My Liberation Diary (2022) s01e01 Episode Script

1
MY LIBERATION NOTES
MY LIBERATION NOTES
ALL LOCATIONS, CHARACTERS,
ORGANIZATIONS, AND INCIDENTS
DEPICTED IN THIS DRAMA
ARE ENTIRELY FICTITIOUS
Your drink is ready.
Thank you. Come again.
So I joined the tango club,
and I was appalled.
You can hear people breathing up close.
Why do people breathe so loudly?
My boss put his hand on my shoulder,
and it was hot and sweaty.
In table tennis, there's sweat everywhere.
It just spatters everywhere.
When my boss got in the elevator with me,
I pulled back without even realizing it.
I can still feel all the moistness
I felt on that day.
Sweating with your colleagues
is not the way to go.
Musical and theater clubs are the best.
You can just enjoy the show.
The problem with those clubs
is the meet-up after.
How you feel about the show
should be up to you.
But they always
force their opinions on you.
If I say I enjoyed it,
they say it was boring.
It drives me crazy.
I mean, can't we separate the clubs
into older and younger groups?
Right? Can't someone suggest it?
Then the higher-ups will be upset.
You think?
What's it like in your clubs?
It's mostly people in their forties.
How about yours, Mi-jeong?
She's not a part of any, remember?
That's right, she doesn't do any.
Not even one?
Why? They cover all the costs.
Many sign up for two or three of them.
You know…
I'm just not interested.
Hey, you think we do it because we are?
You go to have fun!
And if you can get a date out of it,
even better.
It takes me three seconds
to realize there's no one there for me.
Nine times out of ten.
Most of the time, seriously.
But there's always that one chance
that you might meet someone.
That's why it's worth going to
ten different clubs.
Come with me today.
Just come, okay?
You can do it! Just one more!
Haven't you joined any clubs?
Why not? There are many good clubs.
I live quite far away.
Where do you live?
In Sanpo.
Is that by Yongin?
It's near Suwon.
Good luck, sir!
You got this, boss!
Nice!
Well done.
You can do it!
-You can do it!
-You can do it!
Looks like I'll be late today.
JUNE 21S
Let's go!
Hey, I can drink more.
I'm taking a cab home today.
-Will Mi-jeong be late too?
-Yes.
I'll be late too.
Meet me at Gangnam Station at 12.
You got this!
Let's just talk about it face to face.
Our whole relationship
has been over texts.
Even all of our fights were through texts.
You want to break up through a text too?
At least when we break up, I want
to say it loudly right to your face.
I'll be waiting.
I said, I'll be waiting!
-Nice shot!
-Nice shot!
I'll be late too.
I'll see you then.
-You're so good at bowling.
-Are you sure you're not pro?
Gosh, you're so good at bowling.
You were incredible.
-You were amazing.
-You're really good.
You even got a strike.
How are you so cool?
-Everything you tossed out was a strike.
-No.
-I know, right?
-You're so good at it.
I can't get my form right.
Are you leaving? Stay a bit longer.
It's late.
I'll head out first.
You're leaving already?
I need to catch the last train.
She lives far away.
Where was it again?
You should move closer.
Doesn't our company offer
a housing subsidy?
It's only ten million won.
-That's it?
-Yes.
All right, cheers.
Where are you?
Hello.
You came pretty early.
It's been ages. Seeing anyone these days?
Another beer glass
and a pair of chopsticks, please.
Sure.
He asked where I lived.
I said I live in Gyeonggi-do,
so it didn't matter where we met in Seoul.
I told him to pick a place
that worked best for him.
I did say that.
But shouldn't he at least have asked
where in Gyeonggi-do I live in?
But he went, "Really?"
Then he said to meet in Samcheong.
Can you believe that?
Anyway, so I followed Route 1
all the way up,
crossing the Han River.
This guy clearly has no idea
what Gyeonggi-do even looks like.
I went all the way up there, but…
Jeez, I'm tearing up.
Hey, where can you buy a gun in Korea?
A slap in his face won't cut it.
I should just put three bullets in him.
