Gong Sil begs Joong Won to sleep with her and he’s like, What? She’s a mess! She’s desperately trying to grab onto him and he’s holding her off by her head. It’s really humorous. He tells her to stop dreaming and shoves her down onto the pallet that she was sitting on. I’m laughing harder because he’s so arrogant. Does she think that simply by being clingy that he would fall for her? Then he notices the smell on his fingers and clothes. When was the last time she washed her hair?!!
Gong Sil smells her hair. Joong Won leans over and sniffs again and disgustedly tells her that if she’s going to try to seduce someone, she should at least wash her hair first. Wouldn’t that be a clue that she *wasn’t* trying to seduce you? She mutters back that it’s not like he would anyway. He pulls out his pocket square and starts trying to wipe her smell off his hands.
Gong Sil asks him why he’s there. Joong Won wants to know what she’s heard about him. Does she really know something about her? Did she know Hee Joo? Gong Sil notes that the ghost’s name is Hee Joo. He asks again, more forcefully, how she knows Hee Joo. Gong Sil says that she saw Hee Joo. Joong Won looks at her like she’s got two heads. He starts to say it, but Gong Sil finishes his sentence: Hee Joo is dead, right? He tells her that Hee Joo died a long time ago. When he was much younger. And she’s been haunting him ever since. That must have been a drag, not being able to read all that time. And why affect his reading?
Joong Won wants to know when and how Gong Sil saw her. She tells him that she saw Hee Joo around him very recently. Does she make Hee Joo go away like he does for her? And just like Haley Joel Osment, she tells him she sees dead people. There's a pause while she waits for his reaction. He just looks at her, like he’s trying to figure out her angle, this really crazy person.
We switch to Kang Woo hanging out with his co-workers. One of them is telling him about the gossip about Joong Won. “The master’s woman is a ghost.” It’s a pretty famous story at Kingdom Enterprises. The story goes that Joong Won is still living with the memories of his dead first love in his heart. It’s why he’s not married. Not because he’s a jerk or anything. Whenever Joong Won thinks about getting married, the dead woman’s ghost appears and breaks up the relationship.
Kang Woo wants to know if they mean the female student that died in the car accident Joong Won had a long time ago. So he does know about the accident. It’s feeding my theory that he’s there because of Joong Won’s dad. The co-worker says that the accident was pretty well-known. It was all over the news. The rich boy and his girlfriend were kidnapped together. It was the ‘10 Billion Won Kidnapping’ case. Dang! 10 Billion won. Dang. The kidnappers got away with the ransom money and were never found. Apparently 10 Billion then would be worth about 100 Billion won nowadays. And I say Dang again. Dang! The co-workers think that whoever got the money must be living well somewhere.
Kang Woo asks about Joong Won’s nickname: does everyone call him ‘The Master’? He’s the king of Kingdom enterprises, and he’s also known as the Tyrant. The master is living well while acting like a tyrant. The co-worker telling the story says that it’s understandable that the girl’s ghost would be restless because of the injustice of her death. Injustice because she died or because he lived and is now a tyrant?
Another rumor says that Hee Joo wanders the halls of Kingdom Enterprises crying for Joong Won to bring her justice. Kang Woo chuckles but he doesn’t laugh as much as the others. Hmm. Now I’m wondering if maybe he’s related to Hee Joo in some way. I like my first theory better, rather than a revenge story.
Back to Gong Sil and Joong Won. She tells him that she almost died in an accident, but somehow she came back to life. Ever since then, she sees dead people. Joong Won doesn’t believe it, that she say Hee Joo the day before yesterday. She saw her the day Joong Won ripped up the note for Hye Sung and left.
When she was walking home, Gong Sil happened upon Joong Won staring at a spider in a web, about to kill a butterfly. A HUGE spider. As he watched the spider kill the butterfly, Hee Joo watched him. And then it was over, because Joong Won suddenly destroyed the web and walked away. He’s lucky he didn’t end up with that huge spider on him. He just used his hand. Yuck.
It was only for a moment, but Gong Sil saw Hee Joo. Joong Won asks her if she sees any ghosts now. Gong Sil looks around and then points out the rocking chair that’s moving even though the wind isn’t blowing. It’s the ghost of a teenage boy, who is playing with the weather vane, making it spin as he rocks back and forth. She tells him that sometimes they come looking for her or they find her in the streets. Even though she tries to ignore them, they keep following her around.
Gong Sil gasps as the ghost looks at her and makes eye contact. She tells Joong Won that sometimes they want to talk to her, and sometimes they ask her for help. They always cling to her so she can’t sleep. She’s terrified and can’t stand having them around. As she talks, the ghost has gotten off the chair and it looks like he’s going to come talk to her.
Joong Won sees nothing. The ghost comes over and in fear, Gong Sil grabs Joong Won’s arm. The ghost vanishes. She waves at the mist of the dissipating ghost and says that when she grabs Joong Won, she doesn’t see or hear them anymore. I feel bad for the ghost. He looked nice, almost like he was coming to ask her out and his face looked sad when he had to disappear. That’s why he’s special to her; because she’s never met anyone else who could help her like that.
Gong Sil tells Joong Won that she thinks she’d be able to have a normal life and be able to sleep, if she was by his side. Judging from Joong Won’s expression, he’s not buying one bit of the truth and thinks it’s all a scam. He asks her if she *really* wants to be with him that badly. It’s not because of your winning personality. But, then again, he thinks she’s crazy or out for him money. He tells her she should have told him she was rich. Then he might have considered her. He yanks his arm free.
Gong Sil whimpers that she’s really miserable. She says that he may not know what it’s like but she’s so scared. Joong Won tells her he’s not afraid of something that he can’t see or hear. But he’s scared of her. He walks over to the rocking chair and asks her if she scared of it because it keeps on rocking. Oh, no, he’s going to do something to the rocking chair. But he doesn’t. I’m surprised. Instead, he rocks the rocking chair and makes the weather vane spin.
Joong Won tells Gong Sil that if she ever makes another pass at him, he’ll destroy her. Suddenly, Gong Sil jumps and the squeaky weather vane and the rocking chair stops. She’s staring at them, horrified of what she can see. Joong Won looks and there’s nothing, but the stopped chair and vane. We see that the boy ghost is back, holding them both from moving. Gong Sil tells him that whatever he could do to her wouldn’t be nearly as scary as what she’s looking at right now. The ghost has smiled and it *is* a little, no a lot, creepy.
