[Drama Recap] Who Are You - School 2015: Episode 9

Nam Joo-hyeok was deeply shocked when he learned about Kim So-hyeon-I's past.

On the 9th episode of KBS 2TV's 'Who Are You - School 2015', I-an (Nam Joo-hyeok) learned about Eun-bi (Kim So-hyeon-I)'s past through Mo-kyeong (Jeon Mi-seon). He became deeply confused.I-an first ignored it when Eun-bi confessed she was not Go Eun-byeol. He came to see Mo-kyeong finally. Mi-kyeong said, "It's ok. You can talk. I know why you're here" and she revealed Eun-bi's past to him.
Mi-kyeong said, "I felt sorry for her because she was living a tough life and she's still a child. At that time, it was difficult for both of us and we had to depend upon each other. I hope you can take this as it is".
I-an said he couldn't believe it. Mi-kyeong revealed. "I was greedy to hold her next to me. When I gathered my wits again, I realized what I had done. It must have been difficult for her to live as someone else even though I tried my best to give her so much love". She also said she was preparing to change her school.

Even though Tae Gwang told her not to do anything, this time it felt inevitable and she feels sorry towards him for choosing to stay with Yi Ahn at this very moment, even under these tense circumstances instead of leaving with Tae Gwang. Tae Gwang lets go of her hand and Yi Ahn loosened his arm-grab. Eun Bi and Yi Ahn find themselves at the park’s playground where Eun Bi confesses that she’s not Eun Byul. Yi Ahn can neither conceive nor believe what these words mean and he would like to talk about this some other day. Eun Bi thinks this is the time, she understands that he’s aware of the truth while he trying not to believe it.

When she lost her memories it was the first time in her life she felt loved and everything was so warm and kind of majestic compared to her previous life. At this point she thinks she made the wrong choice, back then she didn’t realize how much pain she would cause to Yi Ahn and she’s well aware that it’s too late and she can’t get back in time to make things right. Her tears are enough of a great price to pay under this confession as she’s apologetic for everything. Yi Ahn doesn’t want to understand what she wants to convey and tries not to listen to her words since they don’t bring to the surface the answers he would like to hear; that she’s Eun Byul.

 

Teacher Kim announces the switching to the summer uniforms starting tomorrow. Eun Bi notices that Yi Ahn is not present at the classroom. Nobody was paying that much attention to teacher Kim, but once the sexy noona teacher Jung appeared and started talking all the boys’ mouths were dripping honey! Gi Tae’s happiness is omnipresent and Hae Na’s not that pleased about it and slaps him on the chest, not only her cuteness doesn’t enrage him but on top of that he thinks she’s on fire! It’s this time of the year when they can leave anonymous messages for their homeroom teacher and she urges them to leave nice ones and they agree! Soo In might as well leave her own messages too! Tae Gwang appears late as always and this time he enters his sleep mode immediately without staring at Eun Bi. The boys’ fanboy choir towards the sexy noona teacher was hilarious! Everyone’s happy about teacher Jung’s accomplishments when it comes to the students and even though they are supposed to talk about serious matters they are devoured by the teacher’s glamorous vibes!

 

Eun Bi’s lost in her own thoughts noticing that Yi Ahn’s not at school, but her emotional thoughts doesn’t last long since So Young ruins her mood even more pointing out how traumatized he might feel after all this information overload and the fact that she’s not Eun Byul. She tries to manipulate her thoughts by playing a harsh game with the fact that every time her classmates will be referring to her as Eun Byul it will be even more harmful for Yi Ahn to cope with his inner demons along with the fact that her presence is already a painful experience. Eun Bi’s unable to reply to her taunts for the time being and tightens her fist in silence and agony.

