Original subtitles

Hey, Mom.

The part-timer didn't show up?

No, nothing. All right. I'll be there soon.

Okay.

His visitor just left,

so Mr. Park is all alone upstairs.

I'm sorry, but what does this concern?

It's nothing.

Thank you.

HURRY UP, DONG-YOON

SONG-AH, ARE YOU WORKING OVERTIME?

Dong-yoon and I…

got drunk and crossed the line.

Are you leaving

for dinner?

They all made time and came for my birthday.

How can I not show up?

I'll take you there.

It's raining outside.

I can't go there.

Would it be okay…

for me to not show up?

Yes. It'll be fine.

Just think of yourself.

Don't worry about others.

Okay.

Then just to the bus stop, please.

Song-ah.

Chae Song-ah.

-Song-ah. -Hey.

Hey, Joon-young.

Hey, Dong-yoon.

Goodness, it's Mr. Park Joon-young. My gosh.

Hello.

Hello. Dong-yoon, you have great eyes.

How did you recognize her at once in this pouring rain?

I could tell it was her at one glance.

Anyway, are you friends with Song-ah?

Actually…

We're friends.

Incredible. You're friends with him?

No, it's not like that.

Hey, I'm friends with Joon-young too.

We'll get going first. We're late.

Song-ah, don't you have an umbrella? Come here. You can share it with me.

You should come with us.

Joon-young, come with us. You know that it's her birthday, right?

-I-- -Come with us.

-No, Joon-young is-- -Sure.

I'll join you.

It's good.

In comics… You know that, right?

Yes, I know.

Right?

Hey, move.

Eun-ji, why?

-Are you drunk? -I'm not drunk.

She's doing that again. Thanks.

-Cheers. -Sure.

Be careful of her.

Cheers. Happy birthday.

Oh, thanks.

Were you at work with Joon-young?

Yes, right.

-We ran into each other on our way out. -I see.

I'm visiting Paris soon. Can you recommend some restaurants?

Hey, he doesn't go there to hang out.

I just perform in those cities, and I never go sightseeing.

-I knew it. -He must be busy.

Hey, everyone. Done eating? Let's do the cake.

-Sounds great, we should do that. -Careful.

Let's see.

-Is that a rice cake? -That's not cheap.

It's chocolate inside. Your favorite.

Are you touched?

Not really.

Wait, let's video call Min-seong.

-Okay. -Call her.

-What's she doing now? -Isn't she coming?

-Why didn't she come? -She won't pick up?

-I don't think so. -She won't pick up.

Is she drinking somewhere?

-She won't pick up. -Why won't she?

Let's just do it.

Okay. One, two, three, four.

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday, dear Song-ah

Happy birthday to you

Thanks.

-Happy birthday. -Happy birthday, Song-ah.

I'll cut it.

Let's just eat it as is.

Should we?

-Let's just do that. -Just eat it with a fork.

-Shall we just eat it? -Yes.

-Why don't you cut it? -There are too many people here.

Just eat it.

-Let's eat. -Okay. Let's eat it.

-Hop in. -What?

Sir, we're headed to Seocho-dong,

but one will get off at Seocho Station, and the other at Seoul Arts Center.

Sure.

Aren't you coming?

You should go first.

Aren't you going home?

Well…

I have to finish talking about work with Joon-young.

Can we talk for a second?

Sure.

Why would you talk at this hour?

-If she's not getting in, let's go. -I'm sorry.

Then I'll get going.

-Goodbye, then. -Bye.

Hey.

Don't be too late.

-Let's get some air. -Can we get some air?

When I said I wanted to major in music

right before I graduated the college of business,

the only one who showed me support was Dong-yoon.

I think that's when it all began.

It took me four years to get in the college of music,

and Dong-yoon gave me lessons once or twice a week.

He was my teacher and my friend.

But…

I didn't want to take it any further.

Min-seong is…

as precious to me as Dong-yoon is.

So…

in a way,

I already knew how this would end.

But…

now that I'm actually facing the end,

I'm starting to have this thought.

Where will…

all these times in here end up?

Those memories stacked up and filled up my heart.

Where should they go now?