As Gong Sil insists she wants to stay with him, Joong Won doubts her. It’s not because he has an immense amount of money or because he’s unbelievably good looking, right? I laugh at his arrogance. What is it with chaebols who think they are *so* good looking? BOF, Secret Garden. He smiles and says that hers is a refreshing approach. She tells him it’s more the desperate approach. She says she’s too lonely and sad to keep on this way. And then she buries her head in his shoulder.
Again, the smell of Gong Sil’s hair gets to Joong Won. He grimaces. He tells her that even when that infamous girl Candy makes a pass at a rich man, no matter how lonely or sad she is – he rips his arm loose – she always ties her hair neatly before she comes to meet the man. His face is really funny as he pretends to have pigtails. He tells her to wash her hair and wake up.
I had to look up who this Candy is that he’s talking about. Apparently, it’s an internationally beloved cartoon character that started out as a Japanese manga series. “Once upon a time, there was a little orphan girl crying her heart out on a meadowy hill. It was during this time that she had met her prince--a handsome young boy who approached her, and told her gently to dry her tears and smile instead. The little girl never forgot that memory closest to her heart. Not even after several years later when she travels the path of self-discovery...believing that someday, she will meet her prince again and find true happiness once and for all.” And thus begins the turbulent life of Candy. It’s ironically set in America. That’s an interesting take, there, Joong Won.
Heh. Even though all Joong Won sees Gong Sil as is a penniless gold digger, trying to seduce a rich man, she’s okay with that. And wow is Joong Won arrogant. She’s not going to seduce him, even if she tries to use her ‘ghost friends’ to do it. She repeats her name: Ms. Tae (Tae yang). There’s a note in the subs that Tae yang or rather taeyang = the sun. Heh. The Master’s Sun. Clever.
Joong Won snarks that if Gong Sil’s the sun, he never wants to see the morning again. He stalks off. She’s non-plussed, calling after him that the sun will rise and she’ll be there, by his side. I wonder what Hee Joo’s going to think about that. And the next time he sees her, her hair will be clean.
Downstairs Gwi Do asks him if he got to see Taeyang, er Tae Gong Sil-shi. Heh, just another reminder that she’s the sun. I’m laughing at his torment. Hee! Before Gwi Do says anything more, Joong Won shushes him with a finger and looks up towards the roof. Sure enough, Gong Sil is looking down, watching them. He says he never should have come there. He gets in the car and they leave, with Gong Sil watching them go. And is that creepy teen ghost going to come bother her now? And I notice that Kang Woo is in the parking lot. He’s back from wherever he went.
Kang Woo watches Joong Won leave and Joong Won doesn’t notice him at all. He wonders what Joong Won was doing there and then he looks up to see Gong Sil.
From the rooftop, Gong Sil mutters that Joong Won probably thinks that she’s crazy. But she really does see ghosts and she really did see Hee Joo.
Joong Won is at home. He’s changed out of his suit and has fixed himself a mug of something. When he walks into the living room, one of the drapes falls, its tie slipping loose. He thinks of what Gong Sil said about ghosts being around. Stepping forward, he swings the drape open to reveal… nothing. He mutters to himself that if ghosts really did exists, he wishes he could conjure her up just once, Cha Hee Joo.
We’re in a school dormitory, where a bunch of girls are having a séance, calling forth a spirit. There’s smoke floating in the hallway outside their room. Not everyone in the room is participating. A group of three girls is watching from the side. The girl with straight red hair asks what they’re doing. Her friend, the girl with long straight hair, says that they’re calling on the spirit of Eun Seol. Suddenly, their hands stop moving. When one of them asks if she’s there, the pencil moves to the yes side of the paper. And something’s coming down the hall.
When they ask if she’s Lee Eun Seol, again the pencil moves to say yes. The girl leading the séance asks if the girl responsible for Eun Seol’s death is in the room. She casts a glance in red-headed girl’s direction, so you know she asked to mess with the girl. The pencil begins to shake. Then it suddenly jerks their hands to point in the direction of the red-headed girl. Everyone gasps and redhead is visibly shaken.
Then suddenly, someone rolls the classroom’s door open. Is it the ghost? No, it’s the teacher and she wants them to get back to their desks. She flips on the lights.
The girl with long straight hair asks if they really did call up Eun Seol and red-head answers that she shouldn’t pay attention to pranks like that. What they don’t see is the ghost of Eun Seol floating outside the window. And man, does she look creepy.
The girl who asked the question gets a text. From Lee Eun Seol’s phone number. All three of the girls got the text. It’s them by a fountain, with the ghost of Lee Eun Seol in the background! Sorry, had to because of the scary violin music. The friend with the glasses shrieks and red-head looks really freaked out.
Next, we see the picture on a tablet, with someone asking if the picture was taken in front of the Kingdom Enterprises’ fountain. It’s Uncle VP and his secretary. The picture is now all over the internet. Uncle VP wonders if maybe it was a trick of the light due to an unfocused camera, but his secretary points out the girls (whose faces are now blurred) are all in focus.
The secretary points out the blurry person’s standing position was strange. Looking at the picture, she guesses that that person would have had to have been in the water to take the picture. Uncle VP concedes that the girl probably didn’t climb in the water. And then he gets a little freaked out as his assistant adds that it must mean they have a poltergeist.
Joong Won is perturbed at the idea of there being a poltergeist. And rightly he should be since he’s been told that Hee Joo’s ghost is haunting him. Uncle VP declares that he checked it out and it’s not a fake. Joong Won insists that it must be fabricated. Evidently, the failed wedding damaged the company’s reputation. Well, your new golf course that you coerced the adjusshi into selling his house for, that should boost things.
Joong Won calls Uncle VP seonsaegnim instead of uncle (something Uncle VP was upset about) and asks him if this is how he runs things. Uncle VP says that he got the image deleted off the website (although we all know that once it’s out on the web, it’s out there forever). But, the image has made Kingdom Enterprises the top web search. Joong Won starts smiling to lure Uncle VP into smiling. All the employees are excited that they have a ghost.
Joong Won stops smiling and asks if Uncle VP finds this is funny. Exciting? Joong Won rants that this is no time to be focused on ghosts. He jumps up from his desk and throws his blinds open. Then he looks through the telescope standing by the window. He looks at the new mall that’s going up that will be competition for Kingdom. A giant that's even scarier than a ghost is rising up right before their very eyes. Ever the business man. At least he’s a smart and competent one.
