Asian Addicts Anonymous

So Donghae decides to stay in Korea to search for James. He wants to meet his father for himself and learn why his mother was abandoned. So armed with a notebook he believes belongs to his father, he starts his search. Meanwhile, Saewa is scrambling to protect her secrets in order to win over Do Jin’s family. We also see more of Do Jin’s not-so-nice side.

Anna starts freaking out and yelling James’s name. This catches her son’s attention and he rushes over to her just as she runs for the stairs to try to catch the elevator with James in it. Donghae hobbles after her and when he finally catches up, Anna tells him that she saw James. He was wearing a black coat. Donghae doesn’t believe her at first, but he does eventually rush to look to see if he can find the man in the black coat. He doesn’t see Kim Jun [who was wearing a black business suit], but he does see Kang Jae’s retreating back [Kang Jae is wearing a black coat]. So Donghae rushes after Kang Jae who pulls out Bongi’s recipe book, dropping a small black notebook of his own. Donghae loses sight of Kang Jae and can’t find him when his mother shows up. The distraught Anna collapses just as the head chef walks out. Chef picks her up and Donghae notices the notebook. He takes it with him as they rush outside to the ambulance.

Kang Jae meets up with Bongi and hands over her recipe book. Bongi thanks him and her dad chides her for not changing her ways. Back when she was still in school, Bongi always forgot her homework and called him to bring it. Now that she is an adult and working, she still calls daddy to bring her what she’s forgotten. As Kang Jae leaves the hotel, he sees Donghae and Anna going away by ambulance. There is no reaction from Kang Jae at all beyond mild curiosity. I think since so many thinks [ok, so I already KNOW which one his father is] point to Kang Jae, it won’t end up being him and will be Kim Jun instead.

Kang Jae finally makes it to Hye Sook’s office where he tells her about running into Kang Jae. Jun tells her that it seems he is still mad after all of these years. Hye Sook tells him to try to forget about it. Apparently Kim Jun does have a conscience. After Kang Jae’s factory closed down he really didn’t work for years because of the incident. Does that mean he should just forget that he ruined an entire family’s life? I don’t know. It’s a grey area in a way. He obviously did feel bad, but I think its wrong to expect the family to forgive and forget so easily when their lives were completely destroyed. They are only just getting back on their feet after 10 years or so. Hye Sook tells Jun about Do Jin bringing Saewa over for dinner. It seems like their son is finally serious and considering marriage. Hye Sook then tells her husband that the meeting with assemblyman Cha may not pertain to Do Jin’s marriage anymore, but it’s still good for the hotel and Jun. He tells his wife that this is the first and last time he’s meeting politicians. The man has integrity when it comes to work, you got to admire that.

Meanwhile, Do Jin and Saewa are out on a date. Do Jin confesses that before he met Saewa he was with a lot of girls. He never dated any one seriously and his longest relationship only lasted a maximum of three months. In spite of all of his experience, he tells Saewa that she is the first girl he ever considered with marriage in his mind. Do Jin then asks about Saewa’s past. The girl is like a deer caught in the headlights. Do Jin smiles his nice smile and tells her its okay and that he won’t judge. She was alone in the states a long time so she must have dated. Saewa, finally regaining her senses, quickly denies that she dated anyone and says that he is her first. This makes Do Jin grin in relief. He may of said it didn’t matter, but he so didn’t mean that. He can’t stand to think of her with any other guy. Seriously? What a double standard. He then scares Saewa by saying that he can’t be with any woman who was in a long term relationship for several years as he doesn’t think such a girl would ever belong truly to him. Again, seriously? This really gives Saewa a fright. All the more reason to keep him from finding out about Donghae.

