“Love Your Enemy” is only getting cuter, and the love story is utterly delightful with each episode. But there is drama aplenty accompanying the leads’ reunion. Seok Ji Won (Ju Ji Hoon) and Yoon Ji Won (Jung Yu Mi) are finally dating after breaking up 18 years ago. Even though they try to keep it a secret, the school faculty knows and cheers the couple on. However, Seok Ji Won’s father is least amused by his son’s relationship and him being on the side of Yoon Ji Won’s grandfather regarding the development project. Meanwhile, Yoon Ji Won gets a visit from someone in her past, making her anxious and scared. Here are three times the two leads, despite everything, proved they are still made for each other!
Warning: spoilers from episodes 9-10 below
When Yoon Ji Won gets her mojo back
“I have always tried to shield and protect myself, but even then misfortune comes my way,” says Yoon Ji Won to her grandfather. Even though she is trying to tell him that keeping away from Seok Ji Won all those years ago was the darnest thing she may have done to herself, it is also in a way encouraging herself to get her spirit back. Being with Seok Ji Won makes her happy, and it is apparent on her face and her vibe. She is more at ease and is smiling more often. When the staff members in school discover the two have started dating, she makes no effort to make excuses or hide the truth from anyone.
Ji Hye (Kim Ye Won) thanks Yoon Ji Won for always being her friend, even though she herself has never been one back. And Ji Hye is still not brave enough to come clean that she was the one who had created the trouble between both Ji Wons years ago. But when Ji Hye finds Yoon Ji Won’s college essay paper from years ago, she takes it to her, saying she would have known even if it didn’t have Yoon Ji Won’s name on it since it captures her spirit. It’s the spirit of a spunky girl who wants to fearlessly stand for the truth and never takes a beating even when the going gets tough.
But the Yoon Ji Won of the present has an incident that happened 14 years ago that continues to haunt her till date. When an episode takes place between two students in her homeroom class, Yoon Ji Won doesn’t realize it would impact her as well. The parent of one of the students is none other than Mr. Jeong, the man who had ruined Yoon Ji Won’s corporate career when she had stood up and testified against him for sexually harassing a colleague. The colleague had changed her testimony, and the slimy Mr. Jeong had sued Yoon Ji Won for defamation and for being a troublemaker. Soon after, when her parents died, Jeong had mocked her for her father embezzling funds.
Yoon Ji Won is traumatized and unable to face Jeong, who continues to hound her, wanting to meet her in school. But what she doesn’t know is that Seok Ji Won is well aware of all that had happened to her years ago. He tells her that she has nothing to fear, especially when he is by her side. Encouraged and motivated, Yoon Ji Won faces Jeong bravely in the face and tells him he can no longer trample over people and destroy them. Yoon Ji Won seems to have got her confidence and spunk back, and with Seok Ji Won by her side, she has nothing to fear.
It is rather sweet how she shows effortlessly shows her feelings in front of Seok Ji Won. There are no pretexts or subtexts when the two are together. They are so attuned with the other.
Seok Ji Won, the man for all seasons
There is no denying that Seok Ji Won is a man after viewers’ own hearts. His glances, sweet gestures, and actions speak louder than words. A cute moment is when Yoon Ji Won leaves home without having any breakfast. He treats the entire school to sandwiches so that she manages to get a bite in. But what we don’t know is that he has always, in his own way, guarded and protected Yoon Ji Won in the years they have been apart.
When Yoon Ji Won cancels their meeting saying she has a headache, he suspects something is off. He is further concerned that she is tense and distracted. What could she be possibly hiding from him? When he runs into Mr. Jeong, Seok Ji Won immediately recognizes him as the man who had destroyed Yoon Ji Won. We are taken back to 14 years ago when Yoon Ji Won is at the funeral home and is visited by Jeong, who bullies her. Hiding in the shadows is none other than Seok Ji Won, unseen by Yoon Ji Won, but in his own way being part of her grief. Soon after, we see the 24-year-old Seok Ji Won plant a blow on Jeong’s face, unbeknownst to the latter for what reason. In the present, as he faces Jeong, he tells him he has no need to meet the homeroom teacher (which is Yoon Ji Won) but to rather discuss the situation with him since he is the chairman. Seok Ji Won is tough and means business.