I have to pause here for a moment and say that I really like the music that accompanies the action in the series. It really keeps the mood light, and makes the scary parts not too scary. Sometimes the music detracts –- Almost Paaaaaaaaraadiiiiise! – but this series’s music has really worked well. Maybe because it’s mostly instrumental.
Uncle VP didn’t realize that there’s only two months left. What do you do around there, Uncle VP? Uncle VP goes to look through the telescope, only to have it pulled away by Joong Won, who tells him that he better get his head on straight if he still wants to have a job in two months. Aw, that’s family love for you. Joong Won style. Joong Won tells Uncle VP to get the employees focused on bringing in the money, not a ghost. It’s funny when he yells "the money" at Uncle VP. Uncle VP cringes at its volume.
Uh-oh, one of the security guards is thinking of submitting the picture to a television station. His friend says maybe he’ll get a prize or something. The guard, the guy who told Kang Woo all about the ghost story, tells his friend that the ghost is his. I think you’re going to regret that, dude.
Gong Sil has followed Robin Sparkles’ advice and gone to the mall. She notices an ad looking for part-time employees. Then she goes and surprises a friend working in the mall’s café. The friend asks what she’s doing out during the middle of the day. Emphasizing how alone Gong Sil is because of her ‘curse.’ The friend wants to know if Gong Sil’s there to see her. But Gong Sil says that she just got a job at the mall. Gong Sil’s giddy at the prospect of doing something normal. The friend in understandably surprised.
Her friend says that if stuff happens again with Gong Sil (the police or an ambulance), she’ll lose her job and she just recently was made manager. Gong Sil tells Gong Ri that she doesn’t need to worry. So it’s not a friend, it’s her sister. Heh. She’s eventually going to be dating her sister’s boss. Gong Sil is too cute. She’s practically giddy as she tells Gong Ri that she’s got something special, a place she can go where she doesn’t have to see the ghosts.
Gong Ri asks about Gong Sil’s two cups of coffee. For her to stay awake? Gong Sil shakes her head and says that some kid keeps following her around bugging her for coffee. Gong Sil takes off the lid of one of the cups and places it in front of the seat beside her. Now we see that the teen ghost is sitting there, jonesing for some coffee. He sucks in the smell and looks at Gong Sil. She smiles and nods at him. Gong Ri looks at her sister like she’s crazy.
Gong Sil waves and leaves, with Gong Ri stuck with the open cup on the table. She picks it up gingerly. I would have loved that the ghost drank it while their backs are turned. A ghost jonesing for coffee. At least they’re friendly now and he’s not scary to her.
The three schoolgirls are looking at the picture on red-head’s phone. Apparently they took the picture the day Eun Seol died. Long straight hair wants to know why Eun Seol is in the picture. Did Eun Seol take the picture or die before the picture was taken? Red-head asks them if they think Eun Seol sent them the picture. To show she hates them? The girl with glasses says that there’s a rumor that Eun Seol died because of them. Red-head says she died in a car accident. But long hair says she does think it’s their fault. Not the best idea to say with Eun Seol’s spirit hanging around. If they didn’t do what they did… Maybe she wouldn’t have died. Long hair thinks she’s still around because she hates them.
But who is the ghost in the picture, then? Joong Won’s aunt and Uncle VP are talking. He tells his wife that the rumor is that it’s Hee Joo. Sung Ran slams down her teacup, demanding to know who’s saying such things!!! She’s awfully touchy about the subject whenever Hee Joo is brought up. Is there something she never told Joong Won about it? Her husband quickly tells her that he’s not saying those things. The employees long had a rumor about her ghost being attached to Joong Won.
Sung Ran picks up the tablet and looks at the ghost again. Hee Joo *did* have long hair. Like most Korean women, unless they have a boy’s haircut or are trying to be Korean’s Posh Spice. And the girl's around Hee Joo’s age. But Hee Joo’s face, she can’t remember it. Uncle VP laughs and tells her that it’s understandable having a faltering memory at her age. Dude, she doesn’t look that old. She glares at him. How does he have a job?
A couple is sitting in front of the fountain. The girl tells her Oppa that this is where the ghost picture was taken. He uses a camera to take their picture. Then they look to see if the ghost is in their picture. Joong Won sees them and wants to know if the gossip’s still floating around. Gwi Do muses that on top of everything else, an absurd rumor is floating around. Joong Won wants to know what *that* one is. Gwi Do is hesitant to tell him. Joong Won glares and they’re interrupted by a scream and a splash.
The girl was clumsy and has fallen in. She blames it on the ghost fountain.
Joong Won is upset by all of this because the fountain is really expensive. Although there are collectors that you could sell it to who would pay that and more for something like that. Are its four goddesses being pushed out by a ghost? Gwi Do says that beauty relaxes but fear keeps people nervous. That’s what draws people in. And as he adds that he’s sure that this is why people are lured in by such stories, they come upon Gong Sil, who is mopping up the water the girl spilled when she fell in.
Gong Sil sees Joong Won and smiles. He does not return it. He mutters, “how truly shocking and frightening.” Heh. He asks her what she’s doing. She says cleaning and motions to her nametag. She just was hired there. Gwi Do steps away. I laugh.
Joong Won wants to know why she picked there of all places to work as a maid. She smiles bashfully and says that it’s because he’s there. She goes to poke him as she says it, but he pulls out of the way. Heehee! Gong Sil laughs. Joong Won laughs one of those sarcastic laughs and complements her on her attempts to seduce him, because that the first thing a woman does, gets a job where he works so she’ll be seen by him. What manual is he reading out of? I’ve never heard that one.
Is Gong Sil hoping to share stares and meals? Gong Sil frowns and says that Joong Won knows that’s not what she’s expecting. Not that he believes you, even though you’ve been very clear that you just want to be around him so you can scare off your ghosts. Again Joong Won’s plagued because of ghosts. They seem to be everywhere.
Joong Won points at the fountain and says that he heard that there’s a ghost there. Did Gong Sil come to see her friends? I like how he keeps calling them her friends. She’s puzzled because she doesn’t see any ghost. She looks around some more and tells him there’s not one there. If there was – she reaches out for his arm and he avoids her again – she would have been grabbing for him for sure. He smugly smiles and says, “That’s what I thought.” Because the fountain was *way* too expensive. Because ghosts care about things like money and the cost of things.