Min Joon’s mother has arrived at school, she wants to meet with the English teacher. One of his classmates informs Min Joon that his mother arrived at the office and he becomes worried. His mother immediately refers to So Young and the fact that she was alone in the classroom when the computers were reformatted. She wants her to face the consequences of her actions. She wants to be one step ahead, but she’s not aware of the truth teacher Kim knows. Min Joon never mentioned anything to his mother and she got to know about the incident through another mother. Teacher Kim mentions that there is no evidence that So Young was responsible for the incident, but Jung Min urges everyone to either restore her son’s missing marks or find more evidence that points towards So Young’s direction. The English teacher points out that the marks can’t be restored since there should be fairness between the students that submitted the projects on time and the ones that got to provide them under special circumstances the next day. She’s willing to move forward on her own, if the school won’t resolve it for her she will have to go to the police! Min Joon’s witnesses through the door his mother’s dissatisfaction.

Song Joo receives a message from J Entertainment informing her that her audition time has been set. However, she doesn’t look that pleased, she’s either thoughtful about Eun Byul’s words or she can’t believe yet that So Young actually did help her! Tae Gwang’s about to leave the classroom but he can’t help it but stare at Eun Bi who’s on her own with her only company being her own thoughts. He urges her to eat with him since it’s lunch time, but she doesn’t feel like eating. It’s probably the loneliest moment of her new life. Yi Ahn’s inside his room and holds a picture from his childhood years where he is alongside Eun Byul. He can’t help it but visit Eun Byul’s mother and she’s kind of surprised since he came to see her and not her daughter! It’s an awkward moment on behalf of Yi Ahn, but her mother urges him to talk about anything if he feels like doing so.

Eun Bi’s alone at the school’s courtyard and Tae Gwang sits by her side! He didn’t go to eat either if she’s not willing to do so. The delivery guy arrives and it’s time for both of them to eat, black bean noodles it is and he shows her his new mixing method. Τhey even exchange dishes to give her the mixed one for further pleasure! Even though she tries to pull him away she finds comfort in his company! Eun Bi thinks that the conversation went pretty well yesterday, but she’s not that happy she got caught in her own lie, but he prevents her from talking more and a dumpling love-attack takes place! Eun Bi’s face must had been so funny with this dumpling inside her mouth Tae Gwang choked on his own food making Eun Bi burst into immense laughter! He always manages to bring a bright smile upon her face!

Her mother refers to all the hardships Eun Bi had to go through and during the sudden turn of events both of them had only one another to turn to. She knows he’s too shocked now, but she deeply hopes he won’t misunderstand everything going on. He can’t even comprehend what’s going on for the time being while Mi Gyeong has already realized by now her own emotional greed for wanting her to be by her side. When reality stroke her, her temporary safe heaven collapsed and her heart exploded to smithereens. It’s not easy for Eun Bi living as another person either and she’s well aware of that, that’s why she plans to move soon and transfer her to another school. She asks him to pretend he doesn’t know anything until that moment arrives.

Teacher Kim probably wanted to bury the laptop incident, but Min Joon’s mother’s appearance made him bring it back to the surface, they will all have to wait until they have the results. Min Joon’s quite nervous and teacher Kim notices that he was ruining his own notebook while he was speaking. He lets him know of the information he has received from the technician and that it was his team’s laptop that was broken. Min Joon takes full responsibility for his actions on reformatting the other teams’ laptops, but if he confesses to a wider extent, what would happen to him? Teacher Kim tells him that trying to fix things after having told a lie is quite difficult. There are many things he may lose and many people will point their fingers at him. However, choosing the path of a coward is not the way and leaving something behind it doesn’t mean it will remain forever buried in the past. Teacher Kim wouldn’t like him to make that ethical mistake.

Song Joo has arrived at the audition and she does her best dancing, singing and acting in front of J Entertainment’s critics. It’s her first time auditioning for an agency and they actually enjoyed it! Tae Gwang calls Eun Bi on the phone and since she never picks up his calls he was checking if she had blocked his number and then he appears right next to her! He lets her know that So Young’s quite happy with Eun Bi leaving. If she wants to get rid of her she should do it fast, he teases her and then she kicks him on the shank, but he’s quite happy for that, she’s Eun Bi after all! Yi Ahn’s alone at night throwing stones at the same place he spent some time with Eun Bi teaching her how to make the stones dance on water. Mi Gyeong’s words echo inside his mind anew.

