What I love about My Spring Days is how many levels there are to the love story. Bom-yi is re-falling in love with the family she met all those years ago when she returned little Poo-reun. Dong-ha is allowing his heart to remember love when he sees how open and generous Bom-yi is with him and his kids. Her warmth and humor attract him – not sure how physical the pull is right now. He probably doesn’t dare to let those feelings blossom. She is after all his brother’s fiancee. With that in mind, his empathy with his daughter who is also captivated by Bom-yi is so genuine, and I love his advice not to get too greedy. This is, of course, easier said than done. As he struggles away from the pull from Bom-yi, she is too innocent to see how her good feelings could eventually hurt another person. Someone has to deny his or herself the love they desire. Who will that person be?

Episode 5 recap:

Dong-wook is commanding that Ji-won stop seeing his brother. She assures him not to worry that Dong-ha likes her, since he admitted he likes someone else – his fiancée. “I think you should be more careful if you don’t want him to take her from you again.”

Dong-ha holds his glass of fresh squeezed juice, drunkenly listing all the reasons he is thankful to Bom-yi. He giggles, which I love every time. As he talks, tears spring to her eyes and she reaches out to touch his hair. He looks surprised at the gesture, but even more at the bracelet.

Enough to forget his strength. He grabs her wrist tightly, until she complains five times, and tells her HE made the bracelet. That he used it to propose to his wife. We flash back to that time. Dong-ha Oppa collects the shells and beach rocks, the happy couple talk about moving to Seoul, and Soo-jung quitting her diving job.

 In his room, Dong-ha ties the drilled stones onto a string. When she receives the bracelet, Ji-won loves it.

Bom-yi realizes that the little runaway that she returned to loving parents was Poo-reun. A flashback shows us a pregnant Soo-jung and very worried Dad begging the police to find their daughter.

As they go outside, Poo-reun- 7 runs into their arms, then cries. The rescuer looks on and very briefly Dong-ha-7 nods to Bom-yi -7.  In the present, he holds the bracelet lovingly, sadly.

Dong-wook recalls the conversation with Ji-won about his brother. He worries.

Bom-yi and Dong-ha get out of the car at her house and chat some more, Bom-yi admits she misses Poo-reun.

When she gets inside, she calls Dong-wook. He is outside her house watching his hyung leave. Bom-yi recounts the story of the family she met, marveling that it was actually his Hyung. This makes him even more upset recalling the proposal.

Bom-yi revisits why she felt so moved when she saw the kids = it was because she had met Poo-reun before. This is too much for Dong-wook, who hangs up suddenly. It’s like a wound he cannot let anyone get near.

Bom-yi’s apa discovers him outside. They go for beer. Bom-yi’s father believes cellular memory is all just stories. He points out the dramas only talk about eyes and hearts. What about kidneys and livers?

Why doesn’t someone’s kidney fall in love with someone else’s? (Yay,Dad!)  Bom-yi apa warns Dong-wook NOT to tell his daughter or she would run straight to Hyung’s house to take care of the family. When Dong-wook reveals he proposed, Bom-yi’s father agrees they should hurry the wedding. (Boo, Dad!)

Dong-ha arrives home and imagines his tiny Poo-reun-7 waiting for him on the stoop.

She morphs back into her present age and asks why he was so late. She worried about him and wants assurance that he is well prepared for his presentation the next day. He hugs her and she complains he smells like alcohol. We pan to the bracelet.

At home, Bom-yi talks to her Udo map and wonders, “Do you know them?” She lies down and doing drama math unravels the mystery proving she is intelligent Then, cancels it, proving she is a character in a drama.

“Poo-reun’s mother is from Udo Island too? Do you know her by any chance? I met Poo-reun seven years ago and he lived in Seoul then. I had the surgery five years ago and she’s from Udo Island too. Then do the two of you know each other? I wonder how Poo-reun’s mother died. I don’t know. I shouldn’t be curious about something like that.” She flashes back to the saving hands in the water below her.

“The person in the sea… Was that Poo-reun’s mother? Am I right? Or am I confused? Wait a minute. You aren’t…the same person, are you? Aigoo! I’ve watched too many movies. What are you talking about, Lee Bom-yi? There’s no way. It isn’t fate, it’s a miracle.” We see a replay of her hand with the bracelet reaching up to Dong-ha’s hair startling him. She worries that he’ll think she’s not all right for doing that. (I like her hands.)

Dong-ha places the palji in front of his wife’s photo and understands how grateful his wife must have been, but how sad she couldn’t buy her a meal.

”So you gave her the bracelet secretly instead? You said you’d return the favor if you met her again. How can you return the favor now?”

The next day, Bom-yi goes to see Poo-reun at the school, she also imagines tiny Poo-reun in the teen’s place. Bom-yi felt bad about leaving her that day. Some schoolmates yell over that Bom-yi looks too young to be her mom, but Bom-yi declares she is. After all, she is her aunt, right? At that moment Dong-ha shows up, Poo-reun spills that her Dad was coming to present to her class. Sec Lee is happy to see her, Dad less so. A little sheepish face or two from Bom-yi, then it is decided she will stay to watch.