There's this word we use, "too",

when something excessively surpasses an adequate amount.

I think that might be why

some kind of love hurts you.

We should love someone moderately,

but we love that person too much.

So next time…

don't love someone

too much,

but moderately and adequately.

Don't love someone too excessively.

BIRTHDAY LEE JEONG-GYEONG, CHAE SONG-AH

Otherwise,

it'll hurt you too much.

So people at Kyunghoo Card already made a report to the CEO, then?

Yes.

I ran into Joon-young by chance and asked,

and he gladly said he'll do it.

I thought I reported back to you.

But I…

I'm sorry.

And you…

forgot that by chance too, didn't you?

Anyhow,

we can save face as we deal with Kyunghoo Card.

Joon-young will be doing that event at Hankook Arts Middle School.

That's great news.

Song-ah, do you want to take charge?

He won't be playing. He'll just talk.

There will be a host.

Song-ah, you've been in communication with Joon-young so far,

so you should take charge.

Yes.

Mr. Park, please give Song-ah the number of the person in charge at Kyunghoo Card.

Hae-na. Did you say you went to the same art school with Jo Soo-an?

Yes. We got into the university together, but Soo-an went abroad right away.

That's great.

Then you should take charge of this concert, Hae-na.

We're done printing everything,

so you can focus on overseeing the event on the day.

Okay.

Hello?

I'm calling regarding Mr. Park's event at Hankook Arts Middle School.

Chae Song-ah of Cultural Foundation.

Pardon?

No, that's my name.

No, it's not Choi.

It's Chae with "a" and "e."

Yes.

Then I'll send it to you in an email.

Yes, thank you. Goodbye.

My last name isn't Choi. It's Chae with an "ae."

Yes, I know.

Chae Song-ah.

Some people get it right at once.

I'm leaving.

Won't you work for the foundation?

-The foundation isn't really for me. -You haven't given it a try.

I'm going to live as a performer.

Is that for you, then?

Do what you can do, not what you want to do.

If you don't make it as a professor and come--

They will say I'm there because I didn't make it.

Everyone loves to gossip about other people's failures.

But you know, I won't go there even if I don't make it.

So you should find someone else. Besides, there's Yeong-in.

You should think of your mother.

If my mom were alive,

you and I wouldn't be talking about this.

The foundation wouldn't exist either.

You never talk nicely. That's just like your mom.

At times, the way you talk…

makes people's hearts ache.

You're right. I take after my mom.

Then you probably know

Mom always did whatever she wanted.

She made me play the violin and went to the US with me.

So I'm going to do whatever I want too.

Do you have no idea who she took after?

But in the end, she defeated you.

She ended up marrying Dad.

Yes. And that didn't end too well.

Nobody knows

how it would have ended.

I'm going to keep performing.

I'll be back.

You're home.

I'm back from my business trip.

I need to talk to you later.

Come in.

Hey.

Hello.

Hi.

Happy birthday, although I'm a day too late.

Thanks.

Should I put it on you?

It's just a birthday gift.

You can put it on.

Give me your hand.

You're a violinist. Why did you stick out your left hand?

Sorry.

I'm sorry.

Put it on me too.

We should go.

We're going to be late.

It'll be held the day before their break, and it's only for the music department.

And you won't have to play the piano that day.

Yes, okay.

Come in.

Hello, Song-ah.

Yes, hello.

Song-ah.

I'll call you later. You must be busy. You should go.

Okay, then.

Hello.

Hi.

Excuse me!

I was wondering if you left this behind.

It was on top of the sink.

Isn't it yours?

-It is. -I'm glad.

Should I play an A?

Is Jeong-gyeong running late?

Joon-young.

I'm going to get married.

Did Jeong-gyeong say yes?

Yes, it's all right.

Yes. Okay. I'll call you later. Goodbye.

Hae-na.

Jo Soo-an will change the accompanist.

Why?

He was her boyfriend, but they broke up.

Darn it.

That's why you should never date someone at work.

Darn it. It's the same context.

Gosh.

You know you seem ridiculous now, right?

Sorry I'm late.

Give me an A.

Okay. Let's begin.

