01x03 - Episode 3

[bunniefuu]

BETWEEN STEPS

CHARACTERS, PLACES, ORGANIZATIONS,
AND EVENTS IN THIS DRAMA ARE FICTITIOUS

THIS DRAMA CONTAINS SENSITIVE CONTENT

[♪ soft music playing]

[singing]
♪ Carrying a fragrance not too strong ♪

♪ You sit demurely
on the dark brown table ♪

[grunts]

♪ It feels awkward to even speak to you ♪

[continues singing indistinctly]
♪ Because you sit there ever so quietly ♪

[keys jingling]

[gate opens]

[gate closes]

[digital beep from door]

EPISODE 3

[TV playing]

You're late.

Yeah, I haven't seen these friends
in a while, and I lost track of time.

You didn't drink much, did you?

No, not much. Just a little with dinner.

Don't lock the door yet.

Youjin is not home.

She's still not home at this hour?

The other grad students
threw her a welcome party.

Oh.

[Miyoung grunts]

Jeez, you scared me.

What are you doing?

- Honey.
- Let go.

So I was on my way home just now,
and you know that alley next to our place?

There's a streetlight there, right?

A streetlight?

Yeah.

There were these two young people there,
holding each other and kissing.

- In the alley right next to our place?
- Yeah.

Oh my. Who were they?

Do you know them?
Do they live around here?

I don't know. I've never seen them before.

But seeing them reminded me of us
back when we were dating, you know?

What?

How about a kiss? It's been a while.

Stop it. What's gotten into you?

Come on. Just one kiss.

God, stop it.

Miyoung, come on. Just give me one kiss.

Come on, I said no. Stop it!

Please, just one kiss.

Stop it. Gosh, stop. [giggling]

Jeez, will you guys stop already?

Dad, are you drunk?

If you're drunk, just go to bed.
Stop bothering Mom and leave her alone.

Come on, go to bed already.

- [digital beep from door]
- What are you doing? Come on.

- [Youjin] I'm home.
- [door closes]

You need to come home earlier.

- Hey!
- [Youjin] Okay.

Do you know what time it is?

You need to start
coming home earlier, young lady.

Look at the time!
You've been drinking, haven't you?

Hey. Don't call your sister
"young lady," okay?

And what do you mean,
your dad is bothering me?

You're the one who bothers me the most,
you know? It's you. God!

[♪ pleasant piano music playing]

[grunts softly]

I don't know.

[grunts]

[♪ music continues]

SLAM DUNK

SEOHAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY TEST PAPER
NAME LIM YOUJIN

TEST PAPER
NAME KIM SEJIN

- [door opens]
- [♪ music ends]

[Taeho speaking indistinctly]

No matter how much you do it, we...

- You're already here.
- Hello.

Youjin, you're here early.

She got here earlier than we did.

[Youjin] I can't be late on the first day.

You never disappoint, Youjin.
That's why I got you a coffee.

Thank you. I appreciate it.

Who are you?

[phone vibrating]

[Taeho] Minjae, where are you?

[Minjae] On the bus.
I'll be there in five.

Did Youjin come?

What about Lim Youjin?

Did our new lab mate Youjin...

[inhales sharply, sighs]

Morning. Morning.

[in English] Morning. Good morning.

Good morning.

[in Korean] Morning.

I'm Kim Sejin. Nice to meet you.

All right.

Okay, sit down.

I thought Sejin wouldn't be joining us
until the semester started,

but he said he could start this month,
so I had him come in early.

He's new to our school, so help him
settle in and look out for him.

Oh, okay.

Yes.

I thought you said
there was only one opening in the lab,

but there are two of us.

Right.

We... Our school might be competing
in the WRS this year,

so the professor told me
to take on one more student.

[whispering] Hey, what's the WRS?

[whispering] It's the World Robot Summit.

Yes?

But she doesn't even know what the WRS is.

