Dinner Mate: Episode 15 Recap

It’s finale week so we finally get to wrapping things up for our respective characters. When all is done and over with, what will happen to our characters? What will they have learned throughout this entire journey? Who will they support and who will support them?

Dinner Mate/Would You Like to Have Dinner Together?: Episode 15 Recap

Jae-hyuk stares at a photo of him and Do-hee that he has on his phone. He recalls the last time he visited Do-hee and asked her not to hate him too much. In response to his statement, she merely brushed him off and vowed that she would only care about what’s most important in her life from now on. Jae-hyuk returns to Do-hee’s place later on that night and attempts to meet with her once more. There’s something urgent he wants to tell her. When she doesn’t answer because she’s out spending time with Hae-kyung instead, he wanders around the neighborhood and reminisces memories of him with Do-hee back when they used to be together. Time has passed, but nothing has changed. Jae-hyuk still wants Do-hee only. Jae-hyuk wants Do-hee so much he imagines him walking with her when he witnesses Hae-kyung and Do-hee casually strolling together not too far from him.

Like Keanu mentioned in his counseling session with Jae-hyuk, Jae-hyuk is living in a fake world where Do-hee is the one person he can’t live without. It’s too much for Jae-hyuk to succumb to the reality that he’s not the most important person to Do-hee and he decides to give up. Hae-kyung approaches the medical journalist after giving Keanu a call about Jae-hyuk’s whereabouts. When the psychiatrist approaches Jae-hyuk, Jae-hyuk assumes Do-hee is disgusted with him. Maybe she’ll be happy if he was to disappear. Although Hae-kyung attempts to persuade Jae-hyuk otherwise, Jae-hyuk escapes and runs towards the street. Hae-kyung trails closely behind and manages to fling Jae-hyuk out of the way only to be the one to get hit by a speeding car. Do-hee runs to Hae-kyung and sobs as she yells for help. Eventually, both Jae-hyuk and Hae-kyung is transported to the emergency room at the hospital. Do-hee continues to shed tears as she waits outside anxiously and nervously.

Gun-woo rushes to the hospital and is informed about the situation from Byung-jin. Gun-woo catches Do-hee inside the hospital room with Hae-kyung who is still unconscious. His surgery thankfully was successful, but he’s still not awake just yet. Inside the room, Do-hee prays for Hae-kyung to recover as soon as possible. He took his comment literally when he said that he would die for Do-hee, but that’s not what Do-hee wants. That’s not what anyone wants. She wants him to recover and to wake up as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Gun-woo pays a visit to Jae-hyuk who wasn’t too badly injured from the incident. He’s awake and he recalls the last few seconds he saw of Do-hee running to Hae-kyung’s side before passing out. His cousin isn’t too happy with him and he expresses his disappointment and frustration with Jae-hyuk. Gun-woo walks out.

Hae-kyung thankfully wakes up the next morning. Do-hee is relieved at the sight of her boyfriend conscious and awake and she leans down to give him a tight hug. She was so worried. Hae-kyung explains that he jumped in to rescue Jae-hyuk as a doctor and that he felt responsible for saving the patient. Plus, he feels as if he will be alright and recover just fine despite fracturing two ribs. But what about Do-hee? How is she doing? Hae-kyung checks in with his girlfriend who is still distraught and saddened over the whole incident. Hae-kyung reassures her that as long as she is okay, he will be too. They give each other another hug once again.

Gun-woo invites No-eul to join him in his visit at the hospital later, but she declines. She feels as if she no longer has a right to be angry at Jae-hyuk or to care for Hae-kyung. At first, she wanted Jae-hyuk to steal Do-hee away from Hae-kyung, but now she’s angry that he hurt Hae-kyung in the process. No-eul’s thoughts have changed and she’s okay with not being in contact with either guys for now. Keanu visits Hae-kyung in the hospital and apologizes for not being there in time to save Jae-hyuk. However, Hae-kyung doesn’t blame Keanu for anything. In fact, Hae-kyung rescuing Jae-hyuk was for himself. He rescued Jae-hyuk because he didn’t want Do-hee to have to suffer forever and feel somewhat guilty if something were to happen to Jae-hyuk. Keanu reassures Hae-kyung that he made the right decision. He shouldn’t blame himself no matter what.

Jae-hyuk receives a visit from his dad in the hospital. His dad isn’t so thrilled to see his son in the hospital after years of not being in contact. So this is what he’s been up to? Jae-hyuk recalls the moment when he was sent away to the United States after writing an inaccurate article about Keanu that lead to the psychiatrist to get dismissed. Jae-hyuk reasons that he wrote such an article to be acknowledged by his dad, but instead, it only made things worse. The article was false and it ruined people’s lives, Jae-hyuk himself included. Fast forward to the present and Jae-hyuk’s Dad wishes he had cut ties with his son earlier. Jae-hyuk feels the same way. Now he realizes that he will never be loved by his dad, but that’s something that he’s grappled with. He’s not going to remain as his dad’s son anymore. His dad is so enraged by the claims he slaps his son in the face and walks out soon afterwards. After exiting the room, Jae-hyuk’s dad is greeted by Keanu. Keanu encourages Jae-hyuk’s Dad to receive some counseling and to visit him any time for a session. With that, Keanu enters Jae-hyuk’s room to find the medical journalist squatting on the ground while crying. No words are exchanged, but Keanu sympathizes with Jae-hyuk and gently pats him on the back.

