Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha Season 1 Episode 2 recap

Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha

Hye-jin secures an office space and house at Gongjin

A flashback from two weeks ago when Du-sik and Hye-jin arrives at the prospective office location for her clinic, he boasts about the impressive beach view from the office, a good feng shui location and the only available place.

Next stop is the house for her to live in – two bedrooms and one bathroom. Hye-jin comments that the interior design of the house is not her style. She prefers an antique, simple and European style when Du-sik insists her to tell him. A wainscot paneling on the walls and porcelain tiles on the floor, Spanish tiles in the foyer and light fixtures from Denmark would do. WIth Du-sik not moving, she looks at him and doubts he does not understand any of it. Coming back to his senses, Du-sik offers changing the wallpaper to off-white color from tropical vibe with contrasting colors but Hye-jin is not convinced at all.

Back to the restaurant, Hye-jin finds it suspicious when both the office and the house belongs to Ms. Yeo, the restaurant owner who told her to open a dental clinic at Gongjin. Thinking that she is getting scammed because she is not from around Gongjin, Hye-jin is not convinced with all the talk. Ms. Yeo shows her government ID, working as zone chief at Gongjin, as a proof that she is not a scammer. Du-sik also shows Hye-jin the bargain she was offered compared to the rent fees posted online and tells her that the office location she just saw is supposed to be the place for Ms. Yeo’s second restaurant. She offered it to her instead because she thought it would benefit the whole town if Hye-jin opens a dental clinic. Du-sik gives up, grabs his phone from her hand and leaves but Hye-jin stops him by putting her foot on his shoes.

Hye-jin and Ms. Yeo signs the contract binding them as tenant and landlady. Ms. Yeo thanks Du-sik for his service and wires his wage of four hours amounting to 17,440 won. Hye-jin leaves the restaurant and is followed by Du-sik. He continues to walk behind her which prompted her to ask why is he following her. Du-sik asks for his pay for the service he provided. He continue on saying that he goes by the minimum hourly wage of 8,720 won per hour and since he worked for four hours, it is a total of 34,880 won. Splitting the service fee between Hye-jin and Ms. Yeo, that would be 17,400 won per person.

Hye-jin pays him cash on the spot. Du-sik offers his renovation service for both her clinic and house, showing multiple IDs that he is certified practitioner of wallpaper and painting, cement work, tiles, heating and plumbing which made Hye-jin drop her jaw. Certain with his credibility, Du-sik leaves her consider as hired.

Hye-jin moves in to Gongjin

The next morning, Gongjin villagers curiously check out who is moving in at Ms. Yeo’s house and find out it is Hye-jin. Ms. Yeo visits her and tries to have a conversation, telling her to greet the rest of the villagers who are in front of the house. However, Hye-jin finds it not the right time as she leaves them and accommodates the logistic personnel where her stuffs should be placed inside the house.

In the evening, she phones her dad and tells him that her move went smoothly and he should visit once the clinic opens, then hangs up as she has a lot to unpack. The doorbell rings and Du-sik shows up verifying her registration. He goes inside the house and orients her about garbage collection. Hye-jin grabs a pen and paper to write it down. Then Du-sik tells her the front door lock combination is 870 724 and she can change it to any combination she wants. Hye-jin asks what is this number and he says it is his birthday. Hye-jin freaks out why is her house door lock combination his birthday. He reasons out that nothing came to mind so he used his door lock combination to her door lock. She tries to forget what she just heard but entertained the thought and asks if Du-sik is 35 years old, confirming that he is just a year older than her. He asks if she just showed a hint of affection. Hye-jin is taken by surprise again and gets goose bumps from the question.

Hye-jin wants to forget about Du-sik’s birthdate

Hye-jin runs for her morning jog wearing a crop top and leggings, with her belly button showing out. The elderly women, who are working at the gutting deck, see her running in long johns instead and getting a disapproval of her outfit. She also goes to her clinic and checks out the renovation progress by Du-sik and it does satisfies her.

Hye-jin offends Gongjin Villagers

Hye-jin’s renovated house at Gongjin

Ms. Yeo visits Hye-jin and loves what she has done with the place. She says she came by to invite Hye-jin to a party for the elderly the next day. Hye-jin looks uninterested and wants to dismiss by saying she is busy, but Ms. Yeo tells her to drop by even if she is busy with a straight face since she starts to recognize Hye-jin having an attitude not wanting to associate herself with the neighbors. She convinces her to come by promoting her clinic at the party.

Hye-jin arrives at the party for the elderly at Gongjin town hall, obviously just forced herself to show up. She looks around from afar when Chief Hong walks up to her from behind. He takes out his camera from the bag and Hye-jin hides her face from him saying she values her portrait rights. Chief Hong assures her that she does need to worry because he has high standards for his models.