Lim Youjin is a student
from another department,

so she'll still have a lot to learn.

So I'd like you to look out for her
and help her settle in.

- What is it?
- Then do we get paid the same?

- Yes, you'll get paid the same.
- Wait, but--

Let's get you two set up with desks first.
Let's see. Get up.

Then...

[grunts]

Ah.

Youjin, you take this desk.
And Sejin, you take this one.

But there's no computer at my desk.
There's nothing here.

I ordered a computer.
It should be here soon.

So until then...

You brought your own laptop, right?
Just use that for now.

I only brought my tablet.

You can use that for now.

[Minjae grunts]

- Minjae?
- Yes.

I think this computer is lagging.

Right. It's not lagging.

That one's just a little slow
because it's old.

- Yeah.
- Okay.

[Sejin sighs]

So when will my computer get here?

Uh...

I'm not sure.

They said it'd get here soon,
so just wait a bit.

Then, until mine gets here,
how about this?

What if we switch desks every day?
So we can take turns using the computer?

Why should we take turns
using my computer? It's mine.

How is this yours? It belongs to the lab.

That's not what I mean.
The lab lead assigned it to me.

[Hangyeol] Well...

Why don't you play rock-paper-scissors
or ghost leg?

The winner gets the computer.

Yeah, that's a good idea.

The winner gets the computer.
Fair and square.

Come on, there's no need for ghost leg.

We have to respect seniority.

Youjin joined the lab three days earlier,
so she should get it.

She has seniority over me just because
she joined three days earlier?

That's ridiculous.

Whether it's three days or three hours,
we take seniority seriously in this lab...

Mr. Kim.

Isn't this mine?

It's yours.

I mean, even if
you had a computer, Youjin,

you don't have any actual work to do yet.

So you can check your email
and look up papers

on your, laptop...

I mean, that tablet you brought for now.

And your computer should be here soon.

So just, yeah... Just wait a little bit.

[♪ slow string music playing]

[phone vibrating]

[Minjae] I checked, and it looks like
the computer should be here soon.

I think you won't have to wait long.

[phone vibrating]

[Youjin] Okay.

[phone vibrating]

[Minjae] Do you want some ice cream?

What flavor do you like?

[phone vibrating]

[Youjin] I don't like ice cream.

I absolutely hate it. I don't want any.

And I will never eat it, ever.
It pisses me off.

I hate it more than anything in the world.

[groans]

[Hangyeol] Youjin, over here. No!

[Taeho] Block her!

Miss!

- [grunts]
- [Youjin laughs]

Nice!

- [Sejin sighs]
- [chuckles softly]

They suck at basketball.
They haven't made a single basket.

[Chansoo] Hey, now...

[Taeho] She can't make it.

- [exclaims]
- [cheering]

She's not even that pretty.

What?

Let's be honest. She only stands out
in an engineering school.

There are plenty of pretty girls
at Hongik University.

She's just average.

Have you been to Hongik University?

No, I haven't.

I have.

But...

Well, I didn't see any...

Let's go.

Let's go. [sighs]

Hey, you guys are no different.
Daejeon is a boring city. Why--

That's not true.
Daejeon is a super fun city.

"Super fun?"
Why are you getting all defensive?

- [Sejin] No, seriously.
- What do you do there?

[Sejin] A lot of things.

[telephone ringing]

Should I take it?

Yeah. You can answer all the calls
from now on.

[Sejin clears throat]

This is Professor Ahn's lab.

Yes.

Yes.

All right, got it.

Professor Ahn's back from his appointment.

Yeah?

[Jaehong] You two are the same age
and in the same cohort,

so just support each other
and get along, okay?

"Loving your cohort
is loving your country."

There's a saying like that.

Right.

[Jaehong] Sejin, did you find
a place to stay in Seoul?

Yes. I found a place near campus.

Actually, it's right by my place.

Oh, that's great.
So you can help him out then.

Sure.

Anyway, I'm glad
Sejin was able to start early.