At the hospital, Dong-wook finds out from Se-na that Bom-yi has a date…not with him. His is later that evening. Hmmm…

Poo-reun and her dad sit nervously at the back of the classroom.

Dad starts his presentation with a large cow poster behind him. He is too stiff and awkward and boring at first, so the kids stop paying attention.

Bom-yi gives him tips from outside the class, and he throws down the index cards. Hilariously, he uses his Sec as the model for the parts of beef. Including a firm butt squeeze to identify the rump roast.

The kids laugh and learn; he gives away prizes, too. Poo-reun is rightly proud of him.

Ji-won brings Dong-wook the new contract to his office.

While he signs, she assures him she and Dong-ha are continuing to meet only to keep Meat Momma off his back. She included the clause about the Organ Transplant Center, but we see in a flashback it isn’t entirely accurate. Even if the administration agrees to open the center, there is no guarantee they’ll consent to Dong-wook running it. She deletes lines off the contract.

Leaving the school triumphant from her father’s success, Poo-reun holds Bom-yi’s hands smiling.

They discuss going somewhere after, including the aquarium, but Poo-reun demurs. She would rather they all go with Ba-da. Dong-ha puts the kibosh on the outing, and Sec Lee takes Poo-reun to the car. Dong-wook has a serious talk with Bom-yi.

“I don’t want you to be too close with my children. Poo-reun can barely manager her feelings for you…and if you keep appearing to her like this…” He is starting to date Ji-won, and Bom-yi is marrying his brother, so it’s better to limit meeting. Bom-yi is not happy with this decision.

Bom-yi and Dong-wook are at their dinner date. He wonders who she was with that afternoon, but interestingly, she won’t tell him. They eat without talking. Dong-wook breaks the silence and asks why she gave her heart necklace to Poo-reun, as it was her own gift to herself to celebrate her post-transplant life. Bom-yi insists it makes even more sense, then, for her to keep the sea stone bracelet from the mom in exchange. Dong-wook slides a jewelry box over to her, confessing he knew she was disappointed he didn’t give her a ring when he proposed.

This piece can replace the necklace she no longer wears. It is a pretty teardrop diamond pendant. He wonders if she has any ideas in mind for the wedding and the honeymoon. He startles Bom-yi; she thinks it is too early. He wants to get married soon. Rather than put the necklace on, she closes the box.

 The kids are putting together a puzzle on Dad’s bed when he gets home. Ba-da is all happy that Noona, Uncle’s girlfriend, wants to go on a picnic. Dad allows it but will be too busy to go himself. Uncle can take them. Ba-da is deflated and glumly says, “I don’t like Samchoon.” Hmmmmm

Dong-wook walks Bom-yi to her door commenting on how quiet she has been. She admits to having seen Poo-reun, oh, and his brother, that day. He wonders why she waited to tell him, but the fact that he is upset proves her fear it would make him feel bad.

Bom-yi rejects the idea that his brother and she meet too often because of coincidences. “We even met seven years ago too.”

Dong-wook hangs on by a thread and insists, “That’s how you know you and I share a destiny.”  She sums up the entire conundrum “Really, it seems like your brother and I do.”

Ut-oh.  They stare at each other and she apologizes. He is hurt that she hid her encounter that day with Hyung.

“There’s nothing more to hide from you because I won’t meet him again. He’s going to keep seeing Miss Bae. He told me not to get close to Poo-reun because either you or Miss Bae might be uncomfortable with it.” The sadness in her face tells how unhappy she is with this decision and he notices.   “Are you that disappointed? The fact that you can’t see my brother and his children, are you more concerned about that than your wedding gift and our wedding plans?” It is an uncharacteristic fit of pique from him, and she doesn’t answer. She goes in to sleep.

Dong-ha holds the bracelet recalling his “Stay away from me” warning, while Bom-yi remembers, too. Both sigh at the decision as necessary as it is. Dong-wook also remembers Bom-yi’s admission that it is his brother and she who share a destiny.Bom-yi’s parents discuss that the Doc signed the contract. When the Organ Transplant Center opens, they won’t have this much spare time. Apa apologizes for not having any ability (to run the hospital?) she says it is her fault.

Bom-yi is on the way to the market, the parents comment that she looks tired. After she leaves, Mom declare she is going to convince Bom-yi to quit working – her daughter’s fatigue is making her nervous.

Bom-yi is working with her boss, who ignores a cell phone call from “Bal San Market.” When the landline rings, Boss answers and gets screamed at by the supplier they dropped.

Mom and Ji-won talk work, but move to more personal matters. Mom suspects that Hyung and she are only pretending to date. Just in case, she give advice that she should get closer using the kids. Mom leaves to tour the hospital.

Dong-ha holds the bracelet thoughtfully and heads out to Hae Gil Hospital while his Sec goes on and on about how masculine his boss is since he has fallen in love. Dong-ha never corrects him, but orders him not to follow him.