Gong Sil looks at Joong Won and smiles. Does he believe her now? Oops. You can see the wheels turning as Joong Won tries to figure a way out of this one. He is so sad. He says that it’s a given that ghosts don’t exist. It’s not that he believes her, just that there are no such things as ghosts. Then he tells her not to clean there anymore. When Gong Sil asks why, he replies that it’s a given that he’ll kick her out of there. He waves at her and tells her to get lost. But he calls her Taeyang (Ms. Tae or the Sun, whichever you prefer). Gong Sil glares after him and grips the handle of her mop tightly.
As Joong Won and Gwi Do arrive upstairs, Uncle VP and his secretary arrive. They’ve got a problem. Somehow the television station got a hold of the picture. We know how. Watch out security guard! Joong Won wants to know why some picture fabricated by kids is on the news. Uncle VP thinks that some rumors about Joong Won’s past got mixed in. Not what Joong Won wanted to hear.
Gwi Do turns on the news report. Coincidentally it’s on right now. A picture’s been floating around the internet. The report darkens all of the picture except where the ghost is. Apparently, this type of picture is called a poltergeist picture. How ominous. And why does this look like the guy who played the dad on City Hunter? Because it is. So who is the girl in the picture? The reporter’s investigation unearthed a terrifying link between the location of the picture and a shocking incident from the past. And then Joong Won gets to hear them talk about the ’10 Billion Won’ kidnapping. As much as Joong Won is a jerk, this is horrid. There’s a picture of the burning car. A newspaper report of his kidnapping. The Mr. Joo who was kidnapped and whose girlfriend died, is the CEO of the mall where the picture was taken. Why do they barely disguise his identity with a thin strip of black covering his eyes?
The reporter adds that there’s a particular rumor floating around. Then there’s a shot of the security guard from the back, his voice distorted, talking about the ghost. It’s on televisions down in the gallery. The security guard and his friend walk up and see the report. The smiles they had on are gone now. The guard quietly excuses himself, bumping into Gong Sil in the process.
Gong Sil sees the photo. She’s too focused on the report to pay attention to who bumped her. The girl in the picture isn’t the ghost of Hee Joo.
The reporters interviewed the detective in charge of the case. Joong Won is stone-faced. Gwi Do looks misty. The detective says that the statute of limitations for the case is expiring soon. Arg. Kang Woo probably there to prove the accident was Joong Won’s fault, when it wasn’t. But that’s not what her family believes. The detective adds that the ghost has more than enough reason to be angry because they had to close the case without catching who did it. Joong Won fingers begin to twitch, like a fist is coming.
And we switch to Kang Woo, who’s also watching the report. Everyone in the security booth is. The reporter wonders if it’s her ghost or a prank. I can’t tell what’s on Kang Woo’s face. Determination? He leaves his desk.
The reporter finishes saying that the spirit of a girl who died before her time roam for certain where the picture was taken. Joong Won turns off the tv and throws down the remote.
Joong Won’s walking angrily through the mall. Gong Sil stops him. She tells him it’s not Hee Joo. It’s not the girl lingering by his side. He is pleasant as always and tells her to shut up and get out of his way. For once Gong Sil looks shocked at how he’s treated her. Kang Woo appears in the background. He looks burdened.
The schoolgirl trio are together. Red-head says that the tv report says it’s not Eun Seol. Then why did *you* get the picture? I’m still wondering if the picture is a fake, done by the girl who lead the séance. Long hair says they know it’s Eun Seol. Glasses asks if they should go ‘there.’ Sure. Let’s. Let’s find out your mystery.
Joong Won’s gone to bawl out the detective. What was he thinking? The detective hoped that the interview would bring new information. Joong Won scoffs about a ghost story making the kidnappers turn themselves in. The detective says they’d probably feel some guilt. And then he digs in the knife. In some ways, Cha Hee Joo died because of him too. Doesn’t he feel the least bit sorry? Shouldn’t he at least be the one who never forgets her? Joong Won says, “Forget the past. The living must go on living.” For 15 years, he’s just followed the detective’s advice.
The detective sighs, hearing his own words. It seems like he regrets saying them. He tells Joong Won that he’s never going to give up on the case. Joong Won tells him to make sure to get his money back, too. Wow, he’s laying it on thick. Like Hee Joo’s death doesn’t bother him at all. At least the detective sees through him. Is he really okay with everything? Holding up the newspaper, he asks if Joong Won can read it now. Joong Won lies and says he’s all better. Yeah, that’s what your face said just a minute ago.
This detective must know Joong Won pretty well, because he responds, “So, you’re not really well and living the good life, are you?” That tells me that he and Joong Won probably got close all those years ago and Joong Won loved Hee Joo very much. The detective walks away. Joong Won doesn’t say anything, but he’s sweating.
Gong Sil has a copy of the picture. She’s wondering who it is. For someone wanting to avoid ghosts, she sure seems like she’s going to investigate this one. She’s eating with the two boys again. Call social services! They shouldn’t be left alone like that. The older boy, the only one whoever talks, asks about her saying she can see those types of people (ghosts). It’s really cute how he feeds his brother without really looking.
Gong Sil realizes that if she can find the ghost, she might be able to help the ghost. And that would benefit everyone. She asks about their mom not coming home again. The boy guesses she’s busy earning money. Gong Sil tells them to eat as much as they want and sleep in her bed when they get tired. She leaves and the little boy tells his brother that even though she’s weird they have to act like they believe her, so she’ll keep feeding them.
Gong Sil’s gone to work. She mutters that she saw a few while she was cleaning. So the mall *is* haunted? She’s looking in the stalls in the bathroom. She shakes as she compares the ghost with the one in the picture. Nope, not it. Then she runs away. Another ghost in an old-time ball gown is floating in the hall. Following her up the escalator, she asks if she could just see the ghost’s face. Well. It’s a *man.* She apologizes and walks down the escalator.
I think it’s funny that she didn’t tell Joong Won that his mall *is* actually haunted. As she’s walking, suddenly the lid to the garbage can spins. It’s a creepy zombie-like ghost. She asks him if he’s seen the girl in the picture. The lid spins violently in response. Is that a no? She asks him to please take a closer look. This time the ‘no’ is stronger and he glares at her. Really creepy. She runs off.