And I hear KAIST is competing
in the WRS this year too?

Yes. From what I've heard,
Professor Hwang Semin's lab will compete.

But their funding from
the Ministry of National Defense was cut,

so they sat out the last two years.

What funding do they have this time?

Uh...

Not through
the Ministry of National Defense.

KEIT plans to issue a call
for proposals this year.

- That's probably why--
- KEIT?

But I met Professor Hwang
at the seminar two weeks ago,

and he didn't mention anything.

Well, it's not official yet.

But I heard 200 million won
has been earmarked for it.



[exclaims softly]

Wow. Hwang Semin, that sly fox.

- Professor.
- Okay, fine.

But where did you hear about it?
None of us knew about that.

I heard it in the restroom.

Restroom?

While I was relieving myself.

Well, I wasn't trying to listen in.

I just happened to overhear him
talking on the phone.

He's pretty sharp.

Hmm.

Anyway, we need to hurry up
and put together our own proposal.

Okay, I'll make sure we're well prepared.

Right.

Didn't KEIT's RFP template
change last year?

Yes, I'll check.

Okay, please look into that first.

And keep an eye out.
We don't know when it'll be posted.

- Okay.
- All right.

What is KEIT?

Korea Planning and Evaluation Institute
of Industrial Technology, Ms. Lim.

It's an acronym.

That little rat...

[Chansoo] Why is KEIT doing

what the Ministry of National Defense
used to do?

The civilian sector can be dangerous too,
like industrial accident sites.

So I guess they'd be interested.

So we need to have everything in place
to reach around TRL 7 or 8,

or at least TRL 5 or 6, to the point
where it's ready for application.

Both the robot design
and the control technology

are our proprietary technologies.

Make sure to emphasize
that all key components,

like the actuators and encoders,
are made in Korea.

- Okay, got it.
- Good.

We'll need to include
the simulation results too.

And of course, we'll need visuals
to highlight all of that, right?

We just need something rough now.
We can revise it later.

What matters is having a preliminary draft
ready by the end of the month.

So let's get moving.

Okay.

- [Chansoo] All right, then.
- What about me?

What should I do?

You?

You can...

Uh...

read some papers.

What papers?

Anything. Read broadly.

You need to get up to speed
on current trends

What trends?

Whatever you find interesting.

Read anything
that catches your eye. Anything.

[♪ pensive music playing]

SEOHAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Here, I collected all the assignments.

You didn't have
to carry something so heavy.

- Give it to me.
- It's okay.

- Where should I put it?
- You can put it here.

[grunts]

I'm going to head out now.

Huh?

Ah!

I'm done too, actually. Wait up.

Let's head out together.

Want to grab dinner together?

Do you have any plans tonight?

No, I don't.

But I'm not hungry at all right now.

Oh.

[stomach growling]

[♪ chill music playing on speakers]

So how was your first day?

First days are always
a little hectic, right?

Yeah, I guess.

Read as many papers as you can
when you have time. It'll help you learn.

Okay.

You were hungry, weren't you?

I'm not eating because I'm hungry.
I'm just eating.

[muttering] That doesn't fool me.

What are you laughing about?

I didn't laugh.

I don't want to eat anymore.

Come on, why?

All right, I'm sorry. Eat up. Please.

I...

don't have a sister.

And it's not like
I have a lot of dating experience,

so I'm kind of clueless.

I was pretty drunk that day too.

You know, that...

That...

That day...

when you...

That day? What do you mean by "that day"?

That...

Do you mean the day of my welcome party?

Yes.

Did I throw up on your clothes?

Hmm?

No, not that.

[sighs wearily]

Well, I remember I was singing.
No, actually...

I remember getting into the taxi.

But after that, I don't remember anything.

You don't remember? Anything at all?

Did I hit you
or curse at you or something?

No.

And I didn't throw up either?

No, you didn't.