Do you know what it's like for me
to go to Seoul on the weekend too?
How could they set me up
with someone like that?
Being divorced, I don't care about.
It's no big deal these days.
I would even be jealous. I might
even be okay if he's been married twice.
But come on, he has a kid!
Nothing's more precious to you
than your own kid.
But that kid means nothing to me
since it's not my kid.
We already have
such a huge thing dividing us.
A woman and a man
are trying to live together,
but if their priorities are different,
how could that ever work?
Hey.
His kid is an eighth-grader.
You know what they're like.
You can't tell if they are animals
or a malfunctioning cyborg…
A lot of people who already have kids
marry each other and live happily.
They recognize
the importance of each other's kids
and care for them…
Why should I not say anything?
Did you two fight?
How could you be
like this on her birthday?
Did your mom give you anything?
Come on, eat up.
Look at me.
Do I look like I haven't eaten yet?
What did your mom give you?
Didn't she give you anything?
She did.
Then why aren't you telling me
what she gave you?
I asked her for money.
Happy birthday.
They're earphones. Expensive ones.
Thank you.
Thanks for being born.
Thank you, truly.
Who do your Auntie Hui-seon
and I have but you?
When we're old and lonely,
I'm glad we'll have someone to call.
Hey, don't worry.
I won't bother you too much.
I'll try to kick the bucket in one go.
-I got it.
-I'm just relieved.
I'm glad to have you.
You're like insurance.
When you were born, you were so little.
I couldn't believe you were actually real.
When did you get this big?
When did you turn into a whole person?
By the way, do you usually speak
this quietly in a barbecue restaurant?
I've never seen people whispering
while drinking at a barbecue place.
-I feel terrible, I drank too much.
-Right.
Hey, it's late, let's go.
Yes, it's late.
Go.
I'm sorry.
Pick it up for her, will you?
A beer, please!
Where is he?
Thank you.
I may have gotten divorced…
but the best decision I ever made
was getting married.
How else would I have met
such a precious kid?
How do you know him?
From work.
Then you should've said hi sooner.
I just know his face.
We're not on the same team.
Jo Yu-rim!
Did you eat the seaweed soup
I made for you this morning?
You call that soup? It was so thick
that I couldn't get the ladle in.
What did Auntie Gyeong-seon get you?
That looks expensive.
Happy birthday to you
We're already here. Hurry up.
I'm on my way. I'll be there soon!
I can't believe him.
YEOM GI-JEONG
So you were messaging me
and that guy at the same time?
At one in the morning, at that!
You don't do that? Everyone texts
more than two people all the time.
Not when I'm texting my lover
at one in the morning.
I don't text my lover "I miss you too"
when it's meant for someone else
and then delete it.
I don't send a bunch of heart emojis
and LOLs to others while texting my lover.
Did I meet him in person
and flirt or something?
You know you have to
be more friendly in messages.
You can't tell if words are being said
with a smile or a serious look.
That's why I stick a LOL
at the end of everything.
Don't you do that?
Is that why you told him
you missed him, then?
To be friendly?
What's wrong with saying I miss him?
I miss BTS.
I miss my grandma. I miss my uncle.
I miss a lot of people.
Don't you miss anyone?
Don't you ever tell people you miss them?
Don't you know
"I miss you" means "I love you"?
Only to you.
It only means that to you!
Try asking people!
If a man and a woman say
they miss each other at night
means anything or not.
I told you to wait, please!
Sure, fine, let's ask.
Who should we ask?
-Go on, ask someone!
-Seriously.
You're worried about the cab fare
even in this situation, aren't you?
You asked to meet here
because of that too.
-Yes.
-Do you want to end things like that?
Yes, absolutely.
What's wrong with
meeting in the middle for once?
I went to your neighborhood
to see you every time.
Do you know how far it is from my home?
I had to spend another hour and a half
just to get home.
That's your problem.
Who told you to live so far away?
Then does he live in Seoul?
Let me ask you one thing.
Does he even know that you have a lover?
-He knows I have a boyfriend.
-Is a boyfriend not a lover?
Who uses the word "lover" these days?
It's so lame.