Now Gong Sil’s leaning on a mannequin with a cat’s mask on it (creepy), wondering why they never go away when she wants them too, but now they’re not answering when she asks. A security guard appears. He reaches out and puts a hand on her shoulder. She asks if he’s human. The hand looks real. She looks up and it’s a spooky face. But it’s only Kang Woo using his flashlight to make his face look scary. Ironic that she’s sitting next to a cat mannequin, when that’s her nickname with him. It’s also funny that he intentionally does something to frighten her. He’s laughing at her.
Kang Woo asks Gong Sil why she’s sitting there like a thieving cat. She calls him Room 404. She says she forgot he worked there. Maybe you can go into work together. Heh. Then Joong Won would realize you weren’t trying to seduce him, when you’re hanging out with another man. And he might just get jealous. Kang Woo says that he say her on the security cameras and that she kept wandering around. And she wasn’t acting strangely? She tells him she’s part of the cleaning staff. He nods and says that the cleaning staff’s gone for the day. Just go ahead and tell him. He already knows that you seem to see spirits.
Gong Sil says she lost something while she was cleaning and was looking for it. She looks down as she lies. I like that she feels ashamed when she lies. And she just happens to be holding the poltergeist photo while she does it. Which Kang Woo notices. She tries to hide it and excuse herself, but he says he’ll come with her. He tells her that it’s too scary, what with the ghost rumor.
And, of course, the girls decide to go to the spot of the incident AT NIGHT. It seems to be red-head’s idea. Long hair wants to know what they’ll do if Eun Seol shows up. Glasses says they can ask her why she’s tormenting them. Has she been? Because I haven’t seen her do anything to you. And I’m wondering when she will. I can’t tell where they are in the mall, but a creepy girl ghost is there too. It doesn’t look like Eun Seol, though.
Kang Woo asks Gong Sil what she’s looking for. She says it’s not something *he* can see. He says that his vision is very good. She says that he still won’t see it. He corrects her using ‘you’ to refer to him and tell her his name. She’s so cute as she smiles at him. She introduces herself. It’s a nice little moment.
Suddenly Gong Sil starts and partially hides behind Kang Woo. He shines the flashlight in the direction she’s looking. Spinning trash can lid. He holds out his arm and tells her that she can hold onto him if she’s scared. Aw!!! She thanks him and does. They smile at each other and walk on.
The girls are at the fountain now. How did they end up in the mall after hours, anyway? It’s glowing with an eerie blue light. Redhair addresses Eun Seol, saying that they came to see her. Glasses adds to tell her something. They don’t see the shadow approaching behind them. How does a ghost have a shadow?
Upstairs, Gong Sil and Kang Woo spot the girls. Kang Woo says they look like students. Gong Sil wonders what the *four* of them are doing. He looks at her and says there’s only three. Oops. We see what Gong Sil sees – the three girls and Eun Seol standing behind them, her face hidden. Really creepy. Kang Woo yells at them and they run away, with Eun Seol slowly turning to follow them. Now you see her face.
The fountain has changed to a hot pink color. Kang Woo chases the girls. Gong Sil goes to talk to Eun Seol, who’s decided not to follow the girls. Gong Sil asks if it’s her. Eun Seol turns around and then swoops into Gong Sil’s face. Gong Sil closes her eyes for a moment before looking back at Eun Seol.
Kang Woo finds where the girls entered. He goes back to the fountain but doesn’t see where the girls are hiding. They turn around and there’s Gong Sil, who holds out the picture to them. She asks if the girls in the picture are them.
Joong Won has gone somewhere. Of course, at night. He says to Gwi Do that it hasn’t changed at all in 15 years. Gwi Do wants to know why Joong Won came there – because the statute of limitations is almost up? Wouldn’t they be able to argue that the kidnappers deserve a murder charge since it was their actions that inadvertently caused Hee Joo’s death? And doesn’t murder have no statute of limitations? Joong Won doesn’t answer.
It’s a rundown warehouse. Gwi Do asks Joong Won if he really didn’t see any of their faces. Flashback. Joong Won sits tied to a chair. He’s in his school uniform. His vision is blurry but a girl walks up to him. In the present Joong Won says he didn’t see them. The girl sort of looked like Hee Joo. Could it have been her family that kidnapped him? Why wouldn’t he tell?
Gwi Do muses that if Joong Won had seen their faces, he would have ended up like Hee Joo. Joong Won says he’s right. It’s because she knew who they were that she died. It was people she knew.
Ah, we haven’t seen her since she was dumped. Yi Ryung is eating dinner with Sung Ran. Yi Ryung says that she heard that the reason her wedding was called off is because Kingdom is cursed. Now, you know *that’s* not the reason. The aunt sets her straight: it was his change of heart. Yi Ryung actually looks a little striken before she angrily mutters Hye Sung’s name. Ah, the real reason she’s asking – she wants to know who the woman was that brought the box. Sung Ran says that her husband is working on it. How does he not know? Her name was on the list. Your boss knows her. How does he have a job? Sung Ran says that she’ll reprimand the woman for Yi Ryung, but Yi Ryung wants to do that personally.
Gong Sil’s waiting in the parking lot and when Gwi Do and Joong Won return she rushes out in front of their car. Gwi Do has to slam on his brakes not to hit her. She looks very cute in her outfit and it complements the blue suit jacket Joong Won is wearing. He gets out of the car and tells her that seeing the sun first thing in the morning is offensive enough, but he has to see her face first thing when he comes to work? He thought he told her to quit. She just smiles and says that she figured ‘it’ out. The ghost in the picture.
Gwi Do asks who the girl in the picture is. I think he believes Gong Sil, even if Joong Won doesn’t admit it yet. She wants to know if she’ll be able to keep her job, if she tells them. Joong Won weighs the options and then threatens her with jail if she’s wrong.
Gong Sil takes Joong Won to the school and points out Eun Seol’s desk. She points out the girls (who notice them). Joong Won concludes that the girls are to blame.
Now they’re in with the girls and the girls’ teacher. The teacher wants to know how they could pull a prank like this when Eun Seol was their friend. Glasses protests that it wasn’t them. They just took the picture. Eun Seol was the one who sent it to them, to torment them. Joong Won tells them to stop with the stupid ghost story and tell the truth: that they’re tormenting her dead soul just like they did when she was alive.
