Weightlifting Fairy: Kim Bok Joo Part 4

He's confessed to his brother that he likes Bok Joo and been encouraged to pursue that 'cute' friend. Now the heavens are telling him how to do that. One thing and another, Joon Hyeong and Bok Joo end up at the amusement park. Top of Bok Joo's couples things to do. Only she drags her two friends along, and one of them invites Jung Joon Hyeong’s friend to join the party. Resourcefulness must be what has kept Joon Hyeong going in his worse moments. Thus, despite the crowd, he finds a way to have alone-time with Bok Joo. A gravity defying ride by someone with a crippling fear of heights is the necessary sacrifice Joon Hyeong makes in order to get Bok Joo to himself. He's airborne and chanting Bok Joo's name like a prayer. He may look like he's about to pass out, but he’s also holding her hand tightly. Result!

The success of the month's dating trial is all in Joon Hyeong's hands. The gods, we could concede, might have guided him on what he needs to do, but they don't tell him how to do it.  Joon Hyeong, however, is a quick study. He doesn’t let them down. As he literally runs down her dating bucket list, Bok Joo fails to make the connection. It's a catch between resigned sigh and hilarity for both Joon Hyeong and the viewer. He's making all her dating wishes happen. The look of love expressed through Jung Joon Hyeong's eyes causes you to hold your own breath, as if he is looking into your eyes. Standing together, his hand holding hers warmly in her coat pocket, Bok Joo finds herself breathless, speechless, hypnotised. Now it’s the man Jung Joon Hyeong standing before her, a man reflecting that she fills his whole vision; that, for him, she is the only one that exists. He's no longer her accommodating and sometimes annoying friend. With fireworks above them, this is a forever moment, the turning point in their relationship and their lives. By the end of the evening, Kim Bok Joo is his, seduced by her own hand, a hand that drew a road map to her heart.

Bok Joo: Amusement park visit together is a must.

(Joon Hyeong: Happening right now).

Bok Joo:  I want to share a drink using two straws.

(Joon Hyeong:  It’s on the table with the two straws).

Bok Joo:  Keep my hand warm by putting it in his pocket.

(Joon Hyeong: I’ll put my hand in your pocket instead).

Bok Joo:  A bouquet of 100 roses will show he cares.

(Joon Hyeong:  I care. (But events intervene, and she doesn’t get the flowers)).

Boo Joo:  Get a boyfriend.

(Joon Hyeong:  I’ve been yours since elementary school).

It's interesting that whilst Bok Joo was obsessing over his brother, Joon Hyeong exhibited no overt signs of jealousy. There were moments of obvious longing, but also clear indications of acceptance of the situation. Now that he and Bok Joo are dating, the side of him that is petty in romance and shamelessly possessive takes centre stage. She ignores these traits and warns him she does not possess them. Yeah, sure!

Bok Joo is a happy customer.  She's not going to return him; she’s going to keep him. That small detail sorted out, the pair exhibit the most wonderful first blush of love behaviour.  Closing the first official date night with back-and-forth texts filled with mushy messages is lovely, but it’s their physical reactions to dating that charm the viewer.  It's behaviour we can relate to, that happy space where sleep evades us and spending two, three, four hours or more on the phone saying nothing and doing less fills us with contentment.  They are a true couple. But no one must find out. After all those assertions of not being interested in men, then making a fool of herself over one, Bok Joo is weary of being in the cross-hairs of her friends’ judgement again. Still, it’s obvious to anyone that something is tickling this young woman, that something has brought a sparkle to her eyes and is responsible for her spontaneously breaking into quiet laughter.  It must be the reason there’s a smile constantly on her lips.

Secretly dating inevitably leads to a number of hilarious incidents and misunderstanding, ending in the true test for any new relationship: Jealousy.  His reaction to seeing that wretched red hair clip, the one she used to wear when she visited his brother, is immature but direct. Don't wear it! In an act of pure childishness, Joon Hyeong pulls the hair clip off along with a few strands of hair.  Luckily, after an apology and a trip to the store to buy a replacement hair clip, all is good. Our Bok Joo settles into this boyfriend-girlfriend thing real fast.