I'm sorry, but let's take it from the top.

Sure.

Please stop for a second.

I don't think this is right.

What's not right?

I don't know.

But it's not right.

Really?

Be more specific. What doesn't seem right?

Let's just take it from the top.

There's no use if we don't know the reason.

Jeong-gyeong.

What do you not like?

You two can settle on the tempo or whatever.

I'll just go along.

Of course you will.

Because you don't think for yourself.

Have you ever done anything

as you wanted?

Even once?

Where are you going?

Aren't you going to practice?

Joon-young.

Park Joon-young. We need to talk.

About what?

Give me my birthday present.

What?

My birthday present.

I haven't received it yet.

Because I didn't send you one.

Why not?

Why didn't you send me one?

I told you.

I'm never going to play "Träumerei" again.

Joon-young--

Song-ah.

Yes?

Let's do the meeting now.

The meeting? Now?

Yes, we're not done talking about that.

Right.

Okay, sure.

Then please come over to our office.

Are you done practicing?

Yes.

Song-ah, you can go now.

What?

Actually,

I wasn't really going to talk about work.

I just…

stopped you there to avoid that situation.

I'll sit here for a while, then leave.

I don't want to run into her.

Thanks for your help.

Don't mention it.

You did the same for me.

You're right.

We're even now.

Bye.

LEE JEONG-GYEONG

Thank you

for letting me use this.

Thank you.

I'll give it to you.

Keep it.

Song-ah.

Hi.

-Going home from work? -Yes.

You know,

I have to go home right now.

Sure. Bye.

Hey, Song-ah.

Is it all right?

What?

The violin I fixed. Is it all right?

Yes.

It's fine.

Why are you here?

Are you coming home just now?

You're drinking too much.

You should sleep over.

Hey.

What's between you and Jeong-gyeong?

What's happening between you two?

Today?

I'm sorry.

How long will you be in Korea?

Well…

Until next summer.

Why? Did you get sick of me? Should I leave sooner?

Go.

Please leave.

You should sleep over.

I said I'm fine.

Hey.

What are you doing?

It's not good to use a fan fixed in one spot for long.

I set up the timer, so go to sleep. I'm leaving.

My eyes hurt because of the wind.

Go.

Please leave.

Song-ah, have you been to Hankook Arts Middle School?

No, I just went to a regular middle school.

What about you?

I visited a few times a while back. For parent-teacher meetings.

Joon-young lived alone when he went to school here,

so I used to nag him whenever he got his report card.

Anyway, if you have any questions later, feel free to ask…

What? That's Joon-young's mom.

-Hello. -Hi.

Hi.

I'm Joo Sang-wook from Kyunghoo Card.

Hello. I'm Chae Song-ah.

Oh, right.

We spoke on the phone, didn't we?

-Yes, nice to meet you. -Likewise.

Can I get your business card?

Oh, I'm…

She's an intern.

"An intern"?

I see.

You're an intern.

An intern…

I heard Mr. Park Seong-jae was your direct supervisor

when he worked at Kyunghoo Card.

Yes, that's right. I had huge respect for him.

When he first joined our foundation,

he was just like you.

You remind me of that time.

What do you mean by that?

They're all cute when they're assistant managers.

Of course he was good at his job. That's a given.

I see.

I have another meeting, so I'm afraid I have to leave.

As for the show, you can discuss all the logistics with Song-ah.

Okay, sure.

JEONG-GYEONG, CAN WE MEET TODAY?

Joon-young.

You're here.

You said Dad had changed.

I'm sorry.

When do you need it?

This is where our students hold miniconcerts once a week.

Oh, I see.

I guess you moved the piano someplace else.

Oh, no. We got rid of it.

We're getting a new piano next month.

I see.

-Excuse me for a second. -Sure.

Yes, sir.

So, Miss…

Intern?

Intern lady?

Yes?

You know,

when you called me…

I mean, when I answered the phone,

someone suddenly said, "I'm sorry."

I was thrown off.

I was like, "Who is this person?"

"Why did she call me? And why is she saying sorry?"

I was confused.

Anyhow,

the foundation would have a hard time if it weren't for Kyunghoo Card's help.