Byung-jin pays a visit to his boss and asks to take care of Hae-kyung. He can do just as good of a job at taking care of him as Do-hee does — maybe even better! But of course, Hae-kyung wants to be with his girlfriend instead so Byung-jin leaves the couple alone. Haha. Poor Byung-jin! In the meantime, Jae-hyuk makes his final decision. He agrees to being hospitalized at a psychiatric ward upon being discharged that afternoon. Keanu adds that it won’t be easy, but Jae-hyuk displays some signs of determination and perseverance. He feels apologetic and guilty for hurting lots of innocent people and for running away whenever he wreaked havoc, including Keanu from years ago. This time, he won’t run away so he wants Keanu to help him. When Jae-hyuk is discharged from the hospital later on that day, he walks past Do-hee without even batting an eye at her. Maybe he really has changed after all.

Back at 2N Box, So-ra, Assistant Producer Kim, and PD Jin-kyu all have a small talk about the incident. They’re in disbelief that someone like Jae-hyuk could pose as such a threat which PD Jin-kyu adds should be a reason as to why you should never judge someone by their appearance. He hands So-ra two beverages upon being rejected by her twice. Someone’s in love~. CEO Nam pays a visit to the hospital herself. She finds Do-hee sitting outside on a bench so CEO Nam approaches her friend and colleague to have a talk. Do-hee questions her role and involvement in the incident. Did she merely not recognize the struggles and troubles that Jae-hyuk was going through or did she purposely ignore them because she put her and her happiness first? Would Do-hee have been able to live happily if Jae-hyuk had died? CEO Nam reassures Do-hee that she shouldn’t blame herself for what happened. Hae-kyung rescued Jae-hyuk because he did it for her. He wanted her to be free and to not have to live with the haunting thought of a dead Jae-hyuk forever engraved in her mind.

Gun-woo catches Jae-hyuk leaving the hospital in his car so he flags him down and volunteers to drive Jae-hyuk to the psychiatric ward. Jae-hyuk isn’t in the right condition to be driving (that’s right!). Back inside Hae-kyung’s hospital room, he senses that something is up with Do-hee so he has her sit down to express all her thoughts and worries. The counseling session is off to a great start until Do-hee rambles about his looks and how good-looking he is. Hae-kyung is her boyfriend after all so she gets butterflies around him. With these jokes and comments, the session comes to an end. Do-hee is too darn cute for Hae-kyung and he can’t continue with the counseling session. With that, he sneaks a few smooches with Do-hee before she stops him by giving him a glass of water to drink. Lol. They’re too cute!

CEO Nam is upset with Keanu for keeping things a secret from her. Why didn’t he tell her about Jae-hyuk? Why didn’t he tell her that he knew Jae-hyuk? Something could have happened to Do-hee and Hae-kyung. Hae-kyung could have gotten killed. Something bad could have happened to Do-hee. After calming down for a few seconds, Keanu is grateful for Do-hee and Hae-kyung. If it wasn’t for the both of them and their involvement in all of this, Keanu might have actually killed Jae-hyuk for what the medical journalist did to him years ago. However, thanks to them, he was able to give both himself and Jae-hyuk another chance.

Byung-jin brings Hae-kyung home after the psychiatrist is discharged from the hospital. He’s still hurt and he still feels pain, but there’s something more pressing on Hae-kyung’s mind. Byung-jin might be intelligent and hardworking and great, but there’s something he’s lacking: he doesn’t know how to take hints. Hae-kyung hints to Byung-jin to leave his place so that he can be alone. With that, Byung-jin leaves. Do-hee requests for Mom to make her tons of food. She lies that all the food is for her staff back at 2N Box, but Mom can read through Do-hee’s lies. She’s aware that she’s cooking all of this for Do-hee’s boyfriend — whoever he is. Mom warns Do-hee not to date a weirdo (like Do-hee did with Young-dong or Jae-hyuk) or else! Speaking of 2N Box, No-eul and Gun-woo make another visit to the studio. No-eul plans on quitting her shows at 2N Box.

