A Stalker's Guide to Shin Ha Kyun
Shark: Episode Six
In modern day, Yi Soo returns to kiss Hae Woo--and as he does, someone snaps photos of the whole thing. Is this part of his master plan or is this a misstep being documented by a third party?
Hae Woo stalks off in stunned confusion, but soon returns with for a stare down and curt slap in return for the kiss. Yi Soo's expression as she leaves for the second time tells me that it was something accidental, caused by his self control wavering.
As he's sulking, it's revealed the mystery photographer is Secretary Jang. She doesn't look pleased and it's not clear whether Yi Soo knows she's on the scene.
We cut to Hae Woo who realizes her phone has gone missing somewhere along the way. It seems Yi Soo has a hold of it. Did he pick pocket her during the kiss?
As he's looking at Hae Woo's phone, his little sister suddenly rings it. The emotion is palpable on his face as he silently answers the call; her voice clearly hits him right in the heart. It takes him a while, but he finally decides to answer and Yi Hyun's responds "Oppa?"
It's Yi Soo's turn to be stunned...until she asks, "Is this not Joon Young oppa?" His expression falls and almost seems to say, Of course she doesn't know it's me. How could she? He fights back his emotional reaction and somehow manages a calm veneer as he promises to return the phone Hae Woo left behind. He's stronger than I would be in that situation, though he's clearly fighting back tears.
Once the call ends, Joon Young appears on the scene. He's there to pick up Hae Woo, who returns for her phone a couple of seconds after he arrives. Yi Soo manages to interact with the both of them as if nothing had happened; he returns the cell phone and makes some small talk with Joon Young. This is all incredibly awkward and Hae Woo clearly wants to disengage and leave with her husband. It seems she won't mention the forceful kiss after all.
The couple is driving home when Joon Young asks if anything happened with "Kim Jun" (Yi Soo's assumed name, if you recall). He's in tune with her and can tell that something is strange. She brushes it off as irritability due to case-related stress; he's inquisitive in this scene, clearly interested in what she's thinking. He also offers his services to help her in any way he can, since she has a "free ticket to use him" for life now that they're married.
She says that what is bothering her is a secret, and he replies marriage should have no secrets. In return, she asks if he has anything he's hiding from her and he playfully answers that he does. He finally gets her smiling with his clam witticism...but soon her perturbed expression returns and, after Joon Young attempts to flirt again, Hae Woo asks to stop at the book store.
We cut to Detective Byeon's household where his family is interacting happily over dinner. Once the subject of Yi Hyun's mysteriously won telescope comes up, Byeon begins asking tons of questions about the company and the so-called giveaway it came from. You can tell something about it is bothering him, but maybe it's just detective's instinct acting up.
Back with Yi Soo, we notice him being stalked as he walks along the street. It's not long before our hero realizes he's being followed, so he finds a secluded parking garage where he can confront his tail comfortably. There the two men fight and Yi Soo quickly ends the confrontation with some awesome kicking action.
We learn this guy is one of the Pedophile CEO's goons, sent to find something to use as leverage. Yi Soo examines the wallet and then the phone of his stalker, where he finds that he too has pictures of the kiss with Hae Woo. Irritated by this, he takes the data chip and takes his leave.
Though I'm not happy he's in pain, it's wonderful to see that such intense physical strain has had an impact on Yi Soo's damaged body; he limps away, his leg clearly suffering. The tail shouts a warning as he too decides to skedaddle: "Be careful of that woman!" But there are many women this could refer to, right?
Could it be Secretary Jang? We cut to her right away as she examines her handiwork. She's looking over those photos she took of the Yi Soo/Hae Woo kiss just before Junichiro rings her up from Japan. It's learned that he's considering inviting Joon Young and Hae Won to his overseas resort. She turns the conversation to what her purpose might be, working for him as she does. How is she even helping? Is his intention to take down the Jo family's hotel?
Junichiro basically confirms this, but replies that the method that causes its fall is more important than the fall itself. He refers to this whole shebang with Yi Soo as a mutual interest, but it's clear he wants him under his thumb. Secretary Jang is his insurance policy, there to pull Yi Soo back on track should he deviate like he did today. The pictures prove it, as they were clearly taken by order of and given to Junichiro...and the kiss was totally unplanned, a moment of weakness for Yi Soo.
We see the truth of that as we return to our hero. He medicates himself and, looking on his fish tank, laments his wishy-washy behavior when it comes to using Hae Woo as an end. As he remembers the kiss, he reaches into the tank and takes one of the fish into his palm. He allows it to flounder in the air, likely meaning to kill it as we cut back to Hae Woo who has stopped at the book store after all.
