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Eun-ho and Ji-yoon were once enemies but now they find themselves in the same space, the same workplace, and on the same side. How will they navigate this new chapter in their relationship and will things slowly get better or will it only get worse?

Love Scout: Episode 2 Recap

Eun-ho visits Byeol’s therapist for an appointment and he’s relieved upon receiving some good news: Byeol has gotten better. While flipping through the pages in Byeol’s drawing journal, he discovers her sketches of him and Byeol together. In Byeol’s world, it’s just her and her dad and that’s all that she needs. So to celebrate, Byeol visits her favorite place in the world: Dodam Bookstore run by Mi-ae’s husband, Kang-seok. Eun-ho follows her into the bookstore and Kang-seok commends Eun-ho for his hard work. It hasn’t been an easy year for him or Byeol but they finally did it. While walking to Eun-ho’s place, Kang-seok brings up the idea of Peoplez potentially hiring Eun-ho. He does need a job. But as much as Mi-ae wants to, she’s hesitant based on the negative reviews that she’s received from Chief Song, Eun-ho’s former supervisor. They also chat about Eun-ho’s life as a single father and how he had divorced Byeol’s Mom before Byeol had even turned a year old.

When Kang-seok and Mi-ae arrive at Eun-ho’s house, they’re stunned at all the amazing food that Eun-ho and Byeol worked together to prepare. Mi-ae steps aside to pick up a work phone call and it seems as if the search for Ji-yoon’s secretary isn’t going so great. While listing out a bunch of qualifications that would be best for the position, Mi-ae realizes that the best candidate is right in front of her. It’s none other than Eun-ho. He meets all the traits and qualifications and would be perfect as Ji-yoon’s secretary. And that’s eventually how he landed the position (great work Mi-ae!).

Ji-yoon is in disbelief upon learning about Eun-ho’s role as her secretary. She confronts Mi-ae privately in her office and is baffled at the news. How could she do such a thing? Eun-ho was the person who disrupted her plans of recruiting Team Leader Yang to work for their client. But this excites Mi-ae even more. That just meant that Eun-ho was incredible at his job! Hahaha. It turns out Eun-ho himself initially had some doubts about working for Ji-yoon. He at first declines the position but Mi-ae manages to persuade him by mentioning that she’ll raise his salary so that he has enough money to buy Byeol’s favorite toy (which is quite costly). 

Ji-yoon and Eun-ho quickly converse in the office about his hiring. Though Eun-ho is keen on being her secretary, Ji-yoon still recalls all the harsh and brutal comments he previously made about her and her company. She dislikes the idea of Eun-ho as her secretary but she quickly discovers that he can be of assistance to her. While walking out of her office, Ji-yoon discovers that she doesn’t have her shoes on so she returns back to her office only to receive them from Eun-ho. After Ji-yoon leaves, Eun-ho and Mi-ae agree to hold up the terms that they previously discussed about. They sort of don’t have a choice but to keep Eun-ho at Peoplez.

Eun-ho is properly introduced to the rest of the staff by Mi-ae and they sure are a unique bunch. Eun-ho learns really quickly that they’re quite different from his former co-workers. There’s consultant Manager Kim Young-soo, Deputy Na Gyu-rim, Oh Kyung-hwa, and Lee Kwang-hee (who warns Eun-ho to run away during his introduction LOL), and Jung-hoon who acts a little wild and wacky when he arrives into the office. It’s an eventful first day of work for Eun-ho so far, haha.

Ji-yoon meets with a client who’s looking for an architect for their next project. Ji-yoon is confident that she’ll be able to find the best candidate for the project. But Ji-yoon’s confidence wavers when she unexpectedly encounters her rival and former mentor, Hye-jin. The two take jabs at each other and the rivalry between the two gets more and more intense with every comment. Though Hye-jin might have mentored Ji-yoon in the past, it’s obvious she’ll do whatever she has to do now to take Ji-yoon down. Ji-yoon isn’t going down without a fight.