[sighing] I don't remember what I did,

but if I did something wrong,
I'm so sorry.

I didn't mean to do it, I was just...

I'm so sorry.

It's okay. If you don't remember,
don't worry about it.

I can't handle alcohol very well.

Whenever I drink,
I always end up doing something stupid.

I'm sorry.

No. It was my bad.

It's just... [sighs]

Are you done eating?

Yes.

If you're done, should we head out?

I'll walk you to the bus stop.

By the way, when will I get my computer?

That? You'll get it soon.

When exactly is "soon"?

[sighing]

They've shipped it,
so it should be here in a few days.

How many days exactly?
Tomorrow? The day after?

How am I supposed to know exactly?

So you don't know when it'll get here.

What am I supposed to do until then?
Just sit around?

Well, like I said earlier,
you can read papers and study.

I can read papers at home too.

What's the point
of coming to the lab, then?

Jeez.

And if there's only one computer,
you should've given it to me first.

Why did you give it to Kim Sejin?
He joined after me. I have seniority.

[Minjae sighs]

Hey, you...

You don't have seniority.

You joined us just three days
before he did.

I don't care if it was three days
or four days.

You still should've given it
to me first, not him.

Why do you think I gave it to him?

You need MATLAB to run Simulink,

and that computer
already has it installed.

That's why I gave it to him.

And frankly, you...

Do you even know how to use MATLAB?
What about Simulink?

If I don't know...

Then you can teach me, right?

Don't look down on me, and show me.
I'm a fast learner.

When did I look down on you?

What are you, a high schooler?

- An undergrad?
- [sighs]

Seriously, do I have
to teach you every little thing?

You need to look things up
and study on your own. And I...

I even told you to read papers.
But you called it sitting around.

Fine. If reading papers
is just sitting around,

go home and sit around.

Don't come into the lab.

Do you have anything else to say?

I know you never liked me from the start.

You didn't even want me to switch majors.

I'll just take the subway home today.

[grunts]

[muttering softly] God.
You've got to be kidding me.

[♪ melancholic music playing]

♪ Unless this first time is ♪

♪ Also the last time ♪

♪ There'll be a next time ♪

♪ And maybe we can try again ♪

♪ You threw me a life line ♪

♪ You were kind enough ♪

♪ To open what was shut ♪

♪ But then I shut it again ♪

♪ We got off on a bad start ♪

♪ You don't know the half of my heart ♪

♪ It pours like rain ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my pain ♪

♪ When I was young ♪

♪ I grew up a little too fast ♪

♪ I was wearing a child's mask ♪

♪ But I saw the worst of it ♪

♪ And then here you come ♪

♪ Like stardust falling from the sky ♪

♪ Excuse me if I shield my eyes ♪

♪ I don't want to get hurt from it ♪

♪ We got off on a bad start ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my heart ♪

♪ It pours like rain ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my pain ♪

♪ Oh, it's a shame, I know ♪

♪ My mind says "stop" ♪

♪ When my heart says "go" ♪

SEOHAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY TEST PAPER
NAME KIM SEJIN

SEOHAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY TEST PAPER
NAME LIM YOUJIN

♪ We got off on a bad start ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my heart ♪

♪ It pours like rain ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my pain ♪

[♪ music ends]

[inhales]

[sighs]

All right, let's see.

Let's see.

[phone clicks]

[line ringing]

Hello?

You picked up fast.
Hey, I have something to ask you.

What do you mean, birthday? Please.
Why don't you worry about your boyfriend?

Anyway, that's not why I called.
That computer you used, what brand was it?

Yeah. You know,
the one you used in the lab. That one.

[phone vibrating]

PARK MINJAE

[Minjae] You better show up
on time tomorrow.

If you're late,
I'm going to send you to Dieland.

[♪ theme music playing]

Hi.

You aren't late.

No.

Did you have breakfast?

[♪ fun music playing]

Isn't that Lim Youjin?