As she and Joon Young stand surrounded by books, Hae Woo asks if he ever forgave the one who killed his brother. The answer isn't clear as he says he's not sure that forgiving is an exercise in effort and then turns to press her to speak her mind. After a little prodding, Hae Woo reveals her suspicions about her father's guilt in the hit and run case that Han Young Man was blamed for. Joon Young asks if the other deaths are connected, and Hae Woo expresses her wish that they not be. But it's clear she knows there's something up and, in order to find the truth, she has to find the missing link to this complex mystery.
"If your father is deeply involved with the case...what are you planning to do? Even if I tried
to stop you, you wouldn't even then, right?"
His wife answers that she's more worried about her grandfather, who in her mind is still of upright character. The poor girl is in for a shock, since Dad isn't nearly as involved or as stone cold evil as Grandpa. Joon Young comforts Hae Woo as she admits to being afraid, despite his lauding of her bravery.
As the two are leaving, the owner of the bookstore returns. He seems friendly enough until they ask about the package he's returned with. He dodges that question, but watches them intently as they walk away...
...even as he pulls out and begins clicking a pen! This must be the identity of the hired killer right? How crazy.
Hae Woo next appears at her grandfather's home and wakes him in his study for a conversation. He looks so frail and innocent here, it's shocking to know what he's capable of! After worrying after his sleeping habits and being worried about in turn (or is it being pushed away from the case under the pretense of care?), Hae Woo turns the conversation to Kang Hee Soo, the murdered professor and originator of the all-important envelope.
Meanwhile, her drunk father Ui Sun shuffles in and is told by Joon Young that she is speaking with her grandfather. Ui Sun becomes angry instantly, clearly fearing what the conversation might entail.
The conversation actually regards how the murdered professor might relate to her current case. She wonders whether he knew Yi Soo's father or not. Ui Sun storms in to interrupt, declaring his innocence in a drunken tirade (which is hilarious since he pretends to be totally innocent and a decent man ...we know better at home). This effectively ends Hae Woo's inquiry for the night as she and Joon Young try to calm him. Once things are settled, she no longer has the courage to continue this line of conversation with her grandfather.
Mrs. Park looks after Hae Woo's father, who has since passed out on his bed. She looks on him in disgust and ends up finding Yi Soo's business card on the nightstand. Her expression is unreadable.
We return to Yi Hyun who enters her adoptive father's office, calling for him. She's there to borrow the stapler, so she does...when she happens upon Yi Soo's case file. We see her confused as she looks on the evidence photos from the site of the accident. Detective Byeon comes in as she's examining the file and tries to urge her to return it to him. She doesn't allow him to wrest it from her, and finally realizes what was strange.
The number on the key left bloody at the site is different from the one Yi Soo brought home!
We then see present Yi Soo with the proper keys for the locker. Our episode intro returns to us as we see the past Yi Soo tearing the picture and putting it into Locker 14. He starts to leave, but returns to take Locker 22's key as well. Present Yi Soo grasps it tightly in his hand and wonders "Where could it be?"
At Hae Woo's, we find her ruminating over the details of her case. This sequence has both she and her evil grandfather beginning to wonder if Yi Soo might still be alive, coming to the idea at the same time. He's speaking to someone on the phone, and she changes her notes on her erase board to show Yi Soo as "missing," rather than "dead."
Yi Soo and Secretary Jang are jogging. They get to talking about a film where a person tried to erase his memories of a previous lover. Our hero is interested momentarily, because he's trying to do just that in his own way; he's told that the man succeeded only to fall in love with his ex once more. The heart will of course remember the feelings even if the mind forgets. He says the movie sounds boring, despite the tears welling up in his eyes.
On the way to her office, Hae Woo remembers the kiss with "Jun" in vivid detail. You can tell it bothers her, but it seems unsettling for reasons other than the obvious. Once she's arrived and settled, our cute detective friend Soo Hyun has all kinds of details about the murdered professor waiting for her. We learn that he had been an activist and served time as ordered by the government; after he was released, he was treated for PTSD. Probably for the torture he endured, right? And at the hands of Han Young Man, if what we've been shown is to be believed.
The deputy chief prosecutor arrives, conspicuously sporting a bandaged finger. He exchanges pleasantries to soften the blow that she's been removed from Detective Jung's murder case. Her face drops as she questions why; she's told that her replacement has more experience in such matters. When Hae Woo pushes to be kept on, she's informed that she has a clear conflict of interests due to connection the phone logs of the murdered detective make to her father. Wouldn't it be embarrassing if the public found out?