Eun Bi opens up Eun Byul’s memory box and holds Yi Ahn’s medal in her hands. She’s willing to return back to Tongyeong and she’s buying a ticket, but she won’t be the only one, Yi Ahn has the same destination to meet Eun Byul once again at her memorial. His medal’s already there, keeping company to Eun Byul as Yi Ahn breaks apart in front of the memorial. Eun Bi’s little friends from the orphanage are paying a visit to Eun Bi’s memorial because they miss her while they’re unaware of the fact that she’s actually alive and hiding from them on the spot. She can’t hold back her tears as Ra Jin cries her heart, they haven’t forgotten of her spicy rice cakes making it even harder from Eun Bi who’s bearing witness of their conversation.

 

She may not be able to talk to them for now, but she can keep them inside her heart longing for the moment she will be able to appear in front of them. Yi Ahn’s watching her from a safe distance witnessing her emotional struggle, but he’s not in a better condition either. Inside the bus a little girl cut his arm a tiny bit and she took care of it with adhesive bandage making him recall the time when his mother passed away and Eun Byul rewarded him with a cute adhesive bandage to ease his emotional tension as much as possible. At that point, he stares out of the window and notices Eun Bi staring at him from the bus next to his, it’s definitely one of the most emotional scenes of the drama so far as Eun Bi’s bus leaves, leaving behind Yi Ahn who couldn’t keep his tears deep within.

Teacher Kim meets Min Joon’s mother and lets her know that there is no evidence against her son, it’s all circumstantial and it’s the same for So Young as well. He tries to resolve things silently without causing a ruckus inside the classroom. She tells him to not come after he son since there is no evidence and he hopes she can do the same implying So Young’s part of the story. By the time Min Joon returns back home she takes him inside his room by force and wants him to say that it’s So Young behind the reformatting. He doesn’t reply back and he slaps him. She wants him to keep his mouth shut and go back to studying, she’s as cold as that, without caring about her own son’s emotional struggles.

 

Yi Ahn has returned back home and sits with his father who can’t wait for his son to grow up and have a drink with him! Alcohol is for these moments when you feel empty inside, his father notices that there’s a lurking urge to taste soju, but Yi Ahn holds back, he wants his father to treat him to a shot of soju the day after tomorrow when his race is over to find out for himself if the emptiness really does fill up or not. Eun Bi’s ill on her bed and Mi Gyeong stands by her side, she was probably there the whole night. She points out she feels better and that she’ll go to school and holds her mother’s hand. At school, Song Joo appears and she’s not as warm as she used to be towards Eun Byul and tells her about the audition and that nothing bad happened like she expected. A contract feels more palpable at this point and she lets her know how badly she wanted to talk to her about it while preparing for the audition and receive her support, but she couldn’t because she would be negative about it. She asks her why did she make their relationship this way and leaves.

 

Teacher Kim points out that there was no clear evidence about the one who reformatted the laptops and her classmates start cough-talking So Young’s name and you can’t help but notice Tae Gwang’s troll face smiling right behind her! Teacher Kim points out there was no real evidence so they should step back from going against her hoping that something like this will ever happen again. The only way they can resolve it is with the confession of the real culprit, so they should stop talking for now. They have two days, if anyone has something to say he/she should contact teacher Kim before the deadline.

The ambiance inside the classroom isn’t the finest. So Young leaves the classroom while Min Joon doesn’t feel at ease, Eun Bi feels ill and Shi Jin is worried about her as Song Joo remains static, Yi Ahn’s not at his best and Eun Bi’s aware of it while Tae Gwang witnesses the whole scenery, but he doesn’t stand still after Shi Jin takes Eun Bi to the clinic. Yi Ahn escapes reality by listening to music while Song Joo has already noticed that something’s not right between them.