Kim Bok Joo must have grown wings during the date, as she literally floats home. The bubble bursts with the sight of her roommate, Shi Ho ¾ she who also happens to be Joon Hyeong’s ex-girlfriend ¾ unconscious on their bedroom floor. News of Shi Ho's suicide attempt has Jung Joon Hyeong rushing to the hospital. He may not want her back, but he still cares about her welfare. He's relieved Shi Ho is going to be okay, that it was an unintended sleeping pills overdose in response to insomnia. Caring for her is natural.  It’s also in response to the guilt he feels for having ignored her telephone call when she was in crisis.  Even Bok Joo accepts it. Until she sees it in action. The little green monster called jealousy must have slithered in around the time she saw Joon Hyeong fussing over a sick Shi Ho.  They certainly look comfortable together.  And he knows all about her pollen allergy.  Unlike Jung Joon Hyeong, his new girlfriend’s response to seeing him interact with another woman is silence, sulking, and denial. Joon Hyeong, going to a brother who is so emotionally unaware that he is about to lose his own love interest will provide no solutions to the enigma of how to decipher why a woman is upset.  This is a maze novice Romeo will have to navigate on his own. And thankfully, in line with the pace of this drama, the matter is quickly resolved. He simply begs her to tell him what's wrong. She sheepishly admits to her jealousy.  Easy fix: they are to always be open and honest; and the matter is done.

As if to test their resolve, along comes his ex-girlfriend. She’s returning from hospital and she's carrying a suitcase. The silent communication between Joon Hyeong and Bok Joo is laughable in its transparency. It dares him to take the suitcase. He withdraws the hand that has instinctively reached out to help. Drawing a heart on Bok Joo's back tells her she has nothing to worry about. None of this is lost on Shi Ho, who is amused rather than upset. She's let him go and moved on. They make a cute couple, Bok Joo and Joon Hyeong, especially wearing matching coats and with their bodies overlapping.

Speed dating could describe the pace of development in this romance. Making up for lost time has never been so enjoyable. In their public displays of affection, they are blind to those around them. There’s abundant cuteness in their romantic discoveries.  From the unnecessary tag texts to the stolen cuddles on the race track as the weightlifting and swimming groups pass one another during training, they both look high on love.  If he couldn’t keep his hands off Bok Joo when they were just ‘friends’, it’s impossible to do so now.  He has to touch her, hug her, cuddle with her.  In between, his eyes are projected beams of adoration towards her.  It makes you envious of the attention he is showering his girlfriend with.  Bok Joo is learning fast, and she is similarly expressive of her affection towards him.  It took time to reach this stage, but it should be plain sailing from here on. 

The more in love Bok Joo becomes, the further her tough weightlifter reputation falls.  Once before, Joon Hyeong had berated her for losing her common sense to feminine vanity. Example: Such is the need of Joon Hyeong to have Bok Joo in his presence that when she tells him they can’t meet as she has a terrible cold, his protective instinct goes into overdrive.  This results is him sneaking into the girls’ dormitory through a window and into Bok Joo’s bedroom.  He’s brought her medicine specially made by his mother, the pharmacist.  Instead of being happy to see him, Bok Joo is embarrassed.  That’s because she lied about her health.  The only health issue present is the huge spot on the tip of her nose.  It’s pretty gross, but not a sufficient or acceptable excuse for lying to her boyfriend or refusing to meet him.   She looks contrite, at least.  Joon Hyeong is unconcerned about the spot and takes the opportunity to look around Bok Joo’s room, something that the boarding rules would never allow.  It’s no surprise that they are interrupted by Nan Hee and Sun Ok.  It’s a good thing, too, as jostling over his trying to look inside her wardrobe causes them to fall on the bed.  What was about to happen is interrupted, and the action to hide Joon Hyeong settles their accelerated heartbeats.  Joon Hyeong manages to crawl into the wardrobe without his presence being detected.  However, Shi Ho, Bok Joo’s roommate, also turns up and attempts to put her bag away in the same space.  Her look of shock at finding Joon Hyeong curled in there, along with his silent plea not to expose him, makes her have to suppress the laugh out loud response the situation triggers.  This version of Song Shi Ho is helpful and accommodating, even feigning sudden tiredness as an excuse to get Nan Hee and Sun Ok to leave.  The stowaway can come out and the lovers give her an explanation.  They are all friends now, and Bok Joo even promises to attend Song Shi Ho’s upcoming competition.  The change in friendship status between Bok Joo and Shi Ho baffles Joon Hyeong.  It is, he decides after some thought, a girl thing.  They are having a secret romance but are struggling to hide it.  Their interactions are open and risky.  It’s only a matter of time, then, before the cat is out of the bag.

