NOTES FROM THE LAST ROW
Hey, sis.
I'm scared.
Dad murdered someone.
Yeah, murdered.
I think he did it.
This is all from… your imagination?
No, sir, it's not.
I used the power of deduction.
The book he destroyed, did you actually see the torn-up pages?
Yeah. In the trash when I was in his room that day.
And it really looked like he tore it in a rage.
Hold on.
Start at the beginning.
There is nothing that proves Se-yun is the one who did it.
Not with absolute certainty.
He's been
kind of off these days.
He's pretty cranky.
How exactly does he seem "off"?
He barely comes out of his room. It's like he's a hermit.
We're waiting for you.
I knocked, but you didn't answer.
We've got coding to do after.
It's a fucking waste of time! I'm not doing it anymore!
I don't give a shit about coding, okay?
Don't come in here anymore.
I've never seen Se-yun like that.
Oh.
Se-yun's not with you?
Why is that?
He says he's not eating.
No.
He didn't come down last night.
And he hardly had anything for breakfast this morning either.
Maybe he has the flu.
Did he look sick? Did he mention anything?
No, he didn't say.
It seems like he's been feeling down
since that day.
It's been on my mind also.
That's not a reason to be cooped up in his room
and not join in the family dinner.
I'll take care of it.
It's fine. Don't go.
I'll bring him a plate.
I'm coming up there!
- I think the biggest difference… - Kim Se-yun!
…is in his relationship with his dad.
Yun, is something wrong, that you've lost your appetite?
If we had a platter of Min-hui's braised short ribs,
he'd be gobbling them up.
Why'd you mention Min-hui?
Doesn't help much.
Oh my goodness.
I didn't realize.
I keep forgetting she's left us.
I'm sorry.
Please, try to eat something, honey.
She would want that.
Maybe I keep mentioning her because she hasn't been put to rest yet.
I'll feel better when she's had a proper funeral.
It's so hard.
She doesn't have any family. It makes me sad.
No one knows what they're supposed to do.
I know the church tried to reach out.
They found her father, but he's remarried, and he washed his hands of her.
I think he didn't like that she was a single mother.
And the only other person she'd been close with was her sister.
But she died last year. That's one of the reasons I kept her on.
So,
will your church take care of it?
Their funds are tight.
Although, I'm sure it'd be possible to have a bit of a fundraiser for her.
It wouldn't be just for her funeral but also for her child.
A fundraiser? I think that's a bad idea.
Ah. You do?
- You think people will disapprove? - Quite the opposite, but…
…trying to raise the money will take too long,
and the funeral should happen soon.
The longer it takes, the more people will talk.
And the less they talk, the easier she'll rest.
Don't worry about the money. We'll cover it.
It's the least we can do.
You would do that?
Mm. Well, of course.
She did have a knack for cooking things we all enjoyed.
She wasn't perfect, but she worked for us long enough.
I feel it's our duty to step in.
Oh.
What a relief.
- Always so generous. - Thanks for the meal.
Yes, thanks a lot.
Rotten son of a bitch!
Such a hypocrite.
What?
Se-yun's been…
…acting normally.
I wouldn't notice if he was more withdrawn.
If anything, it'd be in his writing, but it's just as trivial as usual.
That makes sense. He's a pretty good actor.
He shoots hoops with his friends at school.
You wouldn't know he's got issues.
Your friend, Jae-sik, I think you should go back to see him.
- Are you serious? - Yes.
"Once bitten, twice shy." You know that expression?
Not only do we have to be careful here, we have to be certain.
Over here!
- Yeah! - I thought I had it.
- Dude, we gotta get to class. Sorry. - All right.
- We'll be late. - Gotta go.
Could it be your doing?
Are you hiding something from us?
I hope it is you, Kim Se-yun.
I'm dying to know exactly
what he found out.
What your flesh and blood has on you, Su-hun.
I was right, Professor,
about Se-yun.
Looks like it.
Is there anything not caught on camera these days? My God.
I think I used up my last favor with Jae-sik to get this.
Okay.
We got it.
This… this is good.
You did good.
Now I'm comfortable with you looking into what Se-yun has been hiding.
Are you upset?
Why so serious?
Huh?
Look at the two of us.
You look like you're constipated.
I am upset.
