The Midnight Romance in Hagwon (2024) s01e05 Episode Script
Episode 5
1
(Jung Ryeo Won)
(Wi Ha Jun)
(Scriptwriter: Park Kyeong Hwa)
(Director: Ahn Pan Seok)
(The Midnight Romance in Hagwon)
They still taught the class?
Yes.
Lee Si Woo was absent today, so I gave him a call.
Are you sure it was just him alone?
Kids from other academies could have gone too.
He said it was just him.
He said it was supposed to last only two hours,
but it lasted much longer than that.
He stayed for the whole class after skipping my class?
I'll ask him for more details next week before the class.
I can't wait to hear from him
about their class.
(Episode 5)
It's coming.
- I'll get going then.
- Thank you for your help.
- Sure.
- Bye.
- Bye.
- Goodnight.
We still have stuff to discuss, right?
I thought the dizziness was going to be the end of me.
Let's go for a walk.
Hey.
If you have nothing to do, why don't you help me with this?
Hold on.
I'm thinking about another man.
Who? Mr. Lee Jun Ho?
Don't you find him a bit odd?
What? What do you mean?
To be precise,
when Hye Jin is with him,
something feels off about her.
What are you talking about?
Oddly enough, she acts like her old self around him.
That's possible.
When people meet their friends from elementary school,
they start acting like they're in elementary school.
Around the people they served in the military together,
they start talking as if they're in the military.
I never served in the military.
Gosh. It was only an example. You know?
Anyway, that's a thing with guys.
Is that so?
Aren't you cold?
No, I'm okay.
What are you thinking about?
Si Woo.
Me too.
I wonder if he'll have a good impression of us.
He'll remember our class for the rest of his life.
How do you know that?
I'm the living proof.
Because I had never forgotten it.
I do think it's not fair, though.
Why?
Compared to my 1st class with you, his 1st class with us
was about two times better
because half of today's class was
conducted by me.
Weren't you flustered?
We barely got to use half of the materials we prepared today.
Not at all.
But I was curious what went through your head at that moment.
If it's difficult to explain, you don't have to.
Oh, that?
It was because my head went blank.
The materials we prepared
I wondered if I should give him something else
than useful tips on how to get perfect scores.
Initially, that random thought just crossed my mind.
Then I found myself standing in front of the blackboard.
At that moment, everything we prepared together disappeared.
Everything like my secret tips
on how to get perfect scores and improve school grades.
So I just thought about having fun with the reading materials.
I was reminded of my first class with you.
It felt somewhat similar to that day.
Of course, Si Woo wasn't a dumbhead like you, though.
Gosh.
I wasn't a dumbhead.
I was just an undiscovered gem who had always been smart.
Anyway, the academy will try to give me
as many disadvantages as possible.
You should keep your distance from me.
I don't care if people think we had a falling out because of this class.
Don't come to work tomorrow.
What if I don't want to do that?
What?
"I'll take care of the mess. You keep moving forward."
I think you want to tell me something cool like that.
No way.
I'm fine.
Although it happened a long time ago,
I had some failed attempts too.
Given my position, the academy can't come after me that easily.
You know, I quit my office job
and joined this academy, so I could quickly make
a lot more money than all of my superiors
at my previous company.
If I was going to hide behind my superior to keep my job,
I wouldn't have joined this industry.
As your fellow instructor,
I was part of this project.
So I will take responsibility for the failure just as equally.
Besides
Well, I got what I wanted all along.
Yes. Our boss was definitely angry.
Gosh.
It's unfortunate that people will hear about our failure.
But I'm happy that I got a lot of attention with my first class.
There are two exams in each semester.
We will always have more chances.
You just focus on keeping
your dominance over Chanyoung High School.
I'll get the students from Heewon High School.
(YG Science Academy)
(Heewon High School)
Good morning.
(Presentation: How to Prepare for the Final Exam)
(Chanyoung High School, Year 1, Semester 2)
I have your supplementary materials.
Come and pick them up tonight.
You can tell me about yesterday too.
Everyone who signed up for the presentation is seated.
It's a full house.
Take the USB flash drive from my laptop.
Go and switch the slides with the ones on that flash drive.
I already put up the slides you reviewed last.
I checked several times.
Seo Hye Jin and Lee Jun Ho held their class for Si Woo.
My teaching style may be too graceful.
So I put together those slides.
(Presentation: How to Prepare for Final Exam)
(Chanyoung High School, Year 1, Semester 2)
(Parent Information Session, Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Doing your best will make you the best.)
(Presentation: How to Prepare for Final Exam)
(Chanyoung High School, Year 1, Semester 2)
(Special Lecture by Director Choi Hyun Sun)
I'm Director Choi Hyun Sun of Choisun Academy.
Dear parents of Chanyoung High. Nice to meet you all.
Let's get started right away.
("Feeling excited")
I'm sure you all remember this.
At the last midterm exam,
this very phrase caused the students to retake the exam.
I have a question for you.
What's the most important exam for your children?
Their first midterm exam in high school
since it's the first exam that will count toward their school grades?
Or their exams in the second year since those exams weigh more
in their student records?
Or the university entrance exam?
Those are all incorrect answers.
The right answer is
(The upcoming exam)
The styles of exam questions change every exam.
Whenever that happens,
do you expect us to be clueless on how to handle the situation
and barge into schools?
So we can argue with a schoolteacher
who will have to fill out your children's student records?
The schoolteacher's pride was bruised,
so he decided to change the direction of his questions.
Was that really necessary at the risk of causing confusion?
Your children
are much weaker than you think.
They want to stay where they are because they're used to
studying with the same teacher on the same days.
Do not let