Redhead protests that they never tormented Eun Seol. Glasses adds that Eun Seol was always the one who ruined things and made things difficult. Flashback of them yelling at her for dropping the cake they were working on because there goes their grade. Eun Seol apologizes. They’re frustrated. One of the girls say that Eun Seol was always so ignorant and clumsy. She was always a nuisance whenever she was around.
Flashback to Eun Seol rushing up at lunch time, saying she’ll buy the drinks. The trio doesn’t look thrilled that she’s there. Redhead wants to know why she’s only buying drinks. Eun Seol says she’s a little short on allowance. She brought them their favorites. Then she eats some of their pizza. Glasses calls her a moocher.
Joong Won asks if they killed Eun Seol and then fabricated the story. Long hair protests that Eun Seol didn’t die because of them. That day, when their midterm grades were ruined, they decided not to hang out with her. But she followed them to the mall anyway. Aw, Eun Seol’s face makes me sad. She so wants to be their friend, smiling at them. She so likes them. When they tell her, she pretends that she has something else to do and says bye.
When long hair asks redhead, aka Ga Young, if that was rude, Ga Young says that Eun Seol was too dense for her not to be blunt. Later, at the fountain, they have someone take a picture of them.
Ga Young shows them the picture that they took and says that Eun Seol sent the other picture. The ghost picture is a different angle and it’s farther back. Long hair says that Eun Seol got in a car accident on the way home. She starts to cry as she says that this must be why Eun Seol cursed them and sent them the picture. I still think it’s a prank by that girl who lead the séance. And long hair looks like she’s crying because she feels bad for what they did to Eun Seol.
Joong Won tells long hair that he won’t go easy on them just because they cry. He says that if it was sent by her cell phone, then it will have been sent by the person who *has* Eun Seol’s cell phone. Glasses is sure it was Eun Seol, but Gong Sil says it wasn’t. Eun Seol didn’t curse them.
Gong Sil takes them back to class and walks right over to the séance leader. I knew it! She points at the girl and tells her she has Eun Seol’s cell phone. The girl plays dumb, but Gong Sil says she knows she found it, so hand it over. Joong Won starts to back out of the room.
Gong Sil doesn’t budge and finally the girl gives up the cell phone. Joong Won’s watching from the door way. Redhead is pissed. Glasses yells at her about how scared they were. The culprit says she did it to scare them, because they were so hateful. She saw them on the day Eun Seol died.
There’s Eun Seol buying the girls drinks. That’s when Eun Seol lost the cell phone. The culprit followed Eun Seol to give her back her phone. Eun Seol heard them as they talked about how dense she was, how she’d probably come back with drink. They decide to use the picture as their profile pic, with the title of ‘Three Musketeers.’ Although there were actually 4, because of D’Artagnan. Ironically, they thought D'Artagnan was annoying in the beginning, too. They’re all pleased and Eun Seol is heartbroken.
Eun Seol left and blinded by her tears, she was hit by a huge truck. And she was really hit. The guy didn’t even seem like he was stopping. He did honk. The culprit declares that’s how Eun Seol died. Redhead, the one who was really the head mean girl, asks how that’s *their* fault. The teacher is visibly upset. The culprit said that she used up all the money she had for bus fare to buy their soda. She said that even after Eun Seol died, they were so hateful.
Teacher is visibly upset. She asks glasses, Lee Joo Yeon whether she placed first in class again. Kim Ga Young, aka redhead, got herself a new boyfriend. And long hair, Ha Hyo Jin, she’s taking treatments to grow taller. The culprit did it to punish them for seeming so unaffected. Kinda like how Joong Won acts. Unaffected.
Ever since the ghost showed up, they can’t study, date and Hyo Jin seems to be shrinking. The culprit tells the trio that they’re feeling guilty because they know they did something wrong. Redhead slaps the culprit. The culprit hits her back. Then it’s an all-out hair pulling brawl, with the teacher and the other students stepping in to stop it. And there’s the portrait of smiling Eun Seol in the background.
Gong Sil mutters that this isn’t what Eun Seol wanted. She goes to butt in but Joong Won stops her, telling her that it’s the living trying to survive. It’s not something the dead should get involved in. I like that he stepped in to take care of her. He cares even if he says he doesn't.
Outside of the school, Gwi Do asks if Joong Won checked it out. He answers that he saw that it wasn’t his fault. Wow, can this guy be more self-centered? Very strong proof of his non-involvement. Gong Sil says excuse me and Joong Won, because he knows everything, tells her to forget it. He doesn’t want to know how she found out. And I don’t think that’s what she was going to say. But Gong Sil says that she knows because she can see and Eun Seol is so sad.
Gong Sil still is holding Eun Seol’s cell phone. She decides to go back in and tell Eun Seol’s friends that. The trio is sadly sitting together. Redhead asks if what they did was really that bad. Enough to be cursed for it? Long hair is crying as glasses (who’s lost her glasses) says that the culprit said Eun Seol died because of them. Because she hated them. Glasses is upset at that thought and redhead actually looks sad. Longhair says they can’t even apologize. Glasses starts to cry.
Their cell phones jingle. Eun Seol’s texted them: I really am with you guys right now. She’ll listen if there’s anything they would like to say. Redhead says that it’s Eun Seol. Glasses adds that that lady took Eun Seol’s phone earlier. Long hair says that they should just think it’s Eun Seol anyway. Longhair apologizes first. Glasses blubbers as she apologizes, too. Redhead says that she treated Eun Seol so badly. She cries as she apologizes. Redhead wishes that Eun Seol could smile at them and tell them it’s okay, like she used to.
There’s a clunking noise from the drinks machine. The girls check it out and in the dispenser are cans of their favorite drinks, one for each of them. Hands take it and they look and it’s Eun Seol smiling at them. She distributes them. She calls them her friends and tells them it’s okay. They apologize in person and she smiles back at them. Then they hug each other and cry, while Eun Seol smiles at her friends.
Outside, Gong Sil stares up at the school. Gwi Do and Joong Won are watching her. Love Joong Won’s spats!!! Gwi Do wonders what she’s doing, since she’s staring off into space. Joong Won answers, “Is that how it looks to you?” Hmmm. Gwi Do says he can’t help but stare at her as she stares at something they can’t see. Gong Sil waves, smiling, as Eun Seol dissipates. Joong Won laughs at her and says “Let’s go.”