That much is obvious.
I'm aware this is hard.
Tell me what's wrong.
It's like I'm torn between two things, and I can't decide.
On the one hand,
I liked knowing Mr. Kim wasn't anywhere close to his good-guy image.
And the main reason I liked it
is it brought my friend down a notch.
The perfect life Se-yun had always had never really existed.
But now that I see the pain he's in…
I wish he didn't have to suffer,
'cause he's my friend.
That's good to hear.
Now you're in a position to end all that.
How?
You have to flip your thinking.
You'll help your friend by finding out what he might know about all of this.
You know,
"The truth shall set you free" is a thing.
It's the best thing you can do for Se-yun.
Huh.
The truth can be very hard to handle.
But covering it up always ends up catching up to you.
The truth hurts,
like ripping a Band-Aid off your soul.
It's gonna be hard for Se-yun,
and it's highly likely he'll resent you for it.
Do it for him.
Be the brave one.
This is in his best interest.
This is… how you look out for a friend.
Right.
Jeong-hu's coming home.
For a few days, I think.
Do you know when?
Yeah, on Sunday.
It's Mr. Kim's birthday. It's a tradition.
Everyone together.
So she'll be staying there?
And I know Se-yun and his sister have no secrets. He basically worships her.
All right.
You make it so you can see and hear everything.
When they're alone,
you arrange to be close by.
That's your primary goal for when she's there.
Listen in.
See what Se-yun confides to her.
Here.
Your signature,
it's so original.
Like your book, really.
Thank you for saying that.
Se-yun, I don't think he's even read one word.
Here.
Is Dad here?
- Or is he off on a press thing? - Not a press thing.
It's a personal thing.
He went to Min-hui's funeral.
He'll be here for dinner, maybe earlier.
- He has a few things to do. - Hmm.
Her funeral?
On his birthday?
But at least she's getting one, right?
Yes, I'm so relieved.
It could have dragged on for a while.
I was gonna go with your dad, but when I mentioned it,
he said that I better not.
Why would you even go there?
Why wouldn't I?
She did work here for all of us.
It's not that.
It's just, if you were both there,
I would wonder why I bothered to come see you.
It's alive.
About time, sleepyhead.
When'd you get here?
I would've woken you up, but you told me not to.
You're lucky he's down here at all in the daylight.
Why? You depressed or something?
He does spend a lot of time cooped up in his room lately,
playing whatever game he's into.
You should give him a pep talk.
Se-yun always listens to Jeong-hu.
When they were younger, he was stuck to her like Velcro.
He worshipped his sister.
Mm.
And just because you're twice my size now doesn't mean I can't still kick your butt.
I haven't given a pep talk in a while, but you're in for a treat.
- I don't think so. - Rule number one is no talking back. Huh?
- Huh? Ow! Oh no, you don't. - Oh, no fighting!
I'm not the little kid you could boss around anymore.
I'm out of it as long as there's no blood.
- I don't have to listen. - I'll give you a countdown, or else.
- Three… two… - A countdown, huh?
He's unbelievable.
He goes to his fucking mistress's funeral he's funding?
At least he had the decency to talk Mom out of going.
He must feel a bit guilty.
I was right. Jeong-hu knew about the affair.
How can Mom be so blind? It was happening in her own house.
She still sees her as a helpless single mom.
How can she be so naive?
I think it's good.
She never had to find out like we did.
And I disagree.
I'm sick of acting like he's a saint.
Mom should know about her
and all the other women he's used as his muses.
Would that be a good birthday gift, to just put it out there?
Are you crazy? No way! Sh!
Doing that to Mom,
it might be too much.
She doesn't need the stress.
I have to bring her her meds whenever she's upset.
It reminds me too much of when she tried to kill herself.
I remember that day like it was yesterday.
We almost lost our mother.
- I think we need to protect her first. - Ugh! I'll keep quiet, then.
We have to protect the image.
It's not so much the cheating.
It's that he chose to go after someone under our own roof.
Probably while we were home. That's disgusting.
And then she gets killed outside the hotel.
That isn't
where she died.
She survived the accident.
What?
I couldn't tell you over the phone, but it gets even worse.
What do you mean? How does it get worse?
He killed her.
Dad murdered Min-hui.