Tae Gwang wants to find out how Eun Bi feels and pretends to be ill as well laying his back on the bed next to hers, just like the good “old” days! He stares at her with so much love and when he notices that someone’s about to enter he hid changing sides on his bed! It’s Yi Ahn’s turn to stare at her, but he didn’t stay for long, he left shortly after he made sure she was asleep. Later on, the sexy noona teacher found Eun Bi and asked her if anything’s bothering her and that she shouldn’t hold back to talk to her if anything’s going on! As soon as Eun Bi left her stare became menacing! And the reason is… she’s Soo In’s mother’s other daughter and their smiles point towards a revenge coalition!

 

Eun Bi was leaving with Shi Jin and Tae Gwang kidnapped her and put her inside the car! Teacher Kim’s waiting for the deadline moment to arrive and time flows painfully on his back. Someone hit his door, but when he checked who he/she might be there was no one to be found. Min Joon was sitting underneath the stairs and he couldn’t proceed with the next step and tell the truth. Tae Gwang and Eun Bi are together on top of a high building with great industrial view!

He revisited his greeting to her and eventually changed it to “hi, Lee Eun Bi” and it actually feels beautiful being called by her real name and she’s grateful for this. Whether it’s a hand phone or a portable phone or these are dark colored or black colored shoes, it doesn’t really matter and it’s the same with her, whether she’s Eun Bi or Eun Byul it’s the same to Tae Gwang, in front of him she can be anyone she wants. The most sincere words always come from Tae Gwang’s mouth when it comes to her. Staring at the great nightly view side by side feels essential!

Yi Ahn’s getting ready to leave with his co-athletes but So Young appears and he recalls Mi Gyeong’s words that someone pushed Eun Bi to the edge. She wonders if he’s going to thank her for the information she sent him, doesn’t it make him mad that a strange person pretends to be Eun Byul? He points out that he heard she’s the one to have pushed her to all these actions and she kind of agrees, but there’s more to be discussed. He refers to her as transfer student and urges her to give it a rest since she looks pitiful. She asked for it and i’m thankful towards Yi Ahn for this!

 

Teacher Kim reads the anonymous posts at the site and he finds out that the Tongyeong high school suicide perpetrator is in his class and the comments below point towards So Young directly! The school atmosphere doesn’t look that friendly towards So Young anymore and everyone keeps staring at her! Even Song Joo turned her back on her as Eun Bi’s stare haunts So Young with Tae Gwang taking her away from the classroom. Are you cracking to pieces, So Young? Tae Gwang wants to know if it was her, but it would never be Eun Bi. However, she thinks it might be for the better that things turned out this way. Could it be Yi Ahn then? Or Eun Byul who’s somewhere alive? Tae Gwang wonders how everything’s going to flow, she will just get rid of her and then just leave as well? He points out that it’s understandable since she can’t have any good memories there, but she asks him if he has any good memories with her. She was indeed happy there all this time and he’s part of the reasons why! She urges her to stand her ground and stay strong!

The men’s high school 400m freestyle swimming race is a bout to begin and So Young sends Yi Ahn a message right before the race that she’s going to expose everything about Eun Byul and Eun Bi today and it’s too bad he won’t be able to see what will happen! She’s playing a hard game! So Young’s in the classroom and everyone refers to her as Miss K like in the article! Tae Gwang notices that So Young stood next to Eun Bi and she smiles at her in such a vicious way as she goes towards the teacher’s stand.

Yi Ahn has left behind the stadium and rushes to school and while passing the street one car hit him! He’s the next victim of So Young. She stares at Eun Bi and So Young starts her speech saying that everyone’s having fun because of her! She admits the truth, but she also refers to the outcast victim that died and if they’re curious about how she looks like! Yi Ahn enters the classroom refusing to go to the hospital and So Young laughs at his presence! So Young is the personification of disgust as she’s staring at Eun Bi while Eun Bi’s world starts shaking; but oddly enough she doesn’t look that broken!

