of the crosswalk, my unease returns because I’ve seen this scene too many times and I don’t like the ending. True to my suspicions, the light turns green, and they begin to cross the road. And then the pandemic that is the Truck of Doom appears with its sights set on Mi-ho…
Oh boy! If there’s one thing this show will do, it is to slam you with an epic cliffhanger. Lol. But then, Mi-ho definitely had it coming because nothing good ever comes out of threatening a dirty chaebol chairman. Anyway, I’m not Sang-eun (who, I still don’t know why she’s so attached to this woman), so I don’t care if something bad happens to Mi-ho. But I will riot if Ji-ho runs to save her and gets hit instead. Don’t even play with me, Show!
RELATED POSTS
Love in Contract: Episodes 11-12
Source: Buzz Pinay Daily
0 Comments