Even people born in the 70s
don't say that.
Ask around if people still use that word.
You know what?
You are unbearably old-fashioned. Really.
Disgustingly old-fashioned!
We're home.
We're home.
Keep it down!
Hey.
That guy was telling us off earlier,
wasn't he?
It was our mistake.
How were we to know?
Apologize and give him
a gift certificate for me.
I'll give it to you later.
That's too much.
-Where are you going?
-To get my hair done.
You say you're tired every morning
but you're going out again?
-You should rest on the weekend.
-As if anyone would let me.
I'll die if I work in the field
on a day like today.
Go and pretend you're helping at least.
Don't just sit around all day
until your dad tears into you.
Don't you feel bad
that your old man has been out
working under the sun all day?
I was going to go help him.
Hey, Dad.
I have something to tell you.
Just eat your food quietly.
I mean…
I'm not asking for help or anything.
I just want your permission.
An "okay" or something like that.
I'm…
thinking of buying a car.
It's an electric car.
Electric cars don't cost that much.
It's only 7,000 won to fully charge it.
They say 50,000 won is enough per month.
If it's 50,000 won a month,
that's a lot cheaper
than taking the bus or the train.
And second-hand cars
don't even cost that much.
Don't you remember
the last time you bought a car
and put yourself through hell?
Back then, I--
You couldn't even afford it,
but you bought it on an installment plan.
So I had no choice but to help you.
But you're at it again?
What I'm saying is
I didn't know any better then.
I do now.
My expenses, budget, my spending habits…
I know all that stuff now.
So I'm planning
to get a small electric car.
Don't just say no without considering it.
Just hear me out.
It's a car, it's not like
it's some luxury item.
And I'm not buying it
so I can show off to anyone.
I mean, how can I?
They don't even go fast.
Look.
If Mi-jeong, Gi-jeong, and I stay out late
and take a taxi home, that's 30,000 won.
With an electric car,
it'll cost 3,000 won,
but we're paying 30,000 won for it.
Dad, come on, I mean…
I'm not being unreasonable here.
If you think about it, I'm right.
An electric car is cheaper.
Don't just say no
because it's a car, please.
How much is it?
Like I said, it's a cheap one.
In installments again?
Dad.
I…
don't have a car
and I live in Gyeonggi-do.
How am I supposed to get married
let alone date anyone?
All of the magic happens inside a car,
but I don't have one, Dad!
Where can I kiss a girl?
Why are you being like this again?
Seriously…
I don't want to keep
any secrets from you, Dad.
I really don't want
to hide anything at all from you.
Honestly, I could buy a car secretly,
hide it anywhere I wanted
and act like I never bought one.
But I don't want to do that, okay?
I don't want to hide
anything at all from you.
I never have.
I wish you would.
Please hide it from me.
Come on.
That punk, I ought to…
I told him to keep his mouth shut
at the dinner table.
Goodness.
Tell him your dad will start
at seven tomorrow,
but he can come by nine.
Don't just tell him to come by nine.
Then he'll know what you mean
and come early.
Why do we have to walk
on eggshells around someone we hired.
That brat, one of these days…
I ought to just…
They said you can come by nine tomorrow.
I'm going to sue that salon.
On the street that the nun walks across
My old friend pretends
He doesn't even know me
-Like how they sell cigarettes
-Don't wash your hair.
Your curls will come undone.
-That's why I'm washing it.
-At a local pharmacy
-The world carries on peacefully
-What a waste of money.
It goes its own way
-Bustling down the street
-I'm currently working two jobs.
I'm a soccer coach at an elementary school
and I also run a coffee shop.
If I'm being honest, it's just one job.
The cafe went bankrupt.
On that roadside
-Where time breathes
-Actually…
what I love most is singing.
To be able to support myself
with my singing is my dream.
Without anybody knowing
I walked around crying
I like this kind of song.
I can do louder music too.
Looking down the street
From the second floor
It was a peaceful street, yeah
If you're done, bring the dishes.
-Looking down the street
-Looking down the street
-From the second floor
-From the second floor
-There was nothing but a thick fog
-There was nothing but a thick fog
Damn it!