 

Thoughts: The 9th one was an awesome episode, wasn’t it? It had the full package; feels and laughter, feels, interactions, feels, loneliness, feels, storyline progress, feels, mystery, feels, great cinematography, feels, distance, feels, closeups, feels, angles, feels, musical participation, feels, questions, feels, answers, more questions, feels and feels. Did i mention feels already? Alright, it had feels too, i shouldn’t have neglected them! The writer is either a magnificent maestro leading the instruments towards a grandiose emotional climax where all questions will get married to their answers or the writer is a prophet of doom, raising our expectations to even more immense heights with every episode in order to make this drama-pleasure building collapse with the blow of the 4th trumpet of revelation. School 2015 is either a masterfully crafted diadem or the perfect deception. Of course, i am always rooting for the first aspect!

Eun Bi’s confession felt essential at that point, she could no longer withstand nurturing her lie in front of Yi Ahn, especially at that point when the truth had already been revealing itself before his very eyes, but he was refusing to see it. Even during her confession Yi Ahn didn’t want to believe it, Eun Bi’s words weren’t making any sense at all, but they were making much more sense simply because turning a blind eye was no longer an option even if he was trying hard to silence her words that were echoing inside his mind’s chambers like tones of unwanted disclosures.

Ever since that night Yi Ahn and Eun Bi were communicating only in silence and through absence or presence that was hiding its contours, but the essence was there. Visiting Mi Gyeong was essential for Yi Ahn to stare at the truth with some peace of mind and with a more open stare and this is what happened. He found out about everything in detail, both about Eun Byul’s memorial under Eun Bi’s name and Eun Bi’s presence in everyone’s lives as Eun Byul and everything she had to go through in the past. It wasn’t easy for Yi Ahn accepting the truth, but it wasn’t easy for Mi Gyeong either.

All of a sudden both Eun Bi and Mi Gyeong became one another’s shelter in their darkest hours and even though it was hard for Eun Bi living as Eun Byul and devastating for Mi Gyeong accepting that the girl standing in front of her is Eun Bi and not Eun Byul they eventually managed to walk hand in hand in a heartfelt and sincere way, without completing the emotional puzzle overnight, but placing one piece at a time and there’s a long road ahead of them.

The ghost of Soo In is more than alive and apparent in Eun Bi’s and teacher Kim’s lives. Teacher Jung Min Young is not just a teacher that appeared out of nowhere for just one month. She’s Soo In’s mother’s daughter, Soo In’s sister. There’s a plan in the making and Soo In’s mother seems to be the psychological factor in the story appearing in front of Mi Gyeong and Eun Bi with her bright smile all of a sudden and teacher Jung is the palpable factor that walks among their lives. She always observes teacher Kim’s words/actions and she’s keeping a close eye on Eun Bi. But who is the stalker after Eun Byul and how he/she is related to the whole Soo In incident?

Eun Bi was more than sincere, she couldn’t keep Yi Ahn’s medal and placed it where it belongs, by her sister at her memorial and that’s where Yi Ahn found it. Except for Mi Gyeong’s words that made Eun Bi appeal more to his eyes, this action restored her to his conscience and made her appreciate her as Eun Bi along with the moment he witnessed her tears while she was hiding from her little friends from the orphanage. He could finally understand that Eun Bi is not an impostor with benefits, but a traumatized person who had no other option at that turning point in her life.

He can feel for her, but he can’t be close to her in the exact same way they used to be before her confession. Yi Ahn broke apart in front of Eun Byul’s memorial, it was the first time he could mourn for her and actually feel close to her since she vanished. His internal world is divided since Eun Bi isn’t Eun Byul and he has to cope with Eun Byul’s loss without hurting Eun Bi whose eyes have see a whole lot more than a young girl her age should witness. The scene at the bus station was quite symbolic with Eun Bi’s bus leaving first, leaving him behind.

So Young plays an immoral game and has moved on with a psychological war towards both Eun Bi and Yi Ahn who is her second victim after Eun Bi by forcing him to rush back at school and give up his dreams and eventually get hit by a car. So Young’s losing the game and she’s rushing the procedures inside her immense panic, she can’t do otherwise but move on in a fast forward pace that can hurt many people, on top of that, inside her cellphone lies the video of Eun Bi getting bullied. Even if Yi Ahn was hurt due to the accident he didn’t give up on Eun Bi and acted like a real friend rushing to her aid no matter how many sacrifices he had to make.