It's her, right? And next to her
is the research assistant.

She just fits in wherever she goes.
She makes friends so easily too.

It's nice to see.

Do you happen to know him too?

[chuckles awkwardly]

I don't really know him.

[beeps]

Go on in. Come on.

Oh!

When did this get here?

Well, I don't know.

Oh.

Was it delivered last night?
It must've been last night, after we left.

I told you it'd be here soon.
I told you to just wait a little.

Yeah, that was faster than I thought.

Try turning it on. Here.

[keyboard clacks]

Wow, it's so fast. [gasps]

All the software's already set up, too.

This is brand-new.
I got a brand-new computer.

Yeah.

Do you like it?

Yeah. I absolutely love it.

It's really expensive.

Yeah, I can tell by just looking at it.
This is an expensive, latest model.

So the rumor was true.

Rumor? What rumor?

I heard engineering schools have money
and get tons of corporate sponsorships.

What? Engineering schools
don't have a lot of money.

Maybe you don't, but our school does.

[sighs] Thank you, school,
and whoever made this happen.

I'll take good care of it.

We got a new computer?

Oh. When did you get it?

It's the latest model.

- Yeah.
- This thing is high-end!

What GPU does it have?
I bet it's got a lot of storage too.

Uh...

[sighing grimly] My computer was so slow

trying to run MATLAB, SolidWorks,
and RecurDyn all at once.

- Yeah.
- This is perfect.

Huh?

I can...

use this, right?

[sighs softly]

I... can use this, right?

This?

Right, but then...

Yeah, I mean, you...

You'll probably get more use out of it.

Then, Youjin, you take that one,
and Sejin, you take this one.

Yes!

What's wrong?

What are you doing?

I said, what are you doing?

I can't take this anymore.

Take what? You can just use any computer.

- They're the same.
- Forget it.

I don't need any of this anymore.

I clearly don't have what it takes.
I'm useless.

I was never qualified
to be here in the first place.

Sticking around
when lack the qualifications or skills

would only make things harder
for everyone.

I just can't do this anymore.

I'm leaving the lab.

What?

I stay up studying every night
and only get three, four hours of sleep.

I'm reading papers and trying hard.

But no matter how hard I try,
I just realize how much I don't know.

No, it's more than that.
The amount I don't know keeps growing.

The more I read,
the more I realize I don't know.

So what am I supposed to do?
What more do you want from me?

I already told you it was going to be hard

and to think carefully
before you make a decision.

Fine.

I guess it's my fault again.

Thanks for the lesson.

All right.

Bring me your withdrawal form
and a written explanation by tomorrow.

I'll email them to you.

What's going on?

Minjae, did something happen?

What's the matter?

Did something happen?

I'm not sure.

[♪ pensive music playing]

[sighs]

[muffled sobs]

[sobbing]

[sighs]

SEOHAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY TEST PAPER
NAME LIM YOUJIN

SEOHAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY TEST PAPER
NAME KIM SEJIN

Come on, you did a pretty good job.
Why are you crying?

[crying] What do you mean, pretty good?
It's a mess.

I made the question too hard. Yeah, I...

What about Kim Sejin?
How did Kim Sejin do so well?

Is he a genius?

Is he a genius and I'm just stupid?

Hey, He's him and you're you.
Why compare yourself to him?

I'm not comparing myself to him.
I'm just so stupid.

Maybe you're a genius.

Are you making fun of me right now?

At the beginning of the movie
Good Will Hunting,

Matt Damon's character
works as a janitor at MIT. But then--

I told you I haven't seen that movie.

Kim Sejin has, but I haven't.

So go talk about that movie
with Kim Sejin and leave me alone.

Why did you even let me in?

I haven't seen the movie,
I can't do math, and I'm so stupid.

[sobbing]

[sniffles] Forget it.
Let's just stop here.

I don't want to keep going on and on
like this either.

I'm so sorry for causing you
so much trouble all this time.