This song's so old.
This is why you were rejected, dumbass.
Jeez.
Have you ever felt
an unbearable kind of humiliation?
As soon as we said goodbye
after the blind date,
she started sending a bunch of texts.
She said
I was an abandoned dog.
She said that if she took me home
and cleaned me up,
I'd just go back outside
and get covered in poop again.
She thought she was there alone
with her friend,
not knowing I was there.
She kept going about how upset she was
and then said "OMG!"
Then she left the room.
She could've
at least deleted her messages.
You should just leave too.
That's even more humiliating.
You idiot!
But I must endure this.
Deleting it
won't make me forget what happened.
I just have to bear it.
Here.
Delete it for me and leave the chatroom.
Du-hwan.
Thanks…
for one-upping me.
Ye-rin told me…
I was unbearably old-fashioned.
The abandoned dog wins.
Hey, someone please one-up me.
Mi-jeong.
You have to beat me, okay? Please.
She knows exactly what words
to use to hurt my feelings.
As an abandoned dog,
I don't think
being called old-fashioned is that bad.
That's because you just are
an old-fashioned person.
And I'm a person who may
or may not be, and that's why it hurts.
Do you know
what she said about Gyeonggi-do?
She said Gyeonggi-do's like an egg white.
An egg white that wraps around Seoul.
I told her I live in Sanpo many times,
but she had no idea where Sanpo was.
Or whether I take Line One or Line Four.
She said it was because
she would never live in Gyeonggi-do.
If you like someone,
the first thing you do is
look up where they live.
It doesn't have to be New York,
but if I had been born in Seoul…
Why did I have to be born
in an egg white, of all places?
If we had lived in Seoul,
would we have been any different?
We would have.
I agree with him.
SANPO SINKS
Will you stop it already?
You've been crying all night
since you got home last night.
And there you go again
as soon as you wake up.
I'm having a hard time, all right?
You think you're the only one?
What about her?
She's still young!
Fate is nothing more
than a person's outlook on life.
Hey.
Have you eaten?
SANPO
KITCHEN SINKS, CLOSETS
DANGMI STATION
SOMETHING GOOD WILL HAPPEN TO YOU TODAY
JOY SUPPORT CENTER
WINNER JOY BASEBALL CLUB
JOY CARD HORSE RIDING CLUB
I heard you went to the bowling club.
How was it?
It was good, wasn't it?
People tend not to drop out
of that club once they join.
Members tend to be
quite satisfied with that club.
What do you say?
Would you like to join them
starting this month?
Or would you rather
try a few more before you decide?
Do I
have to join a club?
Well, it's not compulsory,
but work life isn't really
anything special, is it?
No matter what job it is,
after six months, it becomes mundane.
But it's a lot better
when you get along with others.
It also increases productivity.
Did you not join a club either?
No.
Are we under special care or something?
Can't they just leave
introverted people alone?
I have a daughter who's in fourth grade.
I have to go home early
and take care of her.
So I will join a club later
when things become more manageable.
Here you go.
AUTUMN TRIP
Okay. Thank you.
Everyone.
Assistant Manager Mr. Min suggested
we should go to Euljiro today!
I'm all for it!
Can I eat to my heart's content?
I'll just eat a little.
I love you.
Is everyone in?
-Yes!
-I'm in, too!
Yes!
Mi-jeong, I know you've read these.
Why aren't you replying?
HEHEHE
It's too far for me
to get back home from Euljiro.
How can you spend
every day of your youth going home?
This isn't right.
CHOI JUN-HO
No, that's not right.
That's not right.
Neither is this.
Up to here, the color's…
This needs to be lower, in bold,
and highlighted.
INCREASE THE FONT TO HERE
BRING IT DOWN FURTHER
KERNING
BOLD
TERRIBLE LAYOU
MORE AESTHETICALLY PLEASING
PAY ATTENTION
TO THE COLOR COMBINATION
CHANGE THE COLOR
REDO ALL THE COLORS
If I imagine that I'm sitting here
working next to you,
even awful tasks like these
turn into something beautiful.