I guess that's why you're sorry, right?

Oh, Mr. Park Joon-young.

What brings you by?

I heard you had other plans today.

Just one show isn't enough, right?

If you want to get your money's worth, you can talk to me.

I'll do anything you want. But you know,

do you think the money gives you the right to talk down to her?

Nice seeing you today, Joon-young.

Oh, right. Hyeon-ho stopped by recently.

I heard Jeong-gyeong is back too.

The three of you should visit together.

Okay.

That guy from the credit card company,

he thinks he can walk all over us because they allocate budgets to the foundation.

That's why I got angry.

Does he think money is everything?

But to be honest,

I don't think I have the right to criticize others.

I'm no different.

Just because I earn some money…

Okay, I understand.

Can you ask Joon-young if he's okay with it?

I'm sure he won't refuse, but…

I'm in a meeting now.

Let's talk later.

Okay.

Who?

Joon-young?

What's going on?

Is his father in trouble again?

Is he in Europe at the moment?

YOO TAE-JIN PROFESSOR OF MUSIC

Joon-young…

He's back in Korea now.

Why aren't you wearing your ring?

Hyeon-ho…

seemed concerned about it.

Aren't you the one who's concerned?

I don't like

how you act these days.

What?

Actually, I really can't stand you.

Joon-young.

Get married already.

That is what I wanted to tell you.

Do you really mean it?

Yes. I really hope you do.

I've reported it to Ms. Cha.

She's negotiating with them to finalize all the details.

I'm sorry.

Are you really okay with performing?

I mean, you're on sabbatical.

Yes, it's fine.

You can buy me dinner next time.

Okay, will do.

You know, about what you said earlier…

You said you despise people who try to take credit after giving money or help.

But the thing is,

I think anyone can think that way if they're ordinary human beings.

When we pick out gifts,

we expect the recipients to like them.

It's the same when we help someone.

Even if we say we don't expect anything in return,

we hope that it'd be rewarding

and look forward to seeing that.

But the Chief Director

expected nothing in return when she gave me the scholarship.

I'm not sure if I can share my opinion,

but she probably hoped

that playing the piano would help you create a happy life.

I bet she wanted to see that.

A happy life?

Song-ah.

Yes?

How about dinner tonight?

Thinking of which,

we ran into each other twice today.

I know.

I stopped by the school

because my appointment ended early.

I figured you'd be there,

so I thought I should go there and check out the venue.

I suddenly thought,

"I should go and see Song-ah."

"If I meet her,

I'll feel better."

So?

Do you feel better now?

Yes.

Thanks to you,

I've realized that I was wrong.

I think I stopped by the school earlier

because I wanted to smile.

When I'm with you, I'm happy, and I keep smiling.

I wanted to see you.

The audience must love it whenever you perform on stage.

I envy you.

Gosh, no.

On some days, I don't feel the greatest.

There are also days when I can't really focus for some reason.

And the piano sounds off at times.

But as they say, "There's no such thing as a bad piano,

only bad pianists."

There's that saying.

In other words,

it's just something I must live with.

Regardless of how I feel

and what kind of piano I'm playing,

I must always deliver the best performance ever.

I guess…

that is the fate of a pianist.

"Fate"?

Right.

Anyway, there are many reasons I can mess up a performance,

but the audience and critics

don't need to know the pianist's personal issues.

They just evaluate

the performance on stage at that moment,

and that's how it should be.

And that's why

I feel pressure

during every performance.

Then how did you manage to perform every two to three days?

Well…

I had to, to earn a living.

Welcome.

-Hello. -Hello.

This way, please.

The piano rental company only has baby grands at the moment.

What?

I guess they had a full-sized one left.

It's from the chairman's home.

I heard he went to school with the chairman's daughter.

Yes.

I wish you had told me.

The secretary's office told me

to provide him with the best possible environment for his performance.

But…

why isn't he playing?

JUNG KYUNG-SEON

Hello, students of Hankook Arts Middle School.

Welcome to the Talk Concert of Passion and Sympathy

organized by Kyunghoo Card.