When Yoon Ji Won calls him to the terrace, his face is pale as he runs up. We are taken back to the time when Yoon Ji Won was seeking psychiatric help and both she and Gong Moon Soo (Lee Si Woo) were perched on the terrace on the cusp of taking a drastic step. As these two shared a beer, Seok Ji Won was actually the one who had climbed up and pulled them back, preventing them from falling off the edge.
As he reaches the terrace in the present, he embraces her, saying to never play hooky on a terrace ever again, since it scares him. This is when Yoon Ji Won discovers the truth about that night at the hospital and embraces Seok Ji Won, her face wet with tears. Ju Ji Hoon’s Seok Ji Won has managed to tick all the boxes when it comes to being a suitable partner.
Both leads are 18 at heart, and it seems time stands still when they are together. Ju Ji Hoon is an absolute delight in his romantic avatar, and the chemistry between him and Jung Yu Mi is easy and sweet.
Family feud vs. the proposal
Ever since their colleagues discovered that they are dating, they are constantly asked about their marriage plans. When Yoon Ji Won says she never thought about marriage in all these years, Seok Ji Won says that he had thought about it once. Yoon Ji Won asks him jealously when he had thought it, and he replies that it was when they had just started dating 18 years ago.
Seok Ji Won wants to put a ring on their relationship, but his grand proposal plans go awry when they are discovered by her grandfather. Mr. Yoon, well aware of the hostility between the two families, is worried about Yoon Ji Won. However, Seok Ji Won gives his assurance that he will never leave Yoon Ji Won’s side or make her unhappy. It is a cute moment to see both Seok Ji Won and Mr. Yoon sharing the same room and having a heart-to-heart about the girl they both cherish.
On the other hand, Seok Ji Won’s father is not amused and even slaps his son, saying it is unacceptable. He claims it’s a ploy by the Yoon family to prevent him from making a golf course. But Seok Ji Won remains adamant that he will only marry Yoon Ji Won. He finds an ally in his mother, who says she is happy as long as he is.
But it seems there is another person who is as opposed to the union, and it is none other than Ji Kyung Hoon (Lee Seung Joon), who is like a son to Mr. Yoon. Ji Kyung Hoon has not only sided with Seok Ji Won’s dad but also owns most of the land around the school. He also buys out the very people that Seok Ji Won had gotten to protest against his father’s redevelopment plans. Will Mr. Yoon be able to deal with Ji Kyung Hoon’s betrayal? Plus, the other tricks that Seok Ji Won’s dad and Ji Kyung Hoon have up their sleeves are yet to be seen.
But despite everything, even with his grand proposal plan falling flat, Seok Ji Won can’t wait to propose to Yoon Ji Won. He doesn’t even realize that Yoon Ji Won has already seen the box and is utterly delighted. It is a cute moment when both are sitting in the attic as Seok Ji Won pulls out the box and Yoon Ji Won says, “Let’s get married.”
It’s cute how these two complete each other’s sentences, know what the other is thinking, and are totally in sync with each other. Happily engaged, it seems the two are all set to rewrite the Seok and Yoon history, but not before a bit of drama, which always follows them wherever they go!
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Puja Talwar is a writer with a strong Yoo Yeon Seok and Lee Junho bias. A long time K-drama fan, she loves devising alternate scenarios to the narratives. She has interviewed Lee Min Ho, Gong Yoo, Cha Eun Woo, and Ji Chang Wook to name a few. You can follow her on @puja_talwar7 on Instagram.
Currently watching: “Love Your Enemy,” “When the Phone Rings.”