JoongBo: 16

The episode starts off with Hwang Bo and Hyun Joong taking a morning walk together, before it progresses into a speed-walking competition! Hyun Joong walks at maximum speed, leaving Hwang Bo behind, breathless. They continue walking side by side as they talk.

HJ: You got my message right? Although 5 days have passed since your birthday, it’s a little late but really, Happy Birthday. *claps hands*

HB: *smiles*

Private interview:

HB: I was really surprised. I think I forgot what I saved his number under, I think I saved him as ‘Walking Statue’ at the time. When I received a message from ‘Walking Statue’, I thought “Could it be?”, it really was like that. He said that he was sending the message to me from Japan. From Japan. It took two months for us to exchange phone numbers, and three months to send messages. We’re progressing well.

The both of them continue walking together as Hyun Joong asks her if she’s good at the 100 meter sprint. She tells him that she was always chosen to be representative and they start comparing their best running times.

HB: What’s your best time?

HJ: About a little over 13 seconds.

HB: That’s the average time for guys. Mine was at about 15.6 seconds.

HJ: Really? You should be in Beijing now then! Why are you here?

HB: *laughs*

The both of them decide to have a little competition between them, setting a distance away from the mission box. Hyun Joong lets her start at a shorter distance than him, making her say that if she still lost to him, she’d be really sad. She goes to her spot and asks who’s going to start them, when he looks around and asks a grandmother watching them to say start for them. A grandfather starts them and they both run as fast as they can, Hwang Bo screaming as Hyun Joong catches up. He playfully tries to mess her hair as he runs ahead, before slowing down a little and Hwang Bo beats him in their race, the both of them laughing all the while.

They arrive at the mission box and he pulls their mission card out and begins to read their mission as well as the place of the mission.

HB: It says ‘Ool myun’. I really feel like crying now! (Ool means cry in Korean)

HJ: It says ‘Yool’, ‘Yool’.

HB: Oh, it does? *bashful*

HJ: You can’t read Hangul very well.

HB: *laughs*

They arrive at their destination and walk into an office space where they are told that they would be assisting a 90 year old grandmother with farmwork. They head to her house, where she lives alone, and meets the grandmother for the first time. She exclaims that the grandmother looks really healthy making the grandmother comment that did they think that she would look really old . They sit together and chat.

HB: Please just tell us what to do as you please, just like how you’d treat your grandchildren.

HJ: Yes.

Grandmother: Thanks.

HB: But you know guys do work better right?

HJ: But strangely enough, she does work better than guys.

HB: *laughs*

Grandmother: How old are you, miss?

HB: Me?

Grandmother: You look like my granddaughter.

HB: How old is your granddaughter?

Grandmother: Oh, she’s in her thirties!

HB: *faints*

HB: Well, I’m the blooming age of 29.

Grandmother: 29?

HB: Yes. Do I look it?

Grandmother: You look older…

HB: *faints*

They continue talking and Hwang Bo tells her that she’s older than her husband when the Grandmother says that that is really common now and that her granddaughter married someone three years younger than her.

HB: My husband is six years younger than me.

Grandmother: Six years? That’s practically an offence.

HB: *laughs*

HJ: *stunned*

HJ: *to Hwang Bo* You’ve lost.

Grandmother: I think I said something that I shouldn’t have.

HJ: No, your words are actually quite right!

HB: *laughs*

HJ: Quite right.

They get ready to go farming and are brought to the fields where they are taught to plant vegetables. They both work under the hot sun, planting each seedling before moving on to the pepper garden where they begin picking peppers. They work really hard at picking them before they both decide to have a bet.

HB: Shall we bet on who picks the most?

HJ: Mmm.

HB: The loser does that.

HJ: Prepare a snack?

HB: OK!

The both of them begin picking as many peppers as they can.

HJ: Bu In, how many have you picked?

HB: I think I’ve picked more than you.

HJ: Show me, show me!

HB: No.. This much *shows him*

HJ: What do you mean by a lot. *grumbles*

HB: Show me yours!