After struggling to change into more comfortable clothes, Hae-kyung opens his doors to Do-hee who’s holding onto bags full of food. She describes them as medicine and is confident Hae-kyung will heal with the food. Hae-kyung also learns from Do-hee that her mom was the one who cooked all the food — you know, Hae-kyung’s patient who claimed she would do whatever it took to change her daughter’s mind if her daughter was to bring home a popular man like Hae-kyung. The psychiatrist is a bit bothered by the comment and questions if Mom knows that she cooked all this food specifically for him. Speaking of Mom, she receives texts from Dad who apologizes for all that he’s done to her. He wants to start things over with her.

No-eul announces her resignation at 2N Box with CEO Nam. She’s quitting all the shows she’s participated in at 2N Box, but CEO Nam isn’t hurt by the news. Although sad, she’s confident that No-eul will get more many offers by other companies. To that, No-eul informs CEO Nam of her plans to participate in a fashion-related show with Gun-woo as her next step. Back at Hae-kyung’s place, the two feast on Mom’s food together. It’s Hae-kyung’s first time eating homemade beef bone stew. Upon thinking about it, Do-hee recalls Hae-kyung’s rough childhood and how he had to learn to fend for himself at a young age. That explains why he was getting so emotional over something as simple as stew. Hae-kyung then transitions to talking about Do-hee’s Mom. When does she plan on introducing them to each other? Of course, Do-hee dodges the questions and doesn’t answer Hae-kyung’s question. Lol.

It’s strange without PD Do-hee and influencer No-eul at 2N Box. It just doesn’t feel the same filming a show without the two at the studio. CEO Nam and Keanu go out for some dumplings at the same restaurant where CEO Nam gifted our-then homeless ahjusshi with some dumplings. This time, he treats her out to some dumplings for what would be their last dinner date. Keanu announces his plans to break up with CEO Nam. He never received closure to the one thing he said that he needed to sort out so he doesn’t feel as if he can be with CEO Nam. Nonetheless, he wishes that she will find someone who she will love and be happy in a relationship with. Although heartbroken, CEO Nam doesn’t plan on being with anyone else. She’ll wait patiently for Keanu. At their age, it’s never too late for anything.

So-ra visits Do-hee at her place to check in on her friend. Although Do-hee isn’t at work, she looks like she’s been working overtime for an entire week with how exhausted she looks. Do-hee mainly blames it on taking care of Hae-kyung that she’s been so tired, but she’ll finally get some rest since Byung-jin will be taking care of Hae-kyung that day. With that, So-ra orders some food for the both of them to eat. It hasn’t been too long since Keanu and CEO Nam broke up so the pain and hurt is still fresh. Keanu recalls the night when he and CEO Nam were walking on the usual sidewalk in the neighborhood that they usually go on and how she shared details about her love life with him. It feels strange and odd to not be with CEO Nam anymore since he’s become used to it and was able to create great lasting memories with her from their relationship.

Do-hee suffers a nightmare of the car incident involving Hae-kyung. In her nightmare, Hae-kyung doesn’t recover and wake up. Even when he’s at home resting in his bed, Do-hee is unable to wake Hae-kyung up and she presumes that he’s dead. When Do-hee finally awakens from her nightmare, she panics even further when Hae-kyung doesn’t pick up her phone call. She runs over to his place and gives him a tight hug upon reuniting with him. The fear was too much for her and she needed to be there with him to see for herself that he was okay. After calming down, Do-hee explains her situation to Hae-kyung. She had a nightmare that he wouldn’t wake up, but Hae-kyung reassures her that he’s alive and that her nightmare was due to the shock and trauma she got from the incident. Since she didn’t know how to express her feelings, she kept all her emotions inside of her which lead to the nightmare. After comforting Do-hee with some words, Do-hee notes her sweaty clothes from all the running and she volunteers to go home. However, Hae-kyung won’t let her go so easily and hands her some of his clothes to change in.

After changing into Hae-kyung’s clothes, Do-hee volunteers to stay to change the bandage around Hae-kyung’s waist. Since Byung-jin isn’t there to take care of Hae-kyung at the moment, Do-hee can assist. Although Hae-kyung insists that he’s fine and that he can take care of himself, Do-hee wants to help him change his bandage. She can handle it. Except Do-hee can’t. She struggles to change the bandage after seeing Hae-kyung’s injury for herself, but she slowly gets the hang of it after a few seconds. However, the wait is too long for Hae-kyung and he can’t stop staring lovingly at his girlfriend. He reassures Do-hee that he’s completely fine and then leans in to give her a kiss on the couch. After the kiss, Hae-kyung asks for Do-hee to have breakfast with him in the morning (aka to spend the night with him). The couple stare into each other’s eyes and Do-hee remains speechless at Hae-kyung’s request. Will she or will she not have breakfast with him the next morning?

My Thoughts:

The ending was total fanservice, but that’s what we totally deserve after all the pain and suffering and frustration the drama put us through the past 15 episodes! Okay, that’s all I have to pretty much say about this episode. Rest of my thoughts will be posted in the recap for the final episode. Until then, enjoy the extra screenshots from this episode 🙂