Sang Tae shines this week as he grows and develops thanks to the love of his friends and family, while the past threatens our OTP’s plans for the future. Will love win out, or will the trauma of everyone’s youth be insurmountable? Find out as I chat everything Its Okay to Not Be Okay e,pisode 12.
Go away we are working
Kang Tae learns that not everything is about him when he comes down to breakfast to find his brother and Moon Young deep in a work discussion. It is his day off, and all he wants is to hang out with his two favorite people, but they are too busy bickering book details to notice poor Kang Tae. Ha…he ends up calling his 3rd favorite person, pizza bestie Jae Su, and inquires if he wants to hang out. Pizza Bestie guesses right that he is getting the offer because the other two ditched Kang Tae but relents and tells him to come to the pizza shop anyway.
The ants are swarming
Kang Tae does nothing but mopes at the Pizza shop, and his bestie eventually snaps a photo of his friend looking lonely and the mass of giggling girls drooling behind him. Bestie sends Moon Young the photo and says that the ants see a yummy piece of sugar, and shouldn’t she come and take care of her man? Ha! That gets Moon Young zooming to stake claim on Kang Tae by glaring at the girls and knifing the plate aggressively. And, much to Pizza Bestie’s disappointment, not buying extra pizza. I have a feeling that he is going to try and make a killing off of selling Moon Young pizza in exchange for info regarding his bestie.
I want a baby maybe
Moon Young observes a woman with her unruly kids across the restaurant and says that she doesn’t want to have kids because she will be jealous of them. Kang Tae looks at her adoringly and declares they are important for making life worth living. Later at the grocery store, Moon Young loudly declares that she has decided that she would be OK if they had a son since she wouldn’t be jealous of a little boy that looks like Kang Tae. Kang Tae blushes and asks if she isn’t getting a bit ahead of herself to which Moon Young loudly shouted that she wanted his baby. Why wouldn’t he let them have a baby? Poor Kang Tae rushes her away from the other store patrons who were whispering how selfish he was not to give his wife a baby.
Finding the butterfly cure
Sang Tae experiences a ton of emotional growth in this episode as he delves into his butterfly trauma. Thanks to the Director forcing Sang Tae to face his fear of butterflies via his mural, Sang Tae now has a different idea of butterflies. Instead of only thinking they are evil, they can actually be the cure to many illnesses. Sang Tae attaches his mind to the idea that butterflies can equal cure.
I’m an adult
While Sang Tae continues to think about facing his butterfly fears, he comes across the older patient from the hospital. He is supposedly leaving the hospital, but it seems to be well known that he will be back sooner than later. Our sweet patient suffers from PTSD from being in the Vietnam War. He discusses with Sang Tae how it is better to face the past and move on since if you get stuck, you won’t ever be able to grow and live a happy life. Right after the two men have this discussion, a jackhammer at a nearby construction site sends the older gentleman into a panic attack. Sang Tae saves the day with his quick thinking as he covers the man with his jacket and holds him safe until someone from the hospital can arrive.
All of these events cause Sang Tae to decide that he is ready to face his fears. He can’t let his fear keep him and Kang Tae from settling down and being happy. As an adult, he has to talk about the day his mother died. We learn that he runs after a cat, and when his mother follows, a mysterious woman cuts her throat. We hear her say that the mom should have focused on her own children and not hers (Gasp). The mysterious woman is covered in shadows except for the bright gold butterfly pin on her jacket. A pin that is stuck in Sang Tae’s mind as the evil woman whispers that she will come kill him if he tells anyone what he saw. When Sang Tae describes the pin in detail, Kang Tae’s face suddenly loses all color, and it is obvious that something just clicked in his mind.
Oh crap…
Earlier in the day, Kang Tae had been confiscating items from Mr. Oh’s room (at the request from creepy nurse) and finds a photo of Moon Young with her parents. The face of her mother is scratched out, but on her clothes is the pin that his brother had described. Putting two and two together, Kang Tae realizes that the person who killed his mother might very well be Moon Young’s mother. It doesn’t help matters that Kang Tae had also discovered a note, with a dried butterfly included, at his brother’s work station. The note said that she would be seeing him soon. The threat sends Kang Tae into a panic, although it does look like he has decided to confront the problem rather than running this time.
Romeo and Juliet
Kang Tae falls back on bad habits and pushes Moon Young away. Thankfully, it is not as bad as he has in the past, but his brisk behavior obviously hurts Moon Young’s feelings. He tells her that he doesn’t have time to take a family photo and he will talk to her later. When she leaves, he goes to the hospital’s classroom and breaks apart when he sees the words, Romeo and Juliet, on the blackboard. The Director finds him crying and discovers the possible horrible fate between Moon Young and himself. The Director gives him a hug of comfort as Kang Tae begs for him to not say anything. Moon Young should be able to keep her innocence on the problem and not suffer for her mother’s actions.
Family portrait
Sang Tae is still working out what it means to be family. When he tries to explain that you have to be on the family registry to be a real family, Moon Young declares that a family registry is outdated. In modern times what matters is whether they have a family portrait or not. This means that the three of them have to get their portrait taken post haste in order to lock down this family thing. Moon Young buys the boys suits and hires a photographer. Unfortunately, the timing could not be worse since Kang Tae is still reeling from the possible mommy murder issue. Kang Tae refuses to come out of his burr,ito of sadness and the two must go take photos without him (Deciding to get professional photos of them together for their upcoming book.)
Sang Tae is so excited and asks Moon Young which of his cool looks he should use? He then shows her some very awkward smiles that seem very similar. Moon Young smiles at him gently and says that none of them work since they are not the real him. Let the real Sang Tae out, and that is what will be the best.
My heart literally melted at this scene between them. I’m officially a puddle of happy feels. Which then turned into a whole other feeling when a dressed up Kang Tae walks in, apologizing for being late. That boy sure knows how to clean up good.
The trio takes the photo, smiling brightly. Hopefully, this is a sign that whatever comes in the future this family will stay together.
My thoughts
I was really moved by how amazing Sang Tae was this week. The growth that he showed in stepping outside of his comfort zone, both with his family as well as the butterfly terrors, was epic. I love all three of our leads, but it is Sang Tae’s thoughtful strengths that are really pulling everything together for me right now.
Until the next story,
Kmuse
Dramas With a Side of Kimchi