Gwi Do asks about Gong Sil and Joong Won is sure that she’ll just go away. Because she’s just gone away up till now. Then Gwi Do asks if Joong Won going to keep his promise about letting her keep her job. I think Gwi Do is Joong Won’s conscience. Joong Won looks at her and doesn’t answer. He just gets in the car and they drive off, leaving Gong Sil there. She’s not happy at being left.
Back at the mall, Gong Sil’s meeting with Gwi Do. Can she keep her job? Yes. Joong Won said that he’s too busy a man to care about the management of the cleaning crew. Gong Sil laughs at this. She wants to go thank him, but he doesn’t want her coming up to the fourth floor. Yet. Seeing her face fall, Gwi Do tries to cheer her up, by telling her he’ll have to come down sometime. Aw.
Gong Sil wants to know what’s going to happen to the girls. Are they going to be punished for fabricating the picture? Wasn’t it just one girl? Surprisingly, Joong Won decided to let it go. Gong Sil is very surprised. She says she thought he was really mad because of the ghost story, but Gwi Do says that Joong Won’s the opposite at the moment.
Back at the ghost fountain, they’ve installed a basin for catching coins. People are lined up to throw in their wishes (I’m assuming). Apparently, says Uncle VP, a rumor spread that the ghost grants wishes, so people are flocking to tell their wishes. Uncle VP pulls out a coin to make a wish but Joong Won snatches it out of his hand and goes over to the fountain. He stops to ask a little boy what the boys wish is. He wants a new toy and a new pair of running shoes.
Joong Won tells him, he’ll give him the coin, so he should go shout it out loudly in front of his mom. Joong Won tells him his wish will come true if he goes up to the kids’ mall on the 2nd floor. The little boy runs off to make his wish in front of mom. Aw, I thought he was growing a heart. I guess it’s still two sizes too small.
Joong Won doesn’t care if it’s a goddess or a ghost, as long as he makes money. He wants Uncle VP to advertise it, that their wishes will be granted. Uncle VP cracks a smile. And Joong Won’s smiling too. It’s weird to see it on his face. He smiles at his coin and tosses it in the fountain.
Joong Won’s talking with his aunt, telling her he’s going to bury the fabricated photo incident. She can’t understand why. That story brought his past back into light. He says that the bigger deal he makes of it, the bigger the story will get. And with Lee Jin Pyo at the helm, you know he won’t quit digging. Joong Won’s sure if he just quietly buries the story, the rest will go away, too.
Sung Ran wants to know if Joong Won can put it away, too. He’s still not letting anyone into his life, because he feels responsible for her death. Does he still feel guilty? From his face, he does. So Ji Sub does a good job of speaking with his face and I actually feel a little sorry for Joong Won. His face is actually soft when he answers her. He knows what she’s going to say. He’s heard it more than a thousand times. The ultimate excuse a living person can make. That the living must go on living. His eyes are glossy.
He tells his aunt to stop giving him that advice. The fact that he’s alive and well is a testament that it’s not his fault. But we established with the detective that you *aren’t* well. Ah. He adds, that’s what he’s afraid others will think. He says that she sees him like that, too. She says she’s worried about him. He tells her she doesn’t need to worry. He can tell her one thing with absolute certainty: never, not for a single moment, thought it was his fault. I wonder what happened, that made him absolutely sure that he’s not at fault. Or is he just saying that for auntie’s sake.
Uncle VP’s outside, eavesdropping. He chuckles in astonishment at Joong Won’s statement. Then he looks at Joong Won thoughtfully.
Joong Won sits alone in his office. It’s mostly dark. He hears the reporter say that she’s still earth bound, the detective ask if he doesn’t feel sorry, his aunt ask if he feels guilty. Then Gwi Do ask about seeing their faces.
Flashback to Joong Won tied in the warehouse. The blurry girl approaches. His eyes grow wide as he realizes who it is: Hee Joo. He wants to know if she’s okay. He doesn’t get what’s going on. She doesn’t answer him. He looks around and realizes he’s tied in a chair in a strange warehouse. She silently watches as he struggles to free himself. Doesn’t it occur to him that she’s not helping? Joong Won wants to know what’s going on and if she’s okay. Hee Joo tells him she’s sorry for all this. He realizes she’s involved.
Joong Won’s sat in his office all night. He says out loud, “Because you ended up dying like that, you put me in a very unfair position. Cha Hee Joo.” He doesn’t look angry, just more regretful.
Kang Woo is reporting to someone that this incident had nothing to do with that incident. But, he adds, there’s someone in Joo Joong Won’s vicinity that is causing him some concern. A woman. In the distance, Gong Sil is cleaning. Either I’m right about him being there to protect Joong Won, or he’s part of some other plot to kidnap the guy. Calling Hee Joo’s death an incident is too clinical for a family member to do.
One of the other maids yells at Gong Sil. She and another maid want to know about her. She’s shaking her head. I don’t think it’s at them. Not looking at them, she cries out, “No, I don’t want to!” Oh, no! Please don’t mess this up already. Things are going so well. Gong Sil cringes and turns to the women, saying excuse me. She asks one of the ajummas if today isn’t her father-in-law’s memorial day? As the ajumma realizes she totally forgot, Gong Sil glares off at the father-in-law.
The ajumma wants to know how Gong Sil knew. We see father-in-law sternly standing there. Gong Sil says she thought she heard the ajumma talk about it earlier. The ghost really doesn’t look like he likes his daughter-in-law. Ajumma declares that she needs to hurry then.
Sung Ran and Uncle VP are coming down the escalator. Sung Ran remarks that something strange is going on. Should she do an exorcism? Then Uncle VP spots Gong Sil. He thinks she’s the girl who ruined Yi Ryung’s wedding. Sung Ran goes over and looks Gong Sil up and down. Gong Sil notices her and feels really awkward. She notices the name tag: G. S. Tae (even though the Korean reads Tae Gong Sil). She reads the name tag. Sung Ran says she’ll remember that. Then Sung Ran walks off, with Gong Sil feeling really weird about the whole thing.
Kang Woo shows up and asks Gong Sil if she’s going to be done soon. I guess he got some direction about what to do. Or he’s just resourceful and clever. The ajummas are very curious about the whole thing. Kang Woo suggests they go home together. As the ajummas gossip, he adds that they both live at the same place, so they should go together. He’ll wait outside for her to finish up. Gong Sil bashful and the ajummas start asking questions: Are they dating? Are they living together? Inquiring minds want to know! Kang Woo looks pleased with himself as Gong Sil blushes with embarrassment.
