The recent episodes of “My Youth” delivered a blend of sweet romance and heart-wrenching twists. Sunwoo Hae (Song Joong Ki) has finally decided not to hide his feelings for Sung Je Yeon (Chun Woo Hee). While Je Yeon’s heart betrays her with skipped beats, she still turns him down. Yet Je Yeon never hesitates to lean on him whenever work calls. Despite his discomfort with the shadows of his celebrity past, Sunwoo Hae obliges, proving his quiet devotion.
Life has never been kind to Sunwoo Hae. His absentee, emotionally distant father resurfaces, bringing with him painful confrontations with his wife, Kim Pil Do (Jin Kyung). Through it all, Sunwoo Hae remains calm and steady, but fate deals him yet another blow: a rare, life-threatening illness that threatens to cut short his story.
Even as viewers cheer for Sunwoo Hae’s unwavering devotion to Je Yeon, the recent episodes left many frustrated by the obstacles in his path. Here are the moments that had viewers smiling one second and sighing the next.
Warning: spoilers from episode 5-6 ahead.
Sweet: Sunwoo Hae’s pursuit of Je Yeon
Sunwoo Hae’s quiet determination in winning Je Yeon’s heart is heart-melting. When he leans in to kiss her, he pauses to ask if it’s okay. Swept up in the moment, Je Yeon admits she would dislike it if he didn’t, a confession that speaks volumes. For Sunwoo Hae, who has never once forgotten her in all the years they’ve been apart, her return feels like an impossible dream come true. And this time, he has no intention of letting go.
From shyly asking his friend who runs a bookstore if he could stage a date there to roping in his best friend to bring Je Yeon to his restaurant, Sunwoo Hae is unabashed in showing his feelings. He even makes bouquets for her, each flower signifying his feelings. They are gestures that reveal the softer side of a man who is usually so reserved. What’s most moving of all is that he still wears the bracelet Je Yeon gave him years ago, now transformed into his quiet amulet of confidence. With every action, Hae makes it clear: his love for Je Yeon has never wavered.
What makes their growing camaraderie so easygoing is the foundation of friendship. The two often spar and bicker over the past, adding a playful edge to their connection. Je Yeon recalls how, back in their drama class days, he had been unfriendly and even snubbed her. Though Sunwoo Hae doesn’t remember any of it, he still apologizes, a small but telling gesture of how much her words mean to him now. Having Je Yeon back feels like a gift, and this time Sunwoo Hae is certain that every word, every thought, and every action will speak volumes of his love for her.
Frustrating: Je Yeon choosing ambitions over her heart
Yet, for all of Sunwoo Hae’s relentless sweetness, Je Yeon remains caught between what her heart wants and what her career demands. After their kiss, when Hae gathers the courage to confess and voice his desire to start a relationship, Je Yeon shuts him down. “We either become difficult, distant, or date,” she tells him, only to choose the second option, rejecting his love.
What makes it especially frustrating is how Je Yeon sometimes selfishly manipulates Sunwoo Hae’s feelings. She keeps her distance emotionally, but never hesitates to reach out when his presence benefits her work. Whether it’s asking him to review the essay of the PD’s daughter, pushing him to approve the third installment of his book adaptation, or securing his signature for a copyright renewal, she ensures he remains tethered to her world. Though she offers him the option of sending an agent, Sunwoo Hae still shows up personally, only to face humiliation as he overhears people slandering his past and is once again forced into the orbit of Kim Pil Do.
Still, there are moments where Je Yeon wavers, her true feelings threatening to slip through. When she unexpectedly shows up at Sunwoo Hae’s home, he is momentarily touched—until it becomes clear her timing was calculated to coincide with the visit of the PD’s daughter. It’s not that she doesn’t care; it’s that she refuses to admit it, manipulating the closeness he offers while keeping her emotions at arm’s length. This push-and-pull makes her choices all the more exasperating to watch.
Frustrating: Kim Pil Do’s constant meddling
Kim Pil Do’s intense hatred of Sunwoo Hae is no secret. A shrewd and calculating businesswoman, she runs Feel Entertainment with an iron grip. Ironically, despite the company’s name, she has no regard for people’s feelings. She discards people, talent or employees, the moment they outlive their usefulness. Even Tae Rin (Lee Ju Myoung), who has been with her company since her debut, is cast aside without hesitation when Pil Do refuses to renew her contract. But when it comes to Sunwoo Hae, Pil Do’s dislike goes far beyond business. It’s personal, deep, and cutting.
She despises him and worse still, she despises that he remains unfazed by her constant attempts to humiliate him. When Pil Do discovers that the bestselling author behind the book her company has adapted is none other than Sunwoo Hae, she is appalled. Her fury only grows when her own son, Kim Seok Ju (Seo Ji Hun), openly idolizes Hae and even calls him his big brother.
Pil Do’s hatred is rooted in the past. She detested Sunwoo Hae’s mother and carried that loathing onto him, clinging to the story that mother and son had scammed people. Now married to Sunwoo Hae’s father, she has made sure the chasm between father and son has only widened over the years. The tangled truth is even uglier: Pil Do and Sunwoo Hae’s father were college sweethearts who reunited and married shortly after Sunwoo Hae’s mother died by suicide. Though his father once asked Sunwoo Hae to live with them, he refused, choosing instead to protect his father’s reputation and the secret of his illegitimate daughter, while letting Pil Do brand him as “unworthy.” Sunwoo Chan still tries to reach out to his son, but he never goes the entire mile since he is scared to offend Pil Do.
Pil Do’s manipulations, her sharp disdain, and her cold dismissal of people’s emotions make her one of the most frustrating forces in Sunwoo Hae’s life. Watching her twist both the past and present to keep him diminished is as exasperating as it is cruel.
Frustrating: Sunwoo Hae’s health starting to fade
The most heartbreaking frustration comes when Sunwoo Hae’s body begins to betray him. Though he has been undergoing blood tests for some time, the symptoms have never been conclusive. For Hae, these routine check-ups are a minor inconvenience, something he tolerates without fuss given his calm temperament. But this time it’s different: the doctors need more extensive tests. It is revealed that he has a rare condition, one that is irreversible and without a cure.
Calmly, Hae asks how much time he has left, and the answer is uncertain—it could be days, or it could be 10 years. The weight of the diagnosis is crushing, yet he takes it in stride, accepting the inevitability of his situation. There is a moment of lingering sadness, but he quickly shakes it off, determined to live fully in every moment that remains.
Watching his health falter is like seeing the light of the story flicker—painful, inevitable, and deeply unfair. Adding to the irony, his diagnosis comes at the same time as Je Yeon’s confession of love. This poignant timing raises a haunting question: is their love story destined to wither before it even has a chance to bloom? Only next week will tell!
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Puja Talwar is a Soompi writer with a strong Yoo Yeon Seok and Lee Junho bias. A long time K-drama fan, she loves devising alternate scenarios to the narratives. She has interviewed Lee Min Ho, Gong Yoo, Cha Eun Woo, and Ji Chang Wook to name a few. You can follow her on @puja_talwar7 on Instagram.