HJ: *shows*

HB: It’s about the same!

They continue picking before finally meeting each other to compare their peppers. One look at Hwang Bo’s and Hyun Joong knows that she’s picked more than him.

HJ: What is this? You picked out a lot, but mine are all Grade A peppers whereas yours are Grade C ones!

HB: *laughs*

HJ: *indignant* You can’t bring this to the market!

HB: *laughs* That’s not it!! What happened to these? *picks peppers out of his pile* Where did all the stalks go?

HJ: *defensive* They are going to be pulled out anyway! I just pulled them out first!

They drag their sacks of peppers to the side and Hwang Bo tells him to go prepare the snack since he lost. He walks off saying it’s fine to lose this time, when she’s already the loser since she’s older according to the grandmother, making her laugh.

HB: Oh, your back looks really lonely. Shillang! *waves*

HJ: *waves back* I might not even come back!

HB: Shillang, I’m sorry! I’ll prepare the snack! *laughs*

They sit together and begin eating the bibimbap that Hyun Joong prepares, and they both talk, him telling her to drink water and her telling him that it’s not good to drink water when you eat. He looks around and suddenly freaks out when he sees a dragonfly.

HJ: Help me, help me.

HB: *moves to catch it*

HJ: Bu In! Don’t catch it!!

HB: Don’t catch it? Why?

HJ: It might fly towards me.

HB: That’s why you have to catch it.

HJ: DON’T catch it! Please!

HB: I can catch it well. *catches it anyway*

HJ: *SCREAM*

HB: *laughing* *holding it away from him*

HB: You know you did wrong right? What are you going to do about it?

HJ: *holds her hands away from him* Don’t let it come here!

HB: What are you going to do?

HJ: I’ll be good! *screams again*

HB: You’ll be good?

HJ: Don’t, please, don’t! *scared*

HB: Ok. *to dragonfly* Don’t fly to Shillang, understand? *lets it go*

She lets it go and continues to eat as he looks around worriedly, scared that it may return.

HJ: *scared voice* Did you see that it had its eyes on me?

HB: I can’t even look you in the eye, why would I look at the dragonfly’s eyes?

Private interview:

HJ: I think we look at each other well. Bu In tilts her head and looks at me when I talk. Hwang Bu In may have a somewhat fierce look in her eyes, but I see warmth in them when she looks at me, and I like that. During the most fun parts when we’re filming, I like it best when the both of us talk together now. I used to hate it before because it was so awkward between us. It’s quite fun when the both of us are alone, talking.

Hwang Bo continues eating and Hyun Joong looks at her before he starts defending himself, seemingly worried for looking like a wimp earlier because of the dragonfly.

HJ: I won’t run away even if I face a hyena, but dragonflies and cicadas just freak me out.

HB: Mmm.

*Dragonfly lands on Hyun Joong’s hat* *Hyun Joong not aware*

HJ: I’ll protect you. Just not from dragonflies and cicadas.

HB: You can’t even face dragonflies.

HJ: So don’t go wandering around in jungles.

HB: *looks at the dragonfly on his hat and smiles*

HJ: *sees her* *looks around frantically* What’s wrong? Someone’s attacking me right?

HJ: *looks around* Someone put something on me right?

HB: There was a dragonfly on your hat just now.

HJ: *worried* *scared* Really?

HB: Really. *teasing*

HJ: I honestly had goosebumps.

They continue eating as Hyun Joong keeps look around, forever on the watch out for dragonflies. Hwang Bo begins talking about Shin Ae Ra and her husband and the service work that they do.

HB: When I get married, I want to be like that too.

HJ: *suddenly serious* Who are you going to get married to?

HB: *laughs* No, just saying that since I’m married, I should do that.

HJ: No, you said When you get married. Who else are you going to marry?

HB: *laughs*

HJ: Who?

HB: *silence*

HJ: I’m going to have to spread the word.

HB: What?

HJ: That you’re getting married for the second time.