Saewa gets home to have Sool Nyeo invite her to sit down, but Saewa refuses. She’s tired. No, she’s really just freaked out about what Do Jin said. Poor Sool Nyeo, neither of her daughters’ will give her the time of day she deserves. As soon as Saewa is in her room, she calls the hotel and joyously learns that Anna checked out. She then goes into her office and rips up all of her pictures and letters pertaining to Donghae. The past ain’t that easy to erase, sweetheart. Meanwhile, Anna wakes up in the hospital. Donghae asks if she’s all right, but Anna immediately asks after James. Where is he? Donghae says that James wasn’t there and that the likelihood of Anna remembering James after 27 years is slim. But Anna insists that she really did see Donghae’s father. Now that she’s seen him, she wants to remain in Korea and look for him.

Kang Jae arrives home and notices his notebook full of client information is gone. Where could he have left it? Before he can recall dropping it at the hotel, he is called out for dinner by Sun Ok. Tae Hoon and Sae Young are there and give their formal greetings in traditional clothing. Kang Jae and Sun Ok then pass on advice to the newlyweds. Kang Jae asks Pil Jae to offer up some wisdom as well, but Pil Jae says he doesn’t have the right. Then dinner starts and Sun Ok tells Pil Jae about the blind date. Pil Jae is less than enthused and demands to know if Sae Young is trying to kick him out of the house. Sae Young denies this and replies that it is her mother who set up the date. Tae Hoon tries to stop her from saying anymore. The shocked Song Yi then goes and sits by her daddy. She doesn’t like this talk at all. Pil Jae says he won’t date until Song Yi is in college. He then says that beauty doesn’t matter, he wants a sweet, obedient woman like his deceased wife. Dinner continues and when Bongi reaches for a peanut, she recalls Donghae and Anna. She’s upset that he didn’t call to say goodbye from the airport.

After dinner, Tae Hoon tells Sae Young he wants to look for a job. It’s not right to sit around doing nothing and expecting his mom and dad to pay for everything. Sae Young tells him that he needs to study and not work so that he can pass his exams next year. Tae Hoon tells her that there’s no guarantee he’ll pass either way. He then gets up and goes for a walk. Sae Young sees a baby carriage for twins and notices that the sale ends that very day. So she calls up and asks about the sale price. On sale it is $2000. Holy crap! I think he should be able to get something cheaper than that, but what do I know? Sae Young takes out a credit card [I don’t know if its hers or Tae Hoon’s] and immediately orders it. She then hangs up and praises herself for ordering it when its on sale. Well, while that is good, the price is still ridiculous.

Back at the hospital, Anna has fallen into a restless sleep. Donghae holds her hand and notices the father across the room, lovingly nursing his child. Donghae then recalls Saewa’s words about not wanting to struggle anymore and wanting the love and protection of a father-in-law, something Donghae can’t give her. He takes out the notebook and comes to a decision. He starts visiting the places in the book. The owner of the restaurant doesn’t recognize the notebook at all. Pil Jae then comes in and overhears that Donghae is looking to return something. He then goes through the book and tells Donghae the best place to find the book’s owner. Donghae pays and leaves without eating. Pil Jae then realizes that the book belongs to his brother. Just what is going on? By the time Pil Jae has gone outside, Donghae has already left.

Donghae returns to the hospital only to find Anna missing! And where is his mother? She is at the hotel with a sign. It reads James in English (and then I guess the Korean equivalent in parentheses]. Just like in Donghae’s flashbacks of his mom always at the airport, Anna is holding the sign and approaching anyone with a black jacket. Needless to say this makes the guests and the hotel workers very unhappy. Hye Sook informs Do Jin that layoffs are necessary to complete the female suites and that he should be prepared. Do Jin says that the signs for voluntary resignation have already been posted. Do Jin is talking over dinner plans with his mom [and just what a big shock Saewa will have later] and Anna tells him about wanting to meet Saewa’s family when he gets the call about Anna. He angrily goes down and asks her to leave. Anna apologizes, but keeps looking. Do Jin then has her forcefully thrown out. Even though she was making a scene, there was no reason to literally throw her to the ground outside. Donghae comes at this moment and sees his mom on her knees begging Do Jin. Donghae comes over and tires to get Anna up. He apologizes to Do Jin who angrily insults Anna’s intelligence. Ouch. Definitely not the right thing to say in front of Donghae. If Anna wasn’t there, Donghae would have laid the smack down on the ass Do Jin. Donghae then leaves with Anna and Do Jin angrily returns to his office.