I may be leaving,
but I'll keep rooting for you from afar.

No. Hey, wait. Okay, fine.

Okay, sit down for a second.
Hey, just for a second.

Then, have you seen Harry Potter?

Come on, you've seen that one, right?

[♪ comical music playing]

In Harry Potter, there's this talking hat.

When Harry Potter puts it on,
it tells him,

"You're a Gryffindor.
You're a Gryffindor."

We have one at our school too.

A talking hat.

Want to meet it?

Okay. Come this way.

Oh?

I guess he hasn't come in yet.

[footsteps approaching]

Oh!

- Good morning, Professor.
- Hi.

Do you have a minute?

Sure. Yeah, come in.

[whispering] Is he the talking hat?

[whispering] Yeah, he is.

Sorry, my assistant is not here yet.
Is this okay?

- Yes, it's okay. Thank you.
- Please, sit down.

Thank you.

So you want me to look at something?

Right. It's just this...

Here.

Didn't...

I look at this the other day?

Yes, that's right.
You looked it over last time

and said it showed signs of genius.

I did?

Yes.

I said I saw potential,
not signs of genius.

Ah.

Is she the one who's
from a different department?

Yes, that's right. It's her.

Have we met before?

Sorry?

I feel like we've met somewhere.

I don't think we've met.

Okay.

Last time, you said she had talent--

Yeah.

Let me ask you one thing.

This is a basic question.

Why does one plus one equal two?

[Minjae] Mmm...

Because it conventionally represents--

So why was the numeral 2
chosen to represent it?

Because it looks pretty?

See? She thinks differently.

Oh.

[chuckles awkwardly]

Don't you think it's pretty?

I think about that a lot
when I'm solving math problems.

You know, the harmony,
the way things change...

Sometimes it feels
like a dance, or even a song.

Hmm.

Hmm.

That's romantic.

Pardon?

Yeah, I think I heard somewhere
that math is the language of God.

Right. That's romantic too.

That it's the language of God
translated into human language.

- Right.
- Yeah.

If numbers are God's language,

then this answer
is God being pretty chatty.

But when you're learning a new language,
being chatty is actually a huge advantage.

I wouldn't call it genius,

but I do see talent and potential.

That's how I'd put it.

Are you interested
in continuing your studies?

Uh...

Hmm...

Mmm.

Well, think about it.

Okay, I'll think about it.

That professor is a bit strange, isn't he?

Yeah.

Everyone says he's a genius, though.

A lot of geniuses are weird, though.
They're kind of nuts.

Then you must
be a super, super, super genius.

Anyway, I knew I had talent.
It just hasn't blossomed yet.

I'm not like Kim Sejin.

I'm a genius, and he's just a smart man.

Then will you let him use the computer?

Not just the computer.
He can use whatever he wants.

Now, I'm someone
who speaks the language of God.

[laughs]

Which means I'm a goddess.
A genius goddess.

[both laugh]

You're really... You're really cute.

- Let's go.
- Okay.

Done with that? I'll take it.

Thank you.

[Seohyun] I'm asking why you were
using Minjae's computer.

I gave it to him for his birthday.

- I thought it was school--
- Louder.

- Hey!
- You thought it--

What the... When did you get here?

What? I just got here. Why?

Didn't you go to work today?

I took the afternoon off.

Hey, will you please
keep the kids in line?

There's no discipline around here.
Absolutely none.

[sighs]

I got busy at work
and stopped checking in for a while,

and this is what happens to the lab?

Nobody even knew it's your birthday today.

- Hey.
- Well...

Minjae goes by the lunar calendar
for his birthday, and I got mixed up.

If you got them mixed up,
just celebrate both!

How hard is that?

No, it's not hard.

You've gotten way too comfortable.
You have no respect for Minjae, do you?

[all] No.

[yells] Everybody, out!

What are you doing?

[♪ theme song playing]

Too slow!

Aren't you going to go?