HB: *bursts out laughing*

HJ: I’m going to go “That woman is getting married for the second time!!”

HB: *laughs*

HB: No, what I meant was that even if I’m reborn, I’d marry you, Hyun Joong, again.

HJ: ….. That’s a pity.

HB: Why?

HJ: I wanted to be reborn as a lion in my next life.

HB: *laughs*

HJ: I’ll be the male lion, you can be the female one.

HB: *laughs*

HJ: I messaged you first right? I sent you one first.

HB: I was really surprised. How did you know my birthday?

HJ: I saw it on the internet.

HB: *laughs* My husband has to find out his wife’s birthday from the internet.

HJ: Mmm. The world is a really good place.

HB: *laughs*

She then tells him that she was rather down on her birthday, but then she received the biggest present from him. She mentioned that she was filming another program, and that she was initially rather down, but if he watched carefully, there was a part where she brightened up, and that was when she received his message.

HJ: What if they edit that out?

HB: *speechless* Well…

HJ: Put in a request. Ask them not to. I want to see for myself.

HB: I saved your message in the ‘Saved’ folder.

HJ: Really?

HB: Mmm. *nods head*

Private interview:

HB: Now we talk really casually with each other right? But maybe it’s because it was the first message he sent me, but he sent me one using formal terms. I read the message a few times after I received it. I read it again before I slept, and again the next day. So I memorized it. He sent “Happy Birthday Noona. I’m sorry that my first message is this. Anyhow, please be happy.” Everything was good except for the “I’m sorry” part. I think that it was because of that one message that I wasn’t upset during my birthday.

They finally finish picking peppers and head home to the grandmother’s house where she invites them inside to have some peaches. Hwang Bo prepares the fruit and offers it to the grandmother, telling her that the elder should eat first before them.

HJ: *holds out the peach slice to Hwang Bo* Elders should eat first.

HB: *laughs* *takes it* *faints*

Grandmother: It’s good that you’re receiving good treatment.

HB: I’m receiving good treatment? Yes, he does treat me really well.

Hwang Bo asks the grandmother what she usually does during that time of the day and she tells her that she’s usually at the community hall. Hwang Bo says that they should go and greet the other elders as well, but since they were visiting for the first time, they can’t go empty handed, therefore they’d prepare something for them to eat. She takes the ingredients and both her and Hyun Joong start preparing Soo Jae Bi (dough soup).

They walk into the hall and greet the other grandmothers, introducing themselves first as the Lettuce Couple from Seoul, before explaining that they are husband and wife, to which the grandmothers show some interest.

HB: Have you eaten?

Grandmothers: Yes, we have.

HB: Oh, you have.

HJ: Well, it seems that you may not have eaten enough, so..

Grandmothers: Oh, no, we’ve had lots!

HB + HJ: *at a loss for words*

They bring in the Soo Jae Bi anyway, and serve the dish to the grandmothers, who initially eye it with doubt. Hyun Joong explains in the studio that the grandmothers were doubtful as to whether someone from Seoul could cook well. However, the grandmothers began commenting that the food was good, and ate everything up, to the pleasure of Hwang Bo.

They begin taking photos with the grandmothers with a Polaroid, and the both of them pose with the grandmothers.

Grandmother: *complains* He took only half of her!

HB: My husband can’t take photos very well.

HB: *takes photo*

*Top part of the heads are missing!*

They write messages on the photos and add the missing hair to the photo before they stick the photos on the refrigerator.

Private interview:

HB: We gave them laughter, which was really meaningful. Even though it was a small deed, it was meaningful. I was really happy.

HJ: She treats elders and she does a lot of good deeds. I think that she was meant to do good things. I’m really happy that someone like her is my wife. To me, although the other couples are compatible as well, I think that we are really compatible. I think that if I had been paired up with anyone else from the other couples, our characters would not have matched at all.

Hyun Joong poses for one last photo with the rest of the grandmothers, and they end on that note. Happily together, a meaningful day well spent.