When Ji-yoon returns to the office, she refuses to acknowledge Eun-ho and plans to keep doing whatever she wants. So Mi-ae steps in to help Eun-ho by giving him some tips on how to maximize his opportunity as Ji-yoon’s secretary. He stays up late at the office to organize Ji-yoon’s schedule and client documents efficiently and presents the work to Ji-yoon the next morning at the office. But Ji-yoon isn’t impressed. Eun-ho learns for himself the challenges of being Ji-yoon’s secretary. She likes the staples on her packets to be at a 45 degree angle and she only likes coffee from a specific coffee shop and it has to be at the right temperature. But his first attempt isn’t successful and Ji-yoon throws away the coffee that Eun-ho got for her. So what else is there for Eun-ho to do? Mi-ae advises him to pay extra attention to Ji-yoon when she’s in her office. She can be a bit clumsy sometimes and accidentally hurt herself. Though Ji-yoon isn’t so impressed with Eun-ho, the rest of her staff are. Eun-ho helps them with various tasks and assignments in the office which Ji-yoon can’t help but notice and observe. He’s also learning little by little, like replacing the dead plants in her office with a bunch of fresh new ones. He also resists himself from smiling since Ji-yoon isn’t fond of it (LOL). Though work has had its challenges, Byeol is there for her father through it all and she gives him her stamp of approval, literally. She reminds him of how hard he’s working and places a stamp on the back of his hand. Aww.

Eun-ho encounters Soo-hyun while at the bookstore and finds her shyly placing some of her children’s books on a table. Eun-ho assists his neighbor by promoting her book to a child nearby and the two sit down after to catch up with each other. Byeol looks forward to reading Soo-hyun’s book one day but things aren’t so bright for Eun-ho. He visited the bookstore to purchase some new books related to his position as a secretary since it’s obvious everyone else but Ji-yoon likes him. To this, all Soo-hyun can say is “fighting!”. LOL.

And Ji-yoon isn’t shy in expressing her dislike for Eun-ho at work either. She continues to ignore him and refuses to acknowledge him or ask for his help. Mi-ae reminds her once again to go to Eun-ho if she needs anything unless she wants to overwork and end up in the hospital again like last time. Mi-ae’s frank reminder worries Ji-yoon a little bit and she sneaks a few glances at Eun-ho who sits awkwardly at his desk. Later on that night at work, Eun-ho hands over some papers to Ji-yoon which she had been looking for. Though Eun-ho is learning and improving at his job, Ji-yoon still isn’t sold. The two stop beating around the bush and finally have an honest conversation with each other. She still hasn’t forgotten his previous comments about her company’s mission as headhunters but Eun-ho pleads for another chance. He’s willing to unlearn and re-learn his stance on what her company does. Plus, he has the work experience needed for the secretary position. This job is all that Eun-ho has left. He has nowhere else to go. Ji-yoon studies Eun-ho’s resume later that night and discovers that he has a daughter.

And Eun-ho is doing all of this for his daughter. He takes his position as secretary seriously and does some studying himself. He reads books and articles related to his job and headhunters as well as watches videos. The studying pays off and Eun-ho’s confidence grows. He prepares some reports for Ji-yoon and makes sure to staple the packets at a 45 degree angle like Mi-ae told him to. He also learns a new shortcut from Ji-yoon’s favorite coffee shop that will help keep the temperature of her coffee right where she likes it. He even fixes her office door for her and also sets up corner guards on the tables inside her office to protect her from accidentally injuring herself. Ji-yoon can’t help but be impressed. Everyone in the office notices her change in behavior towards Eun-ho. Mi-ae is especially happy and proud.

Life at both work and home has been great for Eun-ho. Soo-hyun finds Eun-ho playing with Seo-joon and Byeol at the playground by their apartment complex and she can’t help but fall for him. The group of four head back to their respective homes together after. On the other hand, things aren’t so nice for Ji-yoon when she arrives home from work. It’s been a long day and tragic memories of her father in a fire incident resurfaces when she notices what day it is: April 2. Ji-yoon wakes up sweating from the nightmare.

