Asian Addicts Anonymous

At long last! It only took 1/3 of this series (give or take) for this to happen. The long awaited reunion between Anna and James is how we end this episode.

How we open it is with James narrowly missing Donghae and Anna in the hotel. At first he thinks he’s just seeing things when he catches a glimpse of her before the elevator door closes, but he realizes that isn’t the case when he overhears Bongi talking to “Anna ahjumma” on the phone. Jun rushes after Bongi, but loses her.

Bongi gets her recipe from the kitchen and calls up Donghae to meet and he tells her to go back to the kitchen and pick something up. She then gets quite the shock when Anna and Donghae jump out at her and shout surprise. She immediately begins hitting Donghae for scaring her out of her wits and Anna quickly intervenes and says it was all her idea. The two then hand over Bongi’s present. It’s makeup and Donghae tells her to use it wisely and become prettier in the new year. Bongi is touched by the gift and sad that she hasn’t prepared anything for Anna and Donghae.

The cheery trio then board the elevator to go home and run into Hye Sook. Donghae and Anna use this opportunity to hand over the gift they bought for her and thank her for all that she’s done. Hye Sook is surprised and touched. She hopes that their relationship improves after the recent bad blood between her family and Donghae’s.

They come to the lobby and Hye Sook sends them on ahead since she is meeting her husband. Jun is just returning to the lobby after unsuccessfully tracking down both Anna and Bongi. Hye Sook chides him for looking all over for her instead of waiting. During the car ride home, Hye Sook takes her husband’s hand and says what she is most grateful for his for him returning to both her and Do Jin. Yeah. Not the best time for Anna to reappear in his life, is it?

Sool Nyeo happily goes to the Lee home where she finds Pil Jae outside anxiously awaiting Anna’s return. She mistakenly thinks he’s waiting for her and makes a huge fuss. When Pil Jae yells at her for misunderstanding, Sun Ok comes out and yells at the two of them to come in. Sool Nyeo sits down next to Pil Jae at the table and snuggles right up to him. She then starts drinking and crying and complaining. Sun Ok and Kang Jae are lucky that even though they are poor, their children aren’t suffering like her children are. She passes out just as our hotel trio return.

Pil Jae immediately jumps up and he and Tae Hoon have to carry Sool Nyeo to Bongi’s room to rest. Enter Anna with a present for Pil Jae. She happily thanks him for being so nice to her and wishes him well in the new year. Pil Jae is over the moon to be getting a present from his precious Anna. The moment is slightly ruined by the drunken Sool Nyeo grabbing on to his butt and telling him not to leave. Pil Jae manages to escape her evil hands while Sool Nyeo cries and wonders what her poor Saewa will do.

Pil Jae goes to his room to open his present and his happy to find some pink thermal underwear. There must me a meaning behind this gift! This surely means that Anna likes him, right? She’s not that deep thinking, no offense. It’s just her kindness, plus its traditional to use your first paycheck to buy underwear or pajamas (usually for your parents). Songi then comes bouncing in with the cute clothes that Donghae and Anna picked out. She is over the moon to have a present like that from Donghae. Pil Jae then says they should get return gifts and the two begin scheming of things to buy for Anna and her son.

Meanwhile, in the Lee kitchen, Bongi is hard at work at her recipe and joyfully recalling Donghae’s confession when he enters the room. What is she muttering about. Flustered, Bongi quickly lies and says she is just reciting her recipe. Donghae marvels at how hard she is working even on the last day of the year. Bongi replies that she has no choice since she isn’t as good as a cook as others, so she must work that much harder—it’s the same when it comes to love, too. Bongi then says she wishes that all her good things and luck during this new year would go to Donghae. Aww. She then gives him a present as well—a peck on the cheek! Donghae is so cute and boyish with his surprised face which turns into a goofy grin.

While everything is warm and nice at the Lee household, the Kim household is completely different. Hye Sook and Jun return only to learn that Do Jin is still out at this late hour. Hye Sook blames this on Saewa. It’s all her daughter-in-law’s fault that Do Jin is not there to spend the last night of the new year as a family. Hye Sook then refuses dinner and shuts herself in the bedroom while Jun refuses dinner and shuts himself in his study to stare at Anna’s picture and ask it if she’s really in Korea.

Do Jin finally comes home all drunk. He keeps shoving Saewa away, but she keeps clinging on to him. They are married, she loves him, and she wants to spend the last night of the year together and greet the new one as a couple. Do Jin eventually collapses and Saewa gets a warm towel and a basin of water to wash him down. I think this makes him slightly happy, but it’s kind of hard to tell with Do Jin, but even though he’s conscious of what his wife is doing, he stops shoving her away at least for the moment.

The new year dawns along with the final round of the cooking competition. Bongi and Donghae leave the Lee household with cheers of good luck and promises from Pil Jae and Anna to come and watch the final round.  Meanwhile, at the station, Saewa prepares for the broadcast and is horrified to learn that Jun will be going to the hotel as well. Why? He lies and says he has some business there, plus he wishes to see the finals. The truth? He’s searching for Anna. Saewa makes a quick call to her mother who has already woken up and learned from Sun Ok that the final competition is that day and that Anna will be watching. What happens if Anna and James should meet? Sool Nyeo quickly promises her daughter she won’t let that happen.

The excited and nervous Donghae and Bongi check out the final room for the competition where Hye Sook and Do Jin are giving things a last once over. Hye Sook leaves everything in Do Jin’s hands and goes to her office while Do Jin glares at Donghae before warning him that the final round won’t be easy. Donghae retorts that he doesn’t like winning things easily and welcomes a challenge. Do Jin leaves and Bongi comments that the vice manager is out to get them.

The two then go to the kitchen where Chef Bang is looking over the recipes one last time to ensure there are no duplicates. He wishes all four cooks the best of luck and then drops a bomb that there will be an unexpected surprise during the competition that is Do Jin’s doing. What exactly does Do Jin have up his sleeve to sabotage Donghae now?

Sool Nyeo manages to get Anna away from the hotel by promising to take her to James. Anna is really torn because she would be missing Donghae’s competition. So when Sool Nyeo rushes off to the bathroom, the agitated Anna leaves. She desperately tries calling both Donghae and Bongi, but can’t get through as they have already left to compete. She walks around panicking and crying (while Sool Nyeo sits on the toilet assuring Saewa that she will keep Anna away until the competition is over).

Jun is on his way back to the station for a meeting after learning that there is no Anna Laker at the hotel (doesn’t he know that Donghae’s name is Carl Laker? How come he hasn’t put two and two together yet?). He spots the agitated and lost Anna. He immediately turns his car around and tries to spot her again. Just as he’s about to give up and go back to the station, he nearly hits Anna. Their eyes meet and Jun gets out of the car.

And that’s where this episode ends. Typical. But one thing is for certain, all hell will start to break loose soon. Then again, probably not as this is a daily drama. But we do have a few more secrets to go. Donghae needs to meet his father, Do Jin and Hye Sook need to learn of Anna and Donghae’s real identities, and then our hotel owners need to come back to find their lost daughter and grandson.