One of the three elderly women from the gutting deck calls out for her, inviting her to join them at a small, open cabin. She quickly comes over and promotes her newly opened clinic. Grandma Kim mentions how time has changed for the better, that women at her time rarely received hinger education which turns Hye-jin’s smiling face into a frown. Grandma Kim brushes off her story and wraps a piece of meat and kimchi barehandedly to give to Hye-jin but it disgusts her. And when Grandma Kim offers it to her, she grabs a spoon to get the food from her hand and places it on the table, not wanting to eat it. Grandma Lee asks if it was because Grandma Kim used her bare hands which is why she does not want to eat it and further defends that Grandma Kim’s hand are clean. Hye-jin says she is just not hungry, but the elderly women does not believe her.

Ms. Yeo and Nam-sook joins them at the table. Ms. Yeo tells Hye-jin to let her know if anything bothers her about the two places she rents. Hye-jin takes it by the book and requests for a change the utility floor tiles due to minor cracks which did not seem pleasant to her eyes, as well as a change on the screen window due to a hole as big as a quarter of a pinky fingernail that mosquitoes and fruit flies can enter and change the way Ms. Yeo grills her restaurant fish because the smell is overpowering and she does not like it.

Sitting from another table, Bo-ra’s mother, who is the owner of the supermarket, introduces herself and her husband, who runs the hardware store, to Hye-jin. She tells her that she did not buy anything at the supermarket the other day, and encourages her to visit again if she needs anything. Hye-jin, still taking the advice to tell anything in her mind that bothers her, bluntly says that she did not bought anything because did not find the high-end brand shampoo she is looking for, as she expected from countryside. So she just bought it online and tells her she does not need to worry about it.

Everyone’s welcoming face fades away after hearing each of her complain about petty things, especially when she mentioned to them about being a “countryside”. Almost all at the same time, they stand up and leaves her all alone.

Chun-Jae, the coffee owner, joins her at the table, much to Hye-jin’s uninterested face after being disappointed with his awful coffee the other day. He tells her that he is a singer and gives her his first album as a welcome gift. Hye-jin insincerely thanks him, puts it inside her bag and looks away uninterested as he continues talking about himself being a singer and how his manager ran off with the money for his second album. She excuses herself to use the bathroom to leave him.

The village chief, Chang Yeong-guk, broadcasts their village wish for their elders good health and encourages other villagers who have not yet come to attend the party.

Chief Hong offers Hye-jin a bowl of yukgaejang but she tells him she does not have any appetite. She walks towards him and almost whispering says there are dust around the place like this and food cooked in the open is just unsanitary. He says that she sounds like a fussy Seoulite and a picky person.

Just about Chief Hong tries to correct Hye-jin’s attitude being hostile towards everyone just because she came from the city, her phone rings and she goes inside the town hall’s office for quiet place. Talking to Mi Soon over the phone, she voices out her honest opinion about the people at Gongjin and wishes she did not come. In an open area where dirt is kicked up, the people grill meat, boil soup and sing and elder women using their bare hands when eating which are the things she hates. She tells Mi Soon that she does not like anything at Gongjin and thinks it would have been better if she stayed in Seoul. She continues on saying there is a cafe owner who is an obscure singer who talks about himself even if she did not ask. That even if his manager took of with the money for his second money, he could have made it one way or another if he had the willpower or talent. She finds it no point to live in the past when one’s present is in shambles and that’s what cowards do. Mi Soon response that she feels bad for him, for those people whose hopes are left behind in the past. She continue on saying one’s unfulfilled dreams tend to hold a place in the heart. And this hit something inside Hye-jin.

Mi Soon hangs up the call. Hye-jin leaves the townhall office and comes back to the party with all the villagers staring at her. Then suddenly Ms. Yeo scolds the village chief for not turning off the microphone at the townhall office after his broadcast earlier. Chun-Jae walks out of the party and Hye-jin realizing what she has just done.

In the evening, Du-sik, working as a delivery man, rings Hye-jin’s house to give her the package she ordered online. He looks at her and tells her something important.

You think you’re better than everyone. Being smart, you got good grades and became a dentist. Your life must have been smooth. Not always, of course, but all you hit were simple speed bumps. Getting over those small bumps, you thought that willpower could get you anywhere.
Hong Du-sik to hye-jin

Hye-jin tries to stop him from scolding her. But he continues on saying why not as she freely judge other people’s lives, but is offended when she is being assessed.

Look here, doctor. It seems like you’re mistaken. Life is not fair for all of us. Some spend their whole lives on unpaved roads, while some run at full speed only to reach the edge of a cliff.
Hong Du-sik to hye-jin

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