A blind date.  A reluctant participant.  A less than happy secret girlfriend.  Needless to say, when the girlfriend finds out what’s going on, her loud vocal claim to that man brings their secret dating to an abrupt end. Demands that the hopeful woman pawing her man remove her dirty hand, and clarification of the relationship’s status, are included in the tantrum a jealous Bok Joo throws.  It would make every country and western song a hit.  She had, to be fair, been very adult up to that point.  Sort of.  From a nearby table, watching stony faced and inwardly fuming at the two couples on the blind date, Bok Joo texts Joon Hyeong that he needs to bring the meeting to an end within five minutes.  Once over the shock that he has been caught, that Bok Joo is right there watching him, that she will physically and emotionally kill him if he doesn’t bail, poor Joon Hyeong tries hard to bring things to a close.  He really does. He is there under duress, anyway, but now he is guilty by association.

Forgiveness for their sneaky carrying-ons only comes after accusations of betrayal, intentional falsehoods, etc. An interrogation-style trial by the panel of three, Nan Hee, Sun Ok, and Tae Kwon, ends in punishment with a heavy price tag.  But to Joon Hyeong, spending half his month’s allowance on food and drink to appease those acting as both judge and jury on his relationship with Bok Joo is well worth it.  Listening to Bok Joo trying to distract Joon Hyeong from the cost of the meal by asking him if he got a new phone, a different colour phone, makes you laugh.  It’s so unexpected, and clearly done as an act of desperation.  However, Jung Joon Hyeong and Kim Bok Joo can now openly be a couple.  All is good, and the time between training and eating can now be dominated by dating, stealing kisses, and kissing whilst dating.

But this is dramaland and, anyway, when can life be relied upon to provide everlasting good times?  So our duo face a significant hurdle or two on the way to love heaven.  For Jung Joon Hyeong, it is the sudden return of his mother from Canada.  She arrives unannounced and clueless about everything relating to the son she abandoned over ten years previously.  This includes not knowing what the adult Joon Hyeong looks like, or that the persisting trauma of the parting still haunts him.  Luck is on her side. Or perhaps it’s on Joon Hyeong’s side when his mother bumps into Bok Joo whilst trying to locate the swimming complex.  Bok Joo has to literally accompany her there and, would you believe it, here comes Joon Hyeong on cue as they reach the building.  Of course, Bok Joo calls his name.  Joon Hyeong’s mother immediately reclaims her son. Joon Hyeong stares wide-eyed in silence.  Bok Joo, watching the exchange, is almost as shocked as him.

I tried to be happy about the reunion, but I couldn’t be, and I still can’t.  Her leaving him was bad enough, but her failure to maintain contact really bothers me.  She said she was too busy surviving to look for him. But does that exclude checking if her 10-year-old son was living well, or whether her teenaged son was surviving the transition towards adulthood?  Everything seemed to centre around packing the visit into a single day, including holding his hand, memorising how he looked over the years, cooking him a homemade meal. Indeed, biological mother of Jung Joon Hyeong takes up her role as parent with all the awkwardness expected in such a situation. She knows nothing about him and has to ask him for the details.  Still, at least she’s bought him a gift.  When he eventually tries on the gym shoes, they are too small.  No surprise there.  Could she not even contact the in-laws who have raised her son to find out his shoe size and the answers to the other questions she poses to him?  She met Joon Hyeong’s substitute but real parents the day before.  It would have been a good time to prepare for the meeting with her son. 

Joon Hyeong’s emotional see-saw is graphically one of conflict, happiness, heartbreak, possibly anger.  Still, it’s the realisation of a meeting he has dreamt of, wished for, and waited to happen across the past ten years.  But the reality overwhelms him.  One wonders what his tears really mean.  Having been raised with kindness and good manners, Joon Hyeong performs his role as the dutiful son, even accompanying his biological mother to his other, ‘real’ mother’s home, where they have a family meal.  The atmosphere is awkward, sometimes strained, and becomes even more so when Joon Hyeong asks his mother to pass him some water.  Both mothers acknowledge the request.  He was actually speaking to his ‘real’ mother, not his biological mother.  The former’s big heart passes the duty of serving the son to his biological mother.  This is testament to the type of family that raised the timid boy into a confident man. 

When Joon Hyeong accepts his mother’s invitation to share a meal that she will cook herself, he is a happy bunny.  She’s held his hand and the soft, warm touch stays with him long after they part.  Much later on, as he shares the day’s experiences with Bok Joo, he can’t hold back the tears and she comforts him, her arms enveloping him for a change.  The realisation of this long held wish, dream, prayer has its own stresses, and release through tears in the arms of the person he loves and trusts is the perfect solution.  As a side thought, even if they were not dating, his reaction and release of his emotions in response to meeting his mother, and Bok Joo’s response would not have been different.

Leonora

asiandramaobserver@gmail.com