I'm your host, Yoon Su-bin. I'm delighted to meet you all.

TALK CONCERT - PASSION AND COMPASSION HOSTED BY KYUNGHOO CARD

I can already see how excited you all are.

Behind the stage is the special guest who is here for the lecture.

Shall we call him out together?

-Joon-young, come on out! -Come on out!

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday, dear Professor Song

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday, Professor Song.

My gosh, this is so beautiful.

-Professor, we all pitched in to get this. -Yes.

My gosh. You didn't have to get me anything.

I'm just happy to see you.

-Professor Song, how about a photo? -Sure, we should take one together.

-Come here. -Okay.

Jeong-gyeong.

What are you doing? Come join us.

Okay.

Move over a little. Come here.

Jeong-gyeong, come here.

-Girls, let's take a photo now. -Come.

I heard you practice for several months

every time you participate in a competition.

We want to know how you managed to participate in competitions

for six to seven years straight without taking a break.

Would you say you were born to compete?

Gosh, "born to compete"?

No way.

Well…

I really…

hated competitions.

First place?

Of course it's nice.

At first, I was happy with the prize money and all.

But you see,

after winning a few more awards,

I had to keep on competing

and winning first place.

That went on for a bit,

and I got to a point where I'd much rather die than compete.

Did you write that down?

Don't.

I can't say that to the kids.

You should say it.

I'll listen to your story.

I think the process of preparing for the competitions taught me a lot.

Being a musician…

is like finding your own answer

in your sheet music. It's about that process.

After the Chopin Competition seven years ago,

you decided to become a traveling pianist.

You now travel the globe and play two to three times a week.

What's that like?

A classical musician…

is always alone.

Nowadays, the event organizer

picks me up when I arrive at an airport or a train station,

but it wasn't like that at first.

What if you fall ill when you're alone?

Even if I fall ill…

I can't be ill.

Taking care of my health is part of my job.

And canceling a show is simply unimaginable.

What can I do?

I take antacids, sleeping pills, and even sedatives when it's bad.

I rely on medicine.

Sometimes, I wonder,

"What did I do so wrong in my past life…

to go through this right now?"

Living as a classical musician is truly a great blessing.

That's what I think.

I see. When you almost had to quit piano due to your family's financial situation,

you were chosen as the first recipient of the Kyunghoo scholarship program,

so you didn't have to give up.

If you'd never met Kyunghoo Cultural Foundation,

what do you think you'd be doing now?

Well… That would be…

hard to imagine.

I'd be doing something, I guess.

Just not playing the piano.

I think I'd be…

a little freer.

Mister! Can we get going?

As a little breather, we prepared a photo of Joon-young.

It's from the time when he was a student here.

-My gosh! -Oh, my.

Oh, gosh.

Where did you get this? Even I don't have this photo.

Looks like it was taken in this hall.

Do you remember this?

I think this was when I participated

in a chamber music competition as a piano trio.

This fellow here is still my best mate.

And this girl here had just transferred from the US--

Is she your girlfriend?

-No, just a friend. A female friend. -Come on.

So, you didn't have a girlfriend back then?

I still don't.

Did you have any crushes, then?

Yes.

Why did it just remain as a crush? You should've played the piano for her.

I did.

But I guess it wasn't that great.

Can I ask what you played for her?

No comment.

All right. Sadly, it's already time

to wrap up this talk concert.

-No! Keep going! -No!

Last but not least, Joon-young prepared

a piano performance for all of you.

What will you play?

Well…

What shall I play on that day?

Is there anything you want to hear?

He'll play "Träumerei" from Kinderscenen by Schumann.

-"Träumerei." -Was I not supposed to know?

…just one of many piano pieces. Even if I do, nothing will change.

It didn't mean anything to you?

There can't be any meaning between the two of us.

You can get some air.

Just don't leave me, please.

They're hiring a Professor of Music at Seoryeong University.

That spot should go to Jeong-gyeong. I tried hard to love it like she did.

-But I couldn't. -I'm sorry.

Do you have plans after work tomorrow?

Song-ah.

I don't know why I always think of you on bad days.

Song-ah.

I was…

Okay.

Sounds good.