During the walk to work, Ji-yoon is distracted by some cherry blossoms and is reminded of her late father. She recalls the time when the both of them spent some time at an amusement park surrounded by falling cherry blossoms petals. It’s a memory she holds dearly in her heart and her heart aches at the thought of her father failing to keep his promise of protecting her. Eun-ho – who was also walking to work – catches sight of Ji-yoon from across the street and he watches her carefully. He continues to worry for her even while at work. Ji-yoon doesn’t look or feel good at work. She’s usually sick around this time of the year due to the passing of her father so Eun-ho takes her out for lunch. He wants to make sure she eats but Ji-yoon isn’t in the mood. She grows even more upset when she realizes how similar Eun-ho is to her father. Eun-ho opens up and shares that he decided to go on parental leave to be there for his daughter. He’s all she has left. This was something that Ji-yoon’s dad also promised Ji-yoon when she was younger which he ultimately failed to do. Ji-yoon takes it out on Eun-ho later on in her office. His acts of service are too much for her sometimes and she only needs him to do whatever she says for him to do. Everything else is overdoing it and she doesn’t like it. So Eun-ho understands and walks away.

Even though Ji-yoon is feeling sick, the work doesn’t stop. She receives a phone call from the same client who she met with earlier in this episode and learns that the candidate who she hired for the client has backed out. The client wishes to cut ties with Peoplez. Ji-yoon knows who’s behind the situation and she confronts Hye-jin at her office. Hye-jin reminds Ji-yoon of what she did in the past before she ventured out to create her own company. She was the reason as to why former CEO of Career Way, Lee Yong-hoon, passed away. Traumatic memories of Ji-yoon being blamed at work for the death resurfaces and she can barely walk out of the Career Way office. Everyone stares at her and talks badly about her. The pain is all too much for Ji-yoon and she’s close to fainting. But then she sees a familiar face at the last minute and it’s none other than an angel her secretary. Eun-ho quickly approaches Ji-yoon and arrives just in time to catch her from falling. They stare at each other for a few seconds before Ji-yoon leans over and falls unconscious on Eun-ho’s shoulder. She’s physically and mentally drained and there’s one reliable person who remains by her side through it all: Eun-ho.

My Thoughts:

This episode was so so good and I enjoyed how it kept us busy with so many storylines. From watching Ji-yoon and Eun-ho navigate a new dynamic in their relationship in the workplace to Eun-ho learning how to be Ji-yoon’s secretary to Ji-yoon’s backstory of her and her father to Eun-ho and his love for Byeol and its similarities to Ji-yoon’s relationship with her father. This episode really did have it all.

Perhaps one of the things that I enjoyed the most about this episode was watching Eun-ho learn how to do his job as Ji-yoon’s secretary. Granted, he was a manager in the HR department at his previous job so it wasn’t like he had a ton of experience in being a secretary or knew the in’s and out’s of Peoplez. However, I was afraid that the drama was going to take a shortcut and somehow present Eun-ho as this perfect and competent and smart know-it-all right away. Instead, the drama showed us Eun-ho learning the ropes of his new position. He didn’t succeed on the first try whether it was stapling Ji-yoon’s reports or buying her coffee from her favorite coffee shop. And I loved that we saw how he improved little by little, step by step. He didn’t succeed overnight; he wasn’t perfect from the start. He made mistakes and instead of giving up (which he admitted that he couldn’t do because he needed the job to provide for Byeol), he continued to fight. He showed sincerity in his job; he took it seriously by studying and reading and watching videos. He was persistent in getting things right and doing things the way that Ji-yoon wanted it to be done.

It wasn’t just about being good at his new job and learning how to be a competent secretary. It was also about how to be a competent secretary for Ji-yoon. Eun-ho had to adapt and adjust to be the type of secretary that Ji-yoon needed. And slowly but surely, Eun-ho grew more confident not only in doing the things that Ji-yoon wanted him to do but also in taking care of Ji-yoon in general like fixing her office door or ordering new plants for her office. It was so fun to watch Eun-ho ease his way into his new role. It sure wasn’t an easy process and I liked that we got to watch him grow through his journey. We witnessed how Eun-ho got Ji-yoon to eventually warm up to him. By the end, you slowly saw Ji-yoon put her trust in Eun-ho and treat him differently. His role as her secretary required him to not only be good at his position but to also change his stance on her company. He had to unlearn what he thought search firms like Peoplez did and he had to learn what they actually do and how they operate. There was more to Eun-ho’s role as secretary than he thought and he took on the challenge of doing things right and getting things right.