Me too?

Of course. Do you think
you're an exception?

- No.
- Uh...

What? What is it?

[whispering] Where are we going now?

[whispering] We're driving to Dieland.

[gasps]

Wait, Dieland is real? It actually exists?

[whispering] By the way, why is she
in a school uniform?

[softly]
Most engineering students are nuts.

[whispering] It's not
about being engineering students.

I think
it's a Seohan National University thing.

KAIST wasn't like this.
Everyone there was normal.

Jeez, you're wearing a school uniform.
You've got to be kidding me.

What? This is what you're supposed
to wear to a birthday party.

[sighs]

I told you to wear yours too.

Hey, that still fits you?

I know, right? I'm still fit.
I can totally pull it off.

I've gained weight,
so mine doesn't fit anymore.

Let's get you a new one.

No.

Then we can match every year
on your birthday.

I don't need it.

- Should I get you one?
- I said, I don't need it.

Why not?

- I'll buy a new one.
- I don't want it.

I'm never going to wear it. No way.

I haven't been here in ages.
But why is this place called Dieland?

[screaming]

[screaming]

[Sejin] I didn't realize it before,

but are those two a couple?

She got him an expensive computer
for his birthday,

and they seem really close.

They're not a couple,
but they're high school sweethearts.

No. It wasn't mutual, it was a crush.

It was just a one-sided crush.

Who had a crush on who?
Did Seohyun have a crush on Minjae?

No, it's not like that.

In high school,
Seohyun was the top student

and the most popular girl in the school,
while Minjae was dead last.

But he studied really hard
to get into the same university as her.

That's how he got into our school

and even followed her
into mechanical engineering.

[Chansoo] It's straight out
of a coming-of-age manga.

And a high school romance.

It's kind of like Slam Dunk.
Haruko Akagi and Hanamichi Sakuragi.

But they never dated? Why not?

Because Seohyun was super popular,
while Minjae was the kind of guy

who second-guessed everything
and made things way too complicated.

That's why they never got together.

Well, maybe that's not the reason.

Maybe it was because of his leg.

- Just try it on once.
- No.

Please.

- Damn it.
- Here. Just take this.

Hey, guys, take one each. [grunts]

Seohyun, when are we going home?

We should stay for the parade
and the fireworks. That's the highlight.

Wait, then we'll have
to stay here past eight.

[laughs mischievously]

Your expressions...

Look at you, Taeho, all grown up, huh?

No, we're good. We don't need to see that.

We're not kids. Come on, let's go.

[Seohyun] Come on, that's the best part.

- [Minjae] No, it's not.
- [Seohyun] Come on, let's watch it.

[♪ lively music playing]

I read Slam Dunk.

You read it?

Hanamichi Sakuragi was bad at basketball,
but he finds out Haruko likes it

and he joins the basketball team.

- That's basically it, right?
- Yeah, you read it.

It's fun, isn't it?

Not to me.

I guess you like stories like that?
Because you relate to it so much?

What?

Sorry. I'm in a bit of a mood today.

Why are you in a mood?

I don't want to tell you why.

It sounds childish
and unreasonable, even to me.

Unless...

If you put this on
and take a selfie with me,

I think I'd feel better.

No.

Please, just one picture with it on.

Why are you doing this?
No, I don't want to.

- Please, just once.
- No.

Not even once?

Of course not. Why would you put that
on your head? I don't get it. No.

I won't wait long.

[♪ slow pleasant music playing]

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

But no pictures, okay?
I'll put it on, and that's it.

[♪ music builds up]

[crowd cheering]

♪ I can't say ♪

♪ How long I've waited for you ♪

♪ And I don't know ♪

♪ How long I'll be with you ♪

♪ Maybe I'm just a fool in love ♪

♪ But still I wanna
thank the stars above ♪

♪ You're my home ♪

♪ Too many years I've passed alone ♪

♪ And now I'm home at last ♪

♪ Meet me there ♪

♪ Where all my cares
are not around me ♪

♪ It's anywhere ♪

♪ That you're standing next to me ♪

♪ A sacred place only we can go ♪

Are you looking for anything specific?