Min Joo’s mother is tightening the rope around her son’s neck. The fact that she can’t go after So Young due to the computer reformatting incident broke her to pieces. It didn’t bother her much that her son will be free of charges if both teacher Kim and her remain silent. She doesn’t care about her son’s ongoing emotional struggle and pressure he has to go through every day and if there’s someone to blame about him reformatting the computers then it’s his mother, she’s the real perpetrator of a mentally abused child forced to accomplish everything his mother tells him to do without caring about his physical exhaustion and emotional collapse. Min Joon can’t afford all this multifaceted pressure that expands the void within and on the next episode we’re about to witness his explosion. The school site is about to become a violent playground, Soo In’s ghost could easily write there as well.

Song Joo’s world was two-fold during this episode. In one hand she was keeping a safe distance from So Young, proving that she had taken into consideration Eun Bi’s words. On the other hand she moved on with the audience and did her best to succeed. Whether the critics were really pleased with her presentation or it was a theatrical play in front of her it’s another part of the story we’ll witness later on. After the audition took place there’s bitterness towards Eun Bi for ruining their friendship. Unaware of the fact that Eun Bi knows who So Young really is and with a forthcoming contract (or not?) she could finally unveil her internal thoughts, but even though they were bitter, they had longing too, the longing of a friend. She really wanted her to be by her side while preparing for the audition and go through this together, but neither Eun Bi could do it nor Song Joo could step back from her dreams. Hopefully enough Song Joo’s friendship will get restored with Eun Bi and Shi Jin who’s quite lonely under the overall circumstances going on.

Tae Gwang is always by Eun Bi’s side even when she wants to be alone. He knows that she doesn’t mean it and she would like someone to be by her side. Eun Bi went through many of these moments that were the Eun Bi equivalent of Tae Gwang’s moments when he says “today i really want to be alone”, it’s just that Eun Bi preserves the loneliness part a bit more, but always surrenders to the real her who really needs support and why not, bright smiles! Tae Gwang is unconditional towards Eun Bi, it’s because she’s dedicated to the flow of the moment and if she has something to do she must finish it, just like her confession towards Yi Ahn. Even though it was hurtful towards Tae Gwang leaving him behind while he had come to her aid, he could see that it was essential for her to stay there and even though Eun Bi knew she would hurt Tae Gwang she proceeded anyway because she wouldn’t be able to move on had she not told the truth to Yi Ahn, it was too much of a burden.

Just like Eun Bi’s chemistry shines with Yi Ahn, even in silence at this very moment and through hurtful interactions, her chemistry shines with Tae Gwang to another level, a more heartfelt and sincere one. He doesn’t care about the name, it’s her very soul and essence that attracts him. Eun Bi, Eun Byul or dumpling, she can be pretty much anyone in front of him, he will be there by her side. Being Eun Bi with someone is essential for her so that she won’t forget who she really is while at the same time she can remain strong throughout the ongoing collateral damage since Tae Gwang’s shoulder is always by her side. Eun Bi’s really happy at her new environment, no matter how darkening it might get at times, it’s truly far better than her previous life, even though she’s missing her little friends.

One of the reasons why Eun Bi can be happy and remain strong at the present are the beautiful memories she could forge alongside Tae Gwang. The 10th episode is going to be a powerful one filled with emotionally charged scenes and plots moving in the background since So Young’s parents won’t stand still and there’s always Tae Gwang’s father’s factor whom we don’t know how will he react, but it’s more than apparent that he’s the first person So Young’s parents will contact. Will he really act like the father he never was or he will crack his nonexistent relationship with his son to even more pieces? And once again, Eun Byul, where are you? Was Eun Bi’s more decisive stare at the very end of the episode pointing towards a more… Eun Byul direction? 10th episode, i summon you!