Bom-yi and her friend wait for a delivery on the hospital loading dock; Bom-yi is introspective. Her friend tells her not to worry.

The Hanu Haon delivery truck arrives with Meat Momma. Bom-yi is surprised, but they greet each other warmly. As plant manager, she wants to makes sure everything is fine for the first delivery.

Bom-yi offers to help and insists she is healthy despite Meat Momma’s worry.

Dong-ha sits with Ji-won at the hospital cafeteria. She advises they need to be seen together more often. It is mission accomplished since employees all around them gossip.

Bom-yi and Meat Momma chat and drink tea. Bom-yi’s mother arrives – several things are revealed: Bom-yi is Doctor Kang’s fiancée. Meat Momma is visibly upset that the girl with the scar is marrying her son. She wants to talk separately to Bom-yi’s mother.

Bom-yi hears a ruckus in the kitchen and goes in to find the former supplier kicking up a fuss. He’s angry and threatens them, throwing things around. Since they changed suppliers, he can do whatever he wants, too. He grabs Bom-yi by the smock, and just when he is about to strike her Dong-ha shows up. During the struggle, Dong-ha gets cut on the arm – blood drips down.

Meat Momma sympathizes with Bom-yi oma. How difficult it must be to raise a sick child. As much as she likes Bom-yi as a person, she simply cannot allow her son to marry her. Bom-yi oma apologizes for hiding the health issue. But the boys’ mother is more sorry since the wedding is cancelled.

In the Emergency room, Bom-yi stands tearfully by Dong-ha who is getting his arm stitched. Dong-wook arrives to see this touching scene, it makes him angry.

He sends away the doctor working on his brother, then sends away Bom-yi. She doesn’t want to go until Dong-ha releases her. Outside in the waiting room, she worries. While finishing the dressing on his hyung’s wound, Dong-wook remarks on the coincidence of Bom-yi finding lost Poo-reun and receiving the bracelet as a gift. Dong-wook gets right to the point. “Do you like Bom-yi?” After all they share the same taste in women. Dong-wook complains that he Bom-yi see each other too often. Even if it is only by accident. “I hate it.”

Dong-wook describes Bom-yi as a very good person – non calculative and brave, but he himself is different and very scared that “Hyung’ll take her from me again.”

Dong-wook defends himself, “I never stole anything from you.” Dong-wook agrees that So-jung never was his woman – that it was just his one sided crush. He makes a sad admission, “I’m even more scared because you’ve always been better than me.” Dong-ha protests that he is too serious. He just came to return the bracelet and asks his brother to return it for him. He gets up to leave, and without being aware Dong-ha knows the truth about Ji-won’s fake dating agreement, Hyung reminds Dong-wook he has met a woman, so there is no reason to worry.

Dong-wook leaves the hospital and runs into a concerned and teary Bom-yi. She tries to hand him a recipe for a healing porridge. Not only will he not take it, he tells her to stop giving him things. In the future, he won’t be taking anything else from her. He leaves her stranded and hurt. Dong-ha witnesses the interaction.

Bom-yi is concerned and confused and just wants to go to the man who got hurt because of her, but Dong-wook stops her.

Dong-ha drives home, recalling his brother’s accusation of liking his fiancée. Distracted, he almost runs people over at a cross walk. We hear “I’m scared that you’ll take her from me again.”

Thoughts:

Depending how you look at it, the bracelet could be the symbol of Dong-ha’s dead wife’s enduring love, or it could be some monster-like actor that literally forces Bom-yi’s hand. The writers keep making us to choose how we perceive this couple. Do Bom-yi and Dong-ha share more of a destiny than she and her fiance Dong-wook? Are we supposed to believe that the Poor Doctor never had a chance? If so, I hate this idea. Fate turns into predestination, and I may as well eat a whole box of donuts if my actions have no affect on my life’s outcome. [Actually considers this…]

Let’s give the writer a lot more credit. Instead, accept that we all walk the road of our lives, reading the signs on where to go next. Based on our intelligence, experience, advice from others, we choose the direction ourselves. If our fears have too much influence, we may turn where we should stay straight, and miss opportunities.  If we keep looking back rather than ahead, we may block ourselves from experiencing a new and better reality.

Re-watching to recap, it dawns on me that the hero of this story is the one who struggles the most with his life: Doctor Kang Dong-wook. When cheerful Bom-yi arrived in his life, with the added bonus of having his first love’s heart, he thought “Awesome! Second chance!” not realizing that letting go of the past would improve his life more than redoing it. His worst fears are connected to exactly what buoyed his hopes in the first place: Soo-jung’s heart and who has it now. Bom-yi is beginning to see a different side of Dong-wook. Rather than the confident doctor who saved her life, he is letting the fear of losing Bom-yi to Hyung rattle him. He’s nervous and kinda jerky, and Bom-yi is confused. It doesn’t help that Dong-ha gets to be the one to make her laugh and rescue her, though. Let’s hope Dong-wook can recover his footing soon.