Because it wasn’t easy for Eun-ho to step into the role as Ji-yoon’s secretary right away, he and Ji-yoon clashed and they didn’t get along all that well. Again, I liked that the drama didn’t shy away from showing us Ji-yoon and Eun-ho’s new dynamic in their relationship. He was her secretary, she was his boss. What would happen now? How would they act? Would they pretend to act like nothing happened in the past and suddenly be on good terms? Or would they confront their history with each other to move forward? I enjoyed the honest and real conversation they had with each other in private back at the office. It was exactly the conversation they needed to address the reality of their current situation. Ji-yoon couldn’t quite accept Eun-ho as her secretary just yet because she was well aware of how he felt about headhunters and her company. And she wasn’t going to just forget about it or gloss over it like it was nothing. Ji-yoon wasn’t going to move past it until she received some type of acknowledgment from Eun-ho that he would change his old ways.

Some might think Ji-yoon was being petty but I actually perceived her actions to be consistent with her character. I interpreted her actions and attitude to be in line with what we saw of her in episode one and with what we know of her so far: she cares about her company. There’s a reason she’s the CEO. This company is everything to her. This company is all that she has. Literally. She works all day and all night and comes home to a dark and empty house. She suffers from insomnia and resorts to sleeping pills to try to get any ounce of sleep. Peoplez means everything to Ji-yoon and she wants someone who is sincere about her company but also whose thoughts and values on her company aligns with hers. She knew how Eun-ho previously felt about headhunters; she knew he didn’t view them so positively. Yes, he may have had the qualifications for the secretary position itself and he’s a smart and fast learner. But what about his opinion on headhunters? On search firms? On companies like Peoplez and people like Ji -yoon? So I could understand why Ji-yoon was initially on the fence about Eun-ho joining her company and serving as her secretary. She couldn’t trust him because of their past interactions.

Eun-ho had to fight to earn Ji-yoon’s trust and to excel in his position as her secretary. He eventually was able to succeed at this and it proved to be well worth it. Ji-yoon opened up to Eun-ho because she saw how he changed in the way that he respected her and the work that her company does. But I think it’s also because she has a little soft spot for Eun-ho in that he reminds her of her late father. Eun-ho was there for his daughter and he would do anything for her. Ji-yoon’s father promised Ji-yoon the same thing only to unfortunately pass away. Eun-ho loves Byeol so much the same way that Ji-yoon’s father loved her and she noticed that resemblance. I think that’s why she was upset with Eun-ho at the end of this episode. She lost her father a lot earlier than expected and missed out on experiences and memories with her father. As a single father, Eun-ho is able to be there for Byeol and create those experiences and memories with her. It’s not easy for Ji-yoon who’s heartbroken and devastated. Being constantly surrounded by someone whose presence reminds you of the person who you lost and miss dearly has got to hurt. But I think it also allows Ji-yoon to view Eun-ho differently and even admire him for the person that he is. He loves and cherishes Byeol so dearly and is such a good father to her. Even if spending time with Eun-ho reminds Ji-yoon of the pain and hurt from losing her father, she still acknowledges that he’s a good father to Byeol. He’s the type of father that Ji-yoon once had and needed in her life.

It wasn’t easy for Eun-ho to learn the ropes for his new position and it wasn’t easy for Ji-yoon to accept the reality of her new situation. But after some tough conversations and a few bumps in the road, the two were able to address their past to focus on the present. Hopefully by eliminating the tension between them and solving the uncomfortable issues internally, this will allow Ji-yoon and Eun-ho to focus on larger external issues at hand, including the ongoing threat of Hye-jin and Career Way.