Work becomes bearable.
I'm playing a role
of a woman who is loved.
A woman who has everything she needs.
Right now, I love someone,
and that someone is supporting me.
So I want to imagine I'm at peace.
That I'm already enjoying the good times
that I'll be spending with you.
That's how I want to think of it.
Rather than going through exhausting,
difficult times without you,
isn't it more admirable that
I'm finding strength thinking of you?
I know a dried pollack place.
-Dried pollack?
-Sounds good to me.
I'm in a good mood. Let's go!
Great!
Try to find someone
to set up with Mi-jeong.
I don't really know anyone.
From a woman's perspective,
Mi-jeong is so pretty and kind.
I don't get
why she doesn't have a boyfriend.
Yes, she's pretty. Sure.
When you look at
each of her features individually, she is.
But?
As a whole, she's quite bland.
She doesn't have that something special.
If we had lived in Seoul,
would we have been different?
We would have.
No matter where I lived…
I think I would have been the same.
Regardless of where I lived,
my life would have been just like this.
I'd be living the same mundane life,
and no one would ever be interested in me.
I felt like if I lived like this
for too long, I'd shrivel up and die.
That's why I invented you.
You, who I'll meet someday.
To you, at least…
I wouldn't be that ordinary, right?
I don't know who you are.
I don't even know where you are.
And I've never met you.
Who…
are you?
This one's expired. Do you want it?
Do you want to eat Seoul?
I don't really like Seoul.
I can't even be bothered
to ask you what you mean.
Headquarters said they'll
empty the place on the 18th.
Keep the doors locked until then.
I don't know how to lock them.
I've operated this place 24/7
for ten years.
So I've never done it.
How did you go to the bathroom?
A bike lock.
I just wrapped one around
the handles and went.
Be sure to let me know
when you get married.
I'll give you
five hundred thousand won
to congratulate you.
I'm serious, let me know.
I mean it!
I will.
Just because I'm closing the store down,
it doesn't mean I'm closing the door
on our friendship.
What do you think?
Will you get married next year?
What is it?
What decides your fate?
She says it's your outlook on life.
Then what's my outlook?
I can be positive
about things occasionally.
Just one day, on my payday.
I'm not so bad that day.
You can afford to have a good outlook
if you have money.
The saying that love makes you kind
has some truth to it.
Whether it's money or a man,
if you have something,
you become positive, but…
do I have a man or any money?
I have neither.
So how am I supposed to be positive
and have a good outlook on things?
I thought I'd feel better
if I had my hair done,
but it just made me feel worse.
I can't drink anymore. I feel so terrible.
I feel even more terrible
because I don't like how I look today.
I just want to go home and lie down.
If you're more than five days late
on your credit loan payment,
your card gets suspended
and things become complicated.
This is why you shouldn't take out loans
to lend others money.
Do you know how much your loan balance is?
For 15,484 million won,
you need to pay
about 1,5 million won per month.
You'll be receiving a letter
at your home address soon.
The bank contacted me
because the loan payment is overdue.
Call and tell me what's happening.
UNREAD
1:06 P.M.
I'm home.
Hey, what about dinner?
I ate.
Close the door properly,
or mosquitoes will come in.
What's the occasion?
You never come here on the weekend.
I guess you don't have
anything better to do.
Hey. What about us?
Gwang-min's driving me crazy.
I'm seriously considering
quitting teaching.
How could a teacher badmouth his students?
You're an adult.
You badmouth your colleagues
every day too.
They're my colleagues.
My colleagues are kids, okay?
Who's that woman?
The one you're always badmouthing.
The one who has "nasty, nasty, nasty,"
written all over her face.
Gwang-min is that woman to me, all right?
Do you know how hard it is to be stuck in
a classroom with Gwang-min all day long?
Do you play favorites?
Yes, totally.
What about you? Don't you play favorites?
I never play favorites. I hate everyone.
There isn't a single person I like.
You can't keep being like that.
I mean, that's why you struggle every day
and keep getting older.
Jeez.
I guarantee you.
Gwang-min isn't the problem.