We cut back to Haewoo's grandfather who is meeting with Prosecutor Oh. They're basically chatting about how best to "tidy up" the case of the murdered detective. It's pretty disgusting how they just skim over the law like that, but that's just how things are with grandfather Jo. What's worse is that they also want to shut out Hae Woo further by making their move when she's in Japan as invited by Junichiro.
Dong Soo starts his mysteriously obtained job and is informed of the role and its rules by Secretary Jang. He's to be the driver for the CEO (Yi Soo) and he may not ask questions deemed personal. But once he's actually driving the two around, he's a chatter bucket and ends up asking Yi Soo's birth year. You had one job, Dong Soo.
Suddenly Yi Soo begins asking about his driver's sex life, which gets Dong Soo defensive about his sexuality. He adamantly claims to prefer women, which our hero says is "too bad." Did I miss something in the past sequences or....? Anyway, Dong Soo's face at this response is priceless.
Meanwhile, Joon Young finally tracks down the Pedophile CEO who had promised to sell his hotel. The man has been out of contact for some time, and we're shown that he's staying in a hospital--where Yi Soo is confronting him about his earlier attempt to dig up dirt for counter blackmail. Doesn't this guy know who he's dealing with?
Our hero has this pervert at his mercy and makes it clear he won't let such a thing slide again. He goes on to lay down the groundwork for another step in his grand design. The hotel will be given to Yi Soo, but the CEO will keep up talks with Joon Young as if nothing had ever happened. If the man refuses, he'll be forced to go to the police and confess his crimes.
Yi Soo bumps into Joon Young in the lobby of the hospital. It looks like he's going to be fed the story Yi Soo told the pervert to sell after all. Before the two men part ways, Yi Soo accepts the awkward opporunity to share a drink with his old flame's husband later on. Yeesh.
At the coffee house where Yi Hyun works, Hae Woo and Detective Byeon ruminate over the mystery of the locker keys. Together they decide that the cautious Yi Soo probably hid his evidences in the locker. That's why the key was later stolen from the police station: they needed to get rid of the incriminating documents at any cost. Their prime suspect is of course the deceased Detective Jung.
When it comes to her father's involvement, of course Detective Byeon already knows. All they need to figure out why the Han men were murdered and how Professor Kang Hee Soo links up. The only problem now is that they don't know anything about the mysterious documents at the heart of everything.
Oh, and that Hae Woo is being removed from the case. That could be a problem too.
The meeting ends with Hae Woo going to meet someone. Soo Hyun catches up to her and wonders if she is, by chance, continuing her work on the case despite everything. She responds that she must tie up loose ends first if she has to hand it over.
It seems that the person our heroine is meeting is the boy witness to the hit-and-run. He seems a little surprised to see her as she asks to talk. He refuses at first, but she stops his retreat by telling him that her friend went missing because of this case. Hae Woo says she doesn't want details, but only the truth of why suddenly started lying about what he saw.
Tension colors the body language of the witness, who was clearly threatened. He initially denies it, but starts to come clean once Hae Woo asks whether the hospital bills were used as leverage. Just as the beans are about to spill, our cute friend Soo Hyun comes on the scene....
...and Hae Woo learns he was the one threatening the witness into silence. Tsk.
She takes him aside for a confrontation. He maintains he can't tell her any details, but what he did was for her sake even if he's not sure exactly good he's done yet. When she pushes him for details, Soo Hyun suddenly asks whether she can stick to the case and discover the real truth.
She asks who has been asking him to meddle. He answers that it's none other than her father in law, Prosecutor Oh. Soo Hyun had been told by the prosecutor that it was for Hae Woo's own good, and found out about Jo Ui Sun's involvement later on. So he's either a terrible pawn... or was used because of his naive concern for Hae Woo.
Though Soo Hyun tries to stop her, our heroine storms off to confront her father-in-law. She eventually realizes she can't do that and sits behind the wheel in frustration. What point would there be in showing her hand to him if he's really working against her?
Hae Woo ends up calling Joon Young to meet at the same bar he's already Yi Soo to earlier in the episode, though she doesn't know it yet. He tells her to be there first and he'll come asap.
At the bar, Yi Soo stares at his former flame from a distance before their eyes meet. He comes close for an awkward conversation regarding the kiss. However, Hae Woo cuts him off and says there's no need to apologize. They were both drunk and should forget about it, since it was a mistake.
After some shaky small talk, Hae Woo lies and says she didn't tell her husband she'd be there in advance. She tries to excuse herself, but it seems Yi Soo can't control himself again. He stops Hae Woo from leaving with his shocking words.
"What if it wasn't a mistake? If it wasn't a mistake on my part, will you still be okay with it?"
Oh my.