And, right on cue, Joong Won and Gwi Do are coming down the escalator. Joong Won stops. What? He takes a closer look.
Neither Gong Sil or Kang Woo answer their questions. Kang Woo simply smiles and leaves. Kang Woo walks by Joong Won. He bows his respect and then leaves. Joong Won watches Kang Woo go, a puzzled look on Joong Won’s face. Isn’t she supposed to be trying to seduce *him*? Then he looks back at the blushing Gong Sil. Gong Sil’s standing there, holding her cheeks. Kang Woo wants to go home with her? She starts to scurry around to clean up her stuff.
Joong Won starts to walk away. He doesn’t look pleased, although he’s kind of wearing his typical sour face. He rubs the inside of his cheek with his tongue and stops. Now he looks mad. Dude. You cannot be mad. You told her there’s no way and yet you’re mad because she *isn’t* trying to seduce you? He looks back over at Gong Sil who’s flattening her hair. He frowns in her direction. Then he goes over to her. Gwi Do is watching the whole thing. He smiles to himself. The boss is finally starting to crack! And get a heart!
Joong Won walks over to Gong Sil and asks her if she sees something again. Man, his face does look sour. He asks about the fountain. She mutters no. He tells her not to show herself anywhere near him. Dude, you know she didn’t know you were there. Butthead. Then he starts to walk off. You feel crappy and so you make her feel crappy. Nice.
Gong Sil calls after Joong Won. He snaps at her, why is she talking to him? She apologizes. He looks at her like she has two heads. She says that had she known there was that kind of pain, she wouldn’t have told him about Cha Hee Joo. Pain? She brought up old memories and guilt, right? He’s angry that she’s assuming there’s guilt. Gong Sil says she was sure that Hee Joo was telling him to forget the past and that the living need to go on living. Ouch. There’s that saying again. She tells him it wasn’t his fault. Joong Won sighs, trying not to be affected.
Kang Woo is waiting outside for Gong Sil.
Joong Won steps closer to Gong Sil. He looks quite menacing. He leans in even closer and says, “That thing you say that you can see… can you conjure it up?” When Gong Sil asks why, he tells her to do it if she can, because he has a message for her. What’s that? “You’re… a… bitch.” Gong Sil blinks, shocked and Joong Won smiles to himself at her surprise.
Thoughts
So great second episode! Joong Won kills me, how conceited he is. The episode starts out with him telling Gong Sil that she’s not going to seduce him. And he keeps repeated it throughout the episode. And at the end, he’s offended that she’s not trying to seduce him. But at least we got some insight into why he is the way he is. I know there’s more to the story with the kidnapping. It’s been established that:
- Because Hee Joo knew the identities of the kidnappers, that’s what got her killed.
- Hee Joo was involved in the kidnapping.
- Joong Won has told NO ONE that Hee Joo was involved.
And speaking of questions: what’s the mystery with Kang Woo? I’m still inclined to think that he’s a good guy. He’s too nice to be a bad guy. At least it looks that way right now. He could be part of a group planning on kidnapping Joong Won, but I’m really inclined to think that he’s there to protect him, sent by Joong Won’s father. And I like that he’s making Joong Won jealous. Hee.
And Yi Ryung is going to find out that it was Gong Sil who ruined her wedding. Just another reason for her to hate Gong Sil. It’s not like Gong Sil’s life is hunky dorey. And why is she so cozy with the aunt?
How did Uncle VP end up married to the aunt? She’s only 6 years older, but she seems a lot more. Maybe it’s because he’s such a buffoon. How does he keep his job? I wonder, though, what he was thinking about Joong Won and Sung Ran’s conversation. How did he end up listening in the first place? I like how it seems like every episode is going to have an individual ghost story in it. Again. I was crying with this one.
I like how, when Gong Sil helps the ghosts and things actually get resolved, there’s physical interaction that occurs between the living and the dead. (One day that *will* be you Joong Won.) I also like how Gong Sil seems to be getting more comfortable with the ghosts. Maybe it’s because she knows now that she at least has some way of getting rid of them.
What happened to creepy black-eyed teen coffee boy? Why did he have creepy all black eyes? Why did he just stop following her around? Or was his unfinished business getting to smell one last coffee cup? Thinking back to when he showed up, I do think that he was coming to cozy up to her to ask about it. Maybe she’s starting to get a reputation?
It is crazy to think of all those ghosts wandering around the mall. Including the freaky cross-dressing ghost. This series definitely goes with the idea that ghosts aren’t rooted to a specific spot, since they can wander around all over.
I like Gwi Do. It really does seem like he cares about Joong Won. I wonder if he’s been around since Joong Won’s dad was in charge. It would make sense, the almost fatherly way that he sometimes treats him. It seems as though he’s at least been around for the last 15 years. And I like how he likes Gong Sil and he likes that she’s breaking through the boss’s force fields. I think he’s going to help her out in the future.
It’s also interesting: the detective. What kind of relationship did he have with Joong Won? He seems to have had a good one, because he can tell when Joong Won is lying. And he knows about Joong Won’s reading problem.
I’m expecting Unsolved Mysteries guy to show back up at some point, possibly toward the end as the mystery of the kidnapping gets solved. I wonder who *did* do it. And shout out to Kim Sang Soon. Totally different character, different feel than the evil dad in City Hunter.
I really liked the scene between Joong Won and his aunt, because for the first time, we saw Joong Won’s face soften. And clearly the situation with Hee Joo does still bother him, hurt him. I still don’t understand why he never told *anyone.* And that was a ridiculously HUGE chair. But I think it added to the wounded little-boy moment that was happening. The chair made him look small, and that’s part of the point.
And the scene with the golden telescope. It’s kind of sad to think of Joong Won sitting in his office staring out of his window, watching the construction through the telescope. I guess everyone has to have *something* weird about them. And how does Uncle VP keep his job?
I also like how Gong Sil is starting to take Joong Won’s jerkiness a little more personally. In the beginning, she didn’t seem to care, but now it seems like she’s a little bothered by it. I keep watching it all, waiting for the day when Joong Won will have to eat crow, and the Hong Sisters *better* make him eat crow. A lot of it. No hero breaks down sobbing and all is forgiven. I want him to have to grovel a bit.
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