You're the problem.
I also have a guarantee of my own.
Your colleague who has "nasty,
nasty, nasty," written all over her face
is probably normal too, you know?
She's only like that to you.
Let's stop,
-or we'll develop feelings.
-For who?
Hey, give me another can.
Stop bringing it over.
We've had enough.
Stop that. Is it that funny
that I broke up with her?
Just because I'm single, doesn't mean
I'm going to hang out with you.
To be honest, we only became friends
because we lived in the countryside.
If we lived in the city,
I wouldn't have been friends with you.
There were less than 15 people our age
within a 10km radius,
so I had no choice
but to hang out with you.
That's the problem with the countryside.
Everyone ends up being friends.
When I tell people that the four of us
used to play together.
They think we got along really well.
But the truth is, there were
only four kids around here.
She had no one her age and played
with the village idiot, didn't she?
With Dumbo.
Don't call him Dumbo. He's over forty now.
Forty? Probably more like fifty.
In the countryside,
friends and family are the same.
Do you get to choose your family?
You're born, and they're your family.
And they say
this kid living next door is your friend.
Even at school,
if you don't like the kid next to you,
you can just play with another kid.
But in this neighborhood?
You don't get to choose.
It drives me nuts.
Hey, I feel the same. I never became
friends with you because I liked you too.
I should have been born in the Joseon era.
"From this day forth,
this person is your spouse."
Then I'd say, "Yes, I promise to love him
with all my heart."
Even if I lived like that,
I think I would have been just fine.
This era where you have to choose
someone for yourself is way harder for me.
I get rejected every day
but I prefer being in the present.
If I were born in Joseon,
I'd definitely have been a peasant.
You're a peasant right now as well.
They say that
if the crickets are chirping,
it's 24 degrees Celcius out.
Apparently, they know
that winter's on its way.
That's why they're working
so hard to find a mate
so they don't have to
spend the winter alone.
Even those tiny little creatures
find love, you know?
But as humans,
shouldn't we be able to find love too?
Even they know what it's like
to have no partner in winter.
They're chirping away so desperately,
crying "winter's coming, it'll be cold,
don't leave me all alone."
We should do that too.
Okay?
What are you going on about?
Do humans have to do it
just because bugs and even cats do it?
Do we have to poop
on the street like dogs do?
Don't then, you bastard!
I'll kill you if you do, okay?
Hey, let's do it.
Let's do it, okay?
I'm going to do it.
I'm going to love just anyone.
Anyone? Really?
Yes, anyone.
Why can't I just love anyone?
I was picky and ended up like this.
I was so careful not to pick a loser,
I have no one.
I'm allowed to just love anyone.
I'm going to love just anyone.
Starting tomorrow,
why don't you two just disappear?
They're nuts.
-Thank you for the meal.
-Yes.
You worked hard. Go rest.
Yes, get some rest.
Good night.
And don't drink too much!
There's "anyone" over there.
Hey, run away!
Stay out of Yeom Gi-jeong's sight!
Get down!
-Get down!
-Have you lost it?
-Idiot.
-What are you doing? You're so loud.
You idiot.
Get down.
Come on, stop it.
You're nuts.
Why would you do that?
I was wondering if you could
receive a piece of mail for me.
I'm expecting something
I don't want my family to see.
MY LIBERATION NOTES
I'm sorry. I didn't have time to ask you.
What did he use to do?
Maybe he's in hiding here.
-He bought alcohol again.
-He says I should move there.
I'm a woman who has a lot of charm.
You've got to be kidding me.
Is he on bad terms with his girlfriend?
Who has he been talking to for so long?
We're breaking up!
Just go out with her instead then!
Something I had to figure out
but couldn't bring myself to.
-What did Mr. Gu say to you?
-It's nothing.
What? Yeom Mi-jeong doesn't live here.
Don't tell me you went out with him.
I don't think I can do it.
I want to feel whole for once.
I'll pick it up later.
Why do you drink every day?
Should I give you something
to do other than drink?
Subtitle translation by: Elodie Lieberman
Ripped and synced by
TTEOKBOKKIsubs