“Our Universe” is already nearing its final chapter, and the latest episodes came on unexpectedly heavy in the feelings department. Granted, it’s all part of the process of being a young adult and tackling the ups and downs of unplanned parenthood.
For in-laws and co-parents Tae Hyung (Bae In Hyuk) and Hyun Jin (Roh Jeong Eui), it’s been a bittersweet road to raising their nephew Woo Joo (Park Yu Ho), and last week, so many problems and unresolved feelings finally catch up to them.
Let’s just say the episodes were the kind that involve crying half the time and screaming into your pillow the other half.
Warning: episodes 9-10 spoilers ahead (and a brief mention of physical abuse).
1. The real motives of Tae Hyung’s father are revealed
Tae Hyung’s early doubts and the growing suspicion around his father turn out to be right, and it’s a devastating blow.
A couple of episodes back, when Tae Hyung’s father showed up unannounced in their apartment, he told the police he was able to get in because the door was already unlocked. He claimed he saw the neighborhood’s perpetrator, who was the one who had tried breaking in. But that was all a lie. It was actually him who was breaking in.
When he sneaks in again, Hyun Jin catches him in the act of trying to steal a personal seal with the plan of taking his son’s death insurance money. He shamelessly admits to Hyun Jin that he was the one posing as a guardian while talking to the insurance worker and that he thinks he deserves at least part of the insurance payout.
Hyun Jin immediately tells him he needs to leave, but things get physical. Fortunately, that’s right when Tae Hyung walks through the door and shields Hyun Jin.
Tae Hyung’s father was thankfully caught early on before he could do more damage, but it still deeply hurt Tae Hyung, who was just beginning to think his father had changed.
2. Tae Hyung learns the truth about his childhood
Maybe the most unexpected and heartbreaking reveal in this week’s episodes was the story behind Tae Hyung’s abandonment as a kid. Tae Hyung has lived thinking he was abandoned by his older brother and was never loved, but he only knew half the story.
When Tae Hyung’s father is taken to the police station following the break-in and assault incident, Tae Hyung meets a senior officer who worked with his brother. The officer asks to talk with Tae Hyung, and he finally learns the truth about his brother.
The truth is that his older brother Woo Jin (Ha Jun) was the one who put his father behind bars for fraud. He worked tirelessly to try to get him in for as many years as possible, and it was a long fight that never really ended for Woo Jin.
It turns out Woo Jin didn’t abandon Tae Hyung, but he left him at a children’s home for safety. He had to get him away from their father, who became obsessed with money after losing his business and eventually became violent at home.
While Tae Hyung was in the children’s home alone, his older brother kept trying to report his father for physical abuse, but it would never work out. Woo Jin would routinely have to return home to his dad and get hurt all over again. It was because of their father that Woo Jin became a police officer in the first place.
This reveal makes Woo Jin’s untimely passing in episode 1 carry way more weight than it did before.
3. Tae Hyung leaves the house (and his family)
With everything going on, Tae Hyung comes to the conclusion that he isn’t capable of loving others. He reverts back to his old ways of wanting to be on his own and thinking he isn’t suited for being a part of a family, let alone responsible for a child.
His father gave him hope of reconnection, only to stab him in the back. That, along with learning the truth about his late older brother’s childhood, understandably makes Tae Hyung question everything. With his remodeled apartment already ready, he decides it’s time to go.
Hyun Jin tries to convince him to stay and figure things out together, like they always have, but it doesn’t work. As if the episode couldn’t get any more devastating, Tae Hyung walks out the door, and Hyun Jin is in tears.
4. Hyun Jin faces her feelings
Nothing sets up an I-like-you confession quite like a moment of miscommunication, an impending flight, and a dramatic running sequence.
It’s when Hyun Jin is out on a date with Yoon Seong (Park Seo Ham) that she gets a call from a gossip-loving coworker. Right before, he overhears Tae Hyung on the phone talking about someone going to the U.S., and he assumes Tae Hyung is the one going. He shares this with Hyun Jin, and she’s devastated.
This news prompts her to rush to the airport, leaving a dejected Yoon Seong behind in the rain.
But Hyun Jin’s coworker didn’t exactly get the story right. It’s actually Tae Hyung’s boss Amy Choo’s (Jin Seo Yeon) ex-husband who is leaving for the U.S. after finalizing their divorce once and for all.
But even Tae Hyung can tell that there are clearly unresolved feelings between the two, so he takes Amy Choo to the airport to fix what needs fixing before it’s too late.
Meanwhile, Hyun Jin is running through the airport trying to find Tae Hyung, who she thinks is the one leaving. When she finds him standing next to a stack of suitcases, she finally confesses her feelings in a final plea to make him come back home.
The feelings are, as predicted, mutual, and thank goodness the two are finally on the same page.
It was the perfect happy and slightly silly situation to end two emotionally heavy episodes with. Tears might have been shed, but they were definitely happy tears.
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Asya’s a BL-biased Soompi writer with a love of K-pop and all types of Asian dramas. Some of her favorite shows are “Psychopath Diary,” “Mr. Unlucky Has No Choice but to Kiss!,” “Light On Me,” “The Untamed,” “Go Go Squid!,” and “Cherry Magic!”
Currently watching: “Our Universe,” “Undercover Miss Hong,” “Positively Yours,” “Dare You to Death,” “Peach Lover,” “Duang with You,” and “Always Meet Again.”
Looking forward to: “Love Class 3,” “Fake Fact Lips,” “Don’t Be Too Emotional,” “Magic Lover,” “Mr. Fanboy,” “The Love Matter,” and “Be My Player Two.”