He murdered her?!
Oh Jesus Christ.
Jeong-hu? Se-yun?
Where are you two?
Are you finished?
Oh, Kang.
Have you seen the kids? I can't seem to find them.
Sorry, no.
I thought you knew.
All right, then.
Then you can help me decide.
Sorry?
What do you think?
Is it all right?
I decided to bake it myself this year instead of buying one.
Do you think it's good?
Or should I add some flowers?
I wouldn't change a thing.
It's… better than a store-bought one.
Really?
That's so sweet.
It looks perfect.
I have some homework.
I'd like to write something on it.
Besides "happy birthday," I mean.
Can you think of something my husband would like?
No way.
There's no way that's what you saw.
He might be a cheating bastard, but he's not a murderer.
- I saw it, Jeong-hu. He killed Min-hui! - You saw nothing!
By the time I got to the garage, I had missed most of their conversation.
You're tired.
You're totally sleep-deprived from those stupid games,
and you couldn't think straight.
But I did find out…
I'm telling the truth.
…one important thing.
I know what I saw.
I went to the hospital. I followed them there in secret.
I think you're lying.
But I'll humor you, on the off chance what you're saying is true.
This is next-level.
I mean, someone having an affair might cause a bit of a scandal, but this?
This would ruin Dad's entire reputation
and the name I'm making for myself.
He'd be a laughingstock, and so would I.
You get that?
Jeong-hu.
Have you told anyone else about this?
Kang? Does he know?
Why would I tell anyone else? This is bad enough.
Ah. You're not an idiot.
You kept your mouth shut.
- What are you saying? - You will keep quiet.
We'll be fine if you keep quiet from here on out.
It looks like the hospital and police don't suspect anything,
so we're good on that front.
I can't handle this.
Listen to me, Se-yun.
You keep your fucking mouth shut
or I will end you.
You got me, asshole?
After that,
Se-yun shut himself back up in his room.
Se-yun, come out here. Jeong-hu's leaving.
Come say bye to your sister.
He didn't even come out to say goodbye to Jeong-hu.
Are you okay, Professor?
Ah, who knows?
We have a potential murder and death threats.
I'm not even sure where to start today, Kang.
It's awful.
I thought I was gonna pass out for a second.
There's so many bad things happening in that house.
They're nothing like the people I first met.
- And I'm starting to wish I never had. - But you did.
And now we're back to square one.
There's no proof that anyone did anything.
But there is something we can use.
Se-yun's the one person who's acting different, depressed.
- Like what he saw was too much. - He saw the accident. Yes.
He saw Min-hui. He was at the hotel for some reason.
Then he witnessed something at the hospital once he got there. That's it.
We need to know why he followed them.
He said it wasn't the accident.
But did he actually see Mr. Kim kill Min-hui?
He said so.
He told Jeong-hu, and then his own sister
threatened to kill him if he mentioned it to anyone.
We could use that.
Jeong-hu's betrayed their bond with her threat,
so he could be turning to you.
Speaking of bonds,
I think we need to exploit one.
Which one is that?
Se-yun and Ms. Ahn. It's time for her to learn a few things.
- Eun-joo? - Yes.
"Eun-joo"?
You call her by her first name.
- Do you know each other? - Try to focus.
You wanna get Ms. Ahn involved? Explain.
Mr. Kim can't be trusted.
Jeong-hu seems to have her own agenda, and she threatened Se-yun.
I don't think he'd talk to me after what she said.
So I think I start dropping tiny hints so his mother clues in.
Which will make her… start to force him to talk.
She'll start asking questions based on my hints.
Don't you think it's a good idea?
- I'll find a way to listen. - It'd be wrong.
- Wrong how? - That should be obvious, even to you!
She tried to kill herself before, and Se-yun's afraid she'll do it again!
Can you imagine having to worry that your mother might react like that?
He was little.
He's projecting his reaction to whatever he saw onto her,
but we don't know how she'll take it.
Why are you so protective of her?
I'm starting to think
that there might be some history.
Did you guys have a thing?
- Did you and Ms. Ahn go out? - We knew each other in college!
And not well! We were in different years!
So you can stop jumping to conclusions! I'm just being considerate!
I'm exhausted.
We'll discuss this… during our next session, all right?
It's too complicated… for today.
I do want a draft, though.
Write this all down and submit it for next time, huh?
- Hmm? Mi-seo? - Hello, Professor.
The president of the Academic Society wants to know if you're coming
to the forum this afternoon.
It's at 2:00, and we haven't received your paper.
I'll send it right now. I guess I forgot.
Well, it's at 2:00 today, remember?
Yes, at 2:00. I know that.
Shit.
I was in the neighborhood. I thought we could go out to lunch.
My treat.
Oh, that's too bad.
I hope it's a good lecture. Okay.
Love you, honey. Bye.
Into the darkness of a black sea
The sun falls in slow motion Sinks to the deep
And the night seems to go on endlessly
The void has been opened Leading to nowhere
But I'm gonna go there
Oh, don't follow me
Danger walks the path that I take
Oh, don't follow me
For your own sake
Don't follow me
Paint the horizon cloudy and gray
Whisper the warnings They'll hear what you say
Pray for the morning This all goes away
Hope that the light brings
A change of fate
Oh, don't follow me
So I was right.
It is you.
Oh, don't follow me
For your own sake…
Ahn Eun-joo.
Don't follow me
Eun-joo.
TEACHING ASSISTANT KIM MI-SEO
Into the shadows
Out of the shallows
All the color bleeds out
No one can help me now
Don't follow me
Into the darkness of a black sea
The sun falls in slow motion Sinks to the deep
And the night seems to go on endlessly
Within it awakens the secrets I keep
Oh, don't follow me
Please don't follow me
For your own sake
Don't follow me
Honey.
This is a nice surprise, hmm?
Is it so surprising I wanna buy my husband lunch?
Like you're buying.
- Hmm. - What do you think of this one?
- It's not bad. - Oh, look at that.
- Hmm. - You like it?
Hmm. Nice colors.
And it's kind of making me crave pizza.
You don't think it's too dark?
- Not at all. - Hmm.
- That's what I like. - So, pizza, huh?
- Yeah. - Now you're making me hungry.
How about we go for pasta and bring pizza home for dinner?
- Pizza Palace? - Of course.
Best in the city.
Eun-joo.
What do I do?
What do I do? What do I do?
I can't live like this.
Eun-joo.
What do I do?
You were talking in your sleep.
You seem agitated.
Wine. A gift from my clients.
It's from a couple who had their last marriage counseling session with me.
They said they found each other again.
When I first met them,
they had grown so far apart, I wasn't sure they'd make it.
And then,
after a few sessions, we started to see a big difference.
They were talking, and it reignited their connection.
You sounded almost feverish earlier.
Is it work stress?
You don't look so good.
I'm just tired. That's all.
Do you miss the writing lessons?
Kang kind of made you young again.
He wasn't serious,
so I couldn't teach him.
I guess you'll go back to sleeping in your office alone, then?
I'd prefer
if you would just spit it out.
I realize I said something very cruel.
That's what I wanted to spit out.
So I would like to apologize to you.
I don't really believe what I said.
Maybe he's been more successful,
but that doesn't mean you feel inferior to Su-hun.
It came out wrong, and I didn't mean it.
I know writers are…
…sensitive to any type of comparison.
And I know better than anyone how you suffered.
How hard it was when you couldn't write anymore.
Can you drop it, please?
That was so long ago.
I only brought that up to show you
that I know it might have hurt more than intended.
Do you have to take that?
Honey.
Mun-ho.
A picture? Since when do you send those?
Since now. I thought it was important.
It's a letter that came to the house today.
In the mail?
Honey, you got a letter.
There's no return address.
A secret admirer?
Hmm?
KIM SU-HUN
- You guys are back? - Yes.
Is Se-yun back too?
Yeah. He went straight to his room, as usual.
Do you mind putting these away?
I'd like to check on Se-yun real quick.
Yeah, I got this. You go ahead.
Thank you.
Se-yun!
We got pizza!
Dad and I went to your favorite place for lunch
and brought back pizza for dinner.
Bad news, sir?
Huh? Oh. No.
Someone saying they like my book.
A fan letter?
By regular mail? To your house?
I get them once in a while.
From older fans.
They think it's romantic.
Shit.
Mr. Kim looked like a deer in the headlights.
And he was shaking like a leaf.
I HAVE THE HOSPITAL CCTV FOOTAGE
10 PM TONIGHT CENTRAL FOUNTAIN IN SEONGCHANG PARK
So the security footage,
you confirmed it really exists?
It's not confirmed. That's just what the letter says.
Of course.
If that letter's legitimate, then the footage is incriminating.
It's obviously an attempt to blackmail Se-yun.
Who do you think sent it?
- The only logical choice is Se-yun. - Se-yun.
That makes sense.
He did go to the hospital after the accident.
That's the first.
But I have another one.
- Another letter? - No.
Another reason.
If you ever have kids some day and you want to lure them to dinner,
just get them their favorite pizza.
Honey?
You seem distracted.
Not at all.
I'm trying to make sure I don't eat too fast.
Would you guys like to go out, get some ice cream or catch a movie?
We have ice cream.
Or we could just go for a drive. Any old place. It's such a lovely night.
I thought it would be fun to have some fun, enjoy the evening.
I can't. I already have a work thing I forgot to mention.
Really? Tonight?
When did this come up?
It's last minute. President Choi sprung it on me.
You guys should go for a ride. You get all the movies here at home.
Movies are so much better in the theater. But they can choose.
I have to skip it too, Mom.
I'm meeting people at 10:00 for a group project.
Tonight? Why so late?
One of our teammates had to work.
And this was our only free night.
The way Se-yun was staring at his dad when he said that,
it was the look of a man who's made up his mind.
- Wait. You're there now? - Yeah, now.
I didn't follow anyone. The meeting place is in the letter.
What?
You're not supposed to act on your own. I need to assign your tasks as homework.
I thought about that, but then I remembered how you told me
that whenever I waver, to remember the objective.
Which is?
Which is to help my friend.
Yes. Se-yun.
He's finally worked up the courage to confront his dad, right?
If I'm there to see it, I'm sure it'll help us, Professor.
I'll allow it, this once.
When it's done, I want you to call me, no matter how late. Don't text.
And one more thing.
Whatever you do, don't let them know you're there. It's too suspicious.
Don't worry.
I'll call you later.
Liar.
You are still mentoring Kang.
What else are you lying about?
Hmm?
Why is what he's doing "suspicious"?
Why does he sound like you're up to no good?
You were listening again? You've got some nerve.
"Nerve"?
If you're drunk, go to sleep.
- I'm not drunk. - Stop talking! Yes, you are!
And you're trying to pick a fight!
I told you to stay out of my business.
This isn't some… trivial project. This is a serious endeavor.
You think everything's a goddamn endeavor!
It's always like this with you.
It's all so serious.
Only, I never get to choose what to take seriously
because you make the rules.
When you were writing furiously, you were serious.
And when you couldn't write, it was worse.
I have been an afterthought throughout our marriage.
Like a shadow.
I feel like such an imposter at couples' counseling, thanks to you.
"Communicate. Set a time to talk. Catch up with each other."
I give them "sharing" as homework.
It works.
But you and I don't share anything but a roof.
I let so much slide and get buried under the rug that I buried myself.
And you didn't even notice.
I supported you.
And I endured you.
I have waited years for you…
to show you care.
You're whining like a child.
- You posted your shopping spree. - You brought goodies for us?
How many pairs--
LEE KANG
The number you have called is--
He wouldn't.
That goddamn kid.
Why didn't he call?
- Holy shit, Professor! I had to see you! - Kang, shut up!
- This is more twisted than we thought! - Keep quiet! We'll talk in my office.
- This is gonna blow your mind. - Sh! In there! In there!
- It's so crazy. - Sh!
Hey! You were supposed to call.
My wife is sleeping. You woke up half the neighborhood coming in here.
I couldn't resist trying to talk to him. I chased him through the park. Guess what.
- I told you not to let them see you. - I wanted to help him.
Only, it wasn't Se-yun.
Se-yun wasn't there at all!
Se-yun, we need to talk!
I know what you did!
Ms. Anh?
Are you saying
the meeting wasn't with Se-yun?
Yeah, that's what I'm saying.
It was Ms. Ahn.
Ahn Eun-joo.
Eun-joo…
Eun-joo wrote the letter?
NOTES FROM THE LAST ROW
My Eun-joo?