Chef lets the kitchen staff no abut the pending layoffs and the voluntary resignation notices. Unfortunately, the kitchen is one of the targets of the layoffs. Chef tells them that he wants no incompetent workers, that’s why this upcoming test is important. He wishes them the best and leaves. Dae Sam then proclaims that Bongi is likely to be laid off. She isn’t the best of cooks, plus she has caused a lot of trouble. Bongi can’t deny that she’s caused some problems, but she also asserts that she is a hard worker who does her best. Will she be able to pass the test? She calls up her father and arranges to have him pick her up after work so she can go to the market and buy groceries to practice. Hwaiting!

Kang Jae hangs up and notices the radish leaves Sun Ok is drying. His wife asks if she should make his favorite mackerel and cook them with the leaves. Kang Jae likes this idea and says he’ll pick up mackerel after work. He leaves and then the delivery comes for Sae Young. She rushes excitedly out of her room to collect the package. Sun Ok asks what it is and Sae Young says that she ordered a special carriage for her babies. Sun Ok can’t believe they make strollers for twins. She asks how much it cost and Sae Young tells her happily that she saved 30% on it and then holds up 2 fingers. Sun Ok is shocked thinking it is $200. She is livid when she finds out it is $2000. She demands that Sae Young either send the stroller back or get out of her house. Tae Hoon comes out at this time and gets in between them. What to do now?

At the station, Saewa confirms the meeting with Do Jin and hangs up when she sees Kim Jun. She greets him and Jun congratulates her on her interview skills improving. He then leaves and Saewa smiles to herself saying that she will be seeing him later. While Saewa is scheming away happily, Donghae and Anna are waiting for the airport shuttle. Donghae’s eyes are closed and he is silent while his mother chatters away. She was hoping to find James to show him to Donghae. She wanted her son to see that he wasn’t a bad person. Anna then says that when they get back home to the states, she will do everything he says. Donghae’s eyes pop open and then he asks his mother if they should look for James. Donghae has decided he wants to meet his father and find out jus what happened 27 years ago. Well, slightly unexpected, but I’m happy he’s remaining in Korea for the time being.

Saewa arrives at the Kim house with gift basket in hand. She settles down on the coach and then pretends to act surprised when Jun enters the room. The man is positively thrown for a loop. He calls his son and wife into his office and demands to know what is going on. Hye Sook explains that the two are dating and Jun asks how long she knew. Hye Sook admits she just found out and then she and Do Jin are scolded for keeping the fact that Saewa is his girlfriend a secret. Do Jin then tells his dad that he kept their relationship a secret so he could hold onto Saewa. He wanted her to like him for himself and not who his father was. While this is going on, the housekeeper remembers Saewa dropping by before. Oops. Saewa forgot about this part. Saewa denies this as Hye Sook comes out. Did Do Jin’s mother overhear everything?

Donghae and Anna head for the market that Pil Jae told Donghae about. They ask around about the notebook with no luck. While they are doing that, Bongi arrives with her father. While Bongi gets her groceries, her father goes about his business. Donghae finally has his mother rest while he circles one more time. He finally finds someone who recognizes Kang Jae’s book. He then learns Kang Jae’s name. Donghae knows his father’s initials are KJ, so that could stand for Lee Kang Jae. Donghae goes to the bathroom to wash his face when Kang Jae enters. When he answers his phone, Donghae overhears his name and is shocked. What will happen next?

Let’s just hope that in the next episode, Donghae won’t do something stupid like hit first and ask questions later.