No.

♪ A secret only you can know ♪

♪ You're my home... ♪

Would you like to take a closer look?

No, I'm okay.

Then could you show me this one?

Sure.

[phone vibrating]

INCOMING CALL
SUBIN

[♪ music ends]

[indistinct chatter]

[♪ chill music playing on speakers]

[Youjin sighs]

It's been ages, hasn't it?

Yeah.

How have you been?

It must be so hectic studying
and working as a TA at the same time.

I'm sorry. It's all because of me.

Hmm?

It's not because of you.

I was never good at making clothes anyway.

And I wasn't sure about joining
Professor Kang's lab. You know that.

Actually, I saw you on campus a few times.

But I couldn't bring myself to say hi
or act like I knew you.

Well, that's...
I know how small this field is.

And you're still in the program.

You have to study and get your degree,

so, of course, you've got to stay
on Professor Kang's good side.

I'm the one who talked back to her
and caused all that trouble.

I was the one in the wrong.

Actually, Professor Kang
has cooled off quite a bit.

She said if you apologized,
she'd forgive you and accept it.

She'd forgive me and accept it?

Forgive me for what and accept what?

Well, maybe "forgive"
isn't exactly the right word.

But what good does it do
to get on the professor's bad side?

Okay, I'll think about it.

Really?

Yeah.

So, how's mechanical engineering?
Are you enjoying it?

Yeah, it's fun.

The lab assistant
is that guy from before, right?

I honestly had no idea he was disabled.

There was nothing unusual
about the way he walked, right?

He doesn't limp or anything.

[♪ melancholic music playing]

♪ Unless this first time is ♪

♪ Also the last time ♪

♪ There'll be a next time ♪

♪ And maybe we can try again ♪

[device beeping]

♪ You threw me a life line ♪

♪ You were kind enough ♪

♪ To open what we shut ♪

♪ But then I shut it again ♪

♪ We got off on a bad start ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my heart ♪

♪ It pours like rain ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my pain ♪

♪ When I was young ♪

♪ I grew up a little too fast ♪

♪ I was wearing a child's mask ♪

♪ But I saw the worst of it ♪

♪ And then here you come ♪

♪ Like stardust falling from the sky ♪

♪ Excuse me if I shield my eyes ♪

♪ I don't want to get hurt from it ♪

♪ We got off on a bad start ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my heart ♪

♪ It pours like rain ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my pain ♪

What brings you in on a day off?

Well, you're here on our day off too.

Well, I'm just...

What is it?

It's your birthday present.
I promised I'd get you one.

My birthday was ages ago. It's fine.

There's the computer... No, not just that.

I know you've been kind to me
in many other ways.

I can't always be the one receiving.

So you got me these? Do you know my size?

I just took a guess.

Try them on.
We can exchange them if they don't fit.

Sure, it's a gift. I should try them on.

♪ We got off on a bad start ♪

♪ You don't know ♪

♪ The half of my heart ♪

Cute.

♪ It pours like rain ♪

♪ You don't know the half of my pain ♪

Thanks.

[♪ music fades]

[sniffles]

How are they? Do they fit?

Yeah, they fit perfectly.
They're perfect. They're nice.

Walk around in them.
You won't know until you try.

Right. Okay.

I don't think I've ever
worn this color before.

[♪ somber music playing]

BETWEEN STEPS

What are those sneakers?

Youjin gave them to me.

[Taeho] She was squishing
your face like this.

She had this mature, older vibe.

She's someone I used to like.

Shouldn't we do something?

Just leave him be.
Let him live, die, or stay like garbage.

I just couldn't believe it at the time,
so I wanted to see it for myself.

[Minjae] Imagine how I felt
after you left like that.