Love, Take Two Episodes 1-2 Recap: How Does A Miracle Find Its Way To Lee Ji-An?

Whoever said your twenties are for figuring life out and taking it easy clearly wasn’t living in the same pressure cooker as the rest of us. In Asian culture, your twenties aren’t for adventures and life experiences; they’re for nailing your exams, landing a decent-paying job, getting married, having kids, and making sure your parents are taken care of, all before you even figure out what you actually want for dinner. And on top of all that, if you’re suddenly diagnosed with a brain tumor, one that could kill you or shut your brain down, what are you even supposed to do? Love, Take Two is a comforting yet emotionally charged mother-daughter tale. There are raw, honest feelings at the heart of the story, and it’s set against the scenic beauty of the Korean countryside, making it a nice watch for the weekends.

Spoilers Ahead

Why does Hyo-Ri drop out of med school? 

Lee Ji-An is a single mother, working as a construction site manager, who has raised her daughter, Hyo-Ri, through years of hardship. Determined to give her a better future, she managed to get Hyo-Ri into medical school. Hyo-Ri, in turn, has done everything she can to support herself, earning scholarships and contributing to her own education. But there comes a point in their lives when all of it starts to lose meaning. Hyo-Ri, now in her third year of medical school, has a few notes stuck to her locker, reminders that read like battle cries: “Study like a maniac” and “Be grateful for the pressure.” They echo the toxic normalcy of burnout, as if enduring it is a badge of honor. Meanwhile, Lee Ji-An works tirelessly at construction sites, managing crews and keeping things running smoothly. Most nights, she comes home either drained from the day or slightly tipsy from after-work drinks. Despite the years of physical labor and emotional weight, she still puts on a cheerful face and keeps herself looking younger than her age, an act of defiance against everything that’s tried to wear her down. But everything changes the day Hyo-Ri collapses in the operating room. An MRI reveals a brain tumor. Faced with the cruel reality of her diagnosis, and knowing her mother’s dream is to one day rest on her daughter’s future income, Hyo-Ri chooses to stay silent, hiding such a huge thing from her mother. One night, after picking her mother up from yet another work party, Hyo-Ri finally lets her guard down. Frustrated and emotionally exhausted, she tells Lee Ji-An that she doesn’t want to end up like her. The next morning, she announces she’s moving out. Lee Ji-An brushes it off without much thought.

Later that day, at the hospital, Hyo-Ri and her friend face yet another round of humiliation from their professor, who uses his authority to belittle them without reason. Already on edge, Hyo-Ri finally snaps. She stands her ground, calls him out, and walks away. In a split-second decision that’s been building for years, she takes off the white coat, drops out of medical school, and decides to choose her own peace for the first time in her life. 

How does Lee Ji-An find out about the tumor? 

Hyo-Ri grabs her friend Lee Sook and takes off in the camper van for a spontaneous road trip to the ocean. Sook isn’t thrilled about being dragged into Hyo-Ri’s little escapade, but the moment she sees the pristine blue sea, her frustration melts away. The two of them spend a carefree day at the beach, laughing and letting loose for the first time in ages. But as they head deeper into the countryside, the RV breaks down in the middle of nowhere. Calling the insurance company is out of the question; Lee Ji-An would immediately find out where they are. Left with no choice, they turn to the local farmers in a nearby village for help. That’s where they meet Ryu Jeong-Seok and his son, Bo-Hyeon, kindhearted, soft-spoken, and apparently the most decent people in town. Bo-Hyeon checks the vehicle and quickly spots the issue: a short circuit. It’ll take a day or two to fix.

The girls, along with a few overly helpful villagers, pull their best puppy-dog faces to convince Jeong-Seok to let them park the RV in his yard. Jeong-Seok isn’t too pleased about the idea, but Bo-Hyeon agrees—and we all know why. He is into Hyo-Ri, and she likes him too. But just as things begin to settle, Lee Ji-An and Kim Sun-Young, Lee Sook’s mother and Ji-An’s close friend, manage to track them down. Hyo-Ri doesn’t want to go back home, and she finally tells her mother about the tumor. She tells her that she’s spent her whole life living according to Lee Ji-An’s wishes, but now, with time slipping away, she just wants to live for herself. She wants the freedom to make her own choices, to finally be what she feels like. 

How does a miracle find its way to Lee Ji-An?

Lee Ji-An isn’t doing great at work either. She’s been suspended after a supply audit revealed a major shortage in supplies left behind by the previous manager. The CEO, unwilling to accept fault, pins the issue on her and brings in the audit team to dig deeper. But Lee Ji-An decides to stand her ground; she needs the job more than ever, with her daughter’s surgery looming. Still, when the audit proves the error predates her, the CEO fires her anyway. But she refuses to go quietly and tells him exactly what he is: a man who hides behind titles, abusing power over people too scared to lose their paychecks. Kim Sun-Young reassures her that if both of them pull their savings together, they can afford the surgery. Wanting to share the good news with her daughter, Lee Ji-An takes the bus to the village and bumps into Jeong-Seok, the same way she did many years ago, when both of them were in high school. Turns out, Lee Ji-An had a massive crush on Jeong-Seok back then, and she wasn’t afraid to show that she loved him, and what better way to express your love than a flash mob, unless you’re doing that for Cam from “Modern Family”? Jeong-Seok figures that it’s her daughter who’s been living in his yard, and he takes Lee Ji-An there. But Hyo-Ri freaks out once again, and her anger is justified. All she wants is some time for herself, and she tells her mother straight up that she doesn’t have any energy left to care for her when she herself is going through this big a crisis! Hyo-Ri ends up on the beach, and she has a massive meltdown and almost drowns, but Bo-Hyeon saves her in time. 

All this does help Hyo-Ri be a bit kinder to her mother, and when she notices that Lee Ji-An has loaned someone money once again, she takes her to Chief Hwang’s to take the money back. But when Lee Ji-An finds Hwang celebrating his mother’s birthday at a table full of people but barely any food or snacks, she realizes that he’s too conditioned by his circumstances and can’t do anything about the fact that he has no money left. She tells Hwang to consider the money she gave him as a miracle, and that’s what people like them can count on—believing in miracles. And guess what? Just as she’s about to leave, Chief Hwang gives her the papers to a small farmhouse he owns up in the mountains, and that’s his way of showing appreciation for what she’s done for him. Soon, Lee Ji-An figures that instead of pressuring Hyo-Ri to return to Seoul, she should give her the dream house she’s always wanted, one with a scenic beauty outside the window, tall ceilings, and gardens and staircases. When she takes Jeong-Seok to check what the farmhouse looks like, it’s nothing short of a haunted house. But Lee Ji-An already has the vision for the house—how she wants to rebuild it. Hyo-Ri always wondered how her mother builds houses for others but not for themselves, and now she can finally give her daughter what she truly wants. 

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