To the Beautiful You

To the Beautiful You: Episode 13

Yay! We finally get some rich character development in this series. Better late than never, right? You'd be dead wrong if you think that you'll find progress in either of our leads. No, no – this episode is full of epic win for Hyun-jae who learns that some things in life like friendship, love, and forgiveness are far better and more satisfying than winning.

SONG OF THE DAY

TVXQ – "왜" (Keep Your Head Down) [ ]

EPISODE 13 RECAP

Jae-hee stares blankly at Tae-joon's big "Stay with me" confession until the door slides open, interrupting them. Eun-gyul clucks at Jae-hee for not answering him and returns her phone. Tae-joon shoves himself out of there, leaving Eun-gyul to silently glance at Jae-hee to check if she's okay.

The two arrive back at school the following evening and Tae-joon ushers Jae-hee to clean up first, adding that they'll chat about "a secret" afterwards. Jae-hee wonders to herself, "Did he catch on that I'm a girl?"

On the other side of the door, Tae-joon resolves, "I'm not going to hide my feelings anymore." By... not telling her how you feel or that you know she's a girl? Let me know how that works out for you.

Doc can't shake off his suspicion after he sees Tae-joon voluntarily carry Jae-hee's bags in so he sends Jae-hee a text to be more careful because "not everyone is an idiot like you." Man after my own heart.

Only, he mistakenly sent it to Tae-joon instead. Doc panics.

He meets up with Tae-joon and tries to play dumb, explaining away his mistake. Then his jaw drops when Tae-joon asks if Doc already knew that Jae-hee's a girl.

Tae-joon has suspected for some time but knew for sure when he overhead Daniel. But then he's silent at Doc's next question of why he kept it a secret if he'd known for so long. Doc's eyes grow wide in realization, "You really think of her... as a girl, don't you?"

Tae-joon admits it and says that he's going to come clean because there's no reason to hide how he feels any longer. Doc questions this line of logic, wondering if that's best for everyone. If Jae-hee becomes aware that Tae-joon knows, won't she feel like she has to leave?

Tae-joon glosses over his earlier mention to chat when he returns to the dorm. Surprisingly, Jae-hee asks what Tae-joon meant last night in regards to Eun-gyul. He replies that he meant just that – for Jae-hee not to think of other people when she's talking to him.

Then what about America? It'd be annoying to get another roommate. Jae-hee takes it all at face value and starts to walk away, disheartened, when Tae-joon stops her by the arm. He says, "Don't think of anything else and stay by my side." Wait – that doesn't answer anything!

He repeats himself with added weight to his words when she nods along. So Jae-hee assures him that she'll stick to him like a piece of gum which gets him to smile.

Morning. Now Tae-joon smiles warmly at Jae-hee's notes and even leaves one for her, thanking her for the drink and telling her she drools when she sleeps.

He's even in prime condition at practice, and gets caught smiling at Jae-hee who watches from the door. The same can't be said for Hyun-jae, who fails to make it, and it's an extra hit to his pride when Coach asks Tae-joon to show him how it's done.

Coach Baek comments that it's good that Hyun-jae is aggressive but there needs to be a push and pull – he can't just charge forward of his own volition. He sternly reminds Hyun-jae that Nationals are just around the corner and that Olympic qualifications are on the line.

In the locker room, Hyun-jae ponders over the endorser's business card, contemplating what to do.

He's even in prime condition at practice, and gets caught smiling at Jae-hee who watches from the door. The same can't be said for Hyun-jae, who fails to make it, and it's an extra hit to his pride when Coach asks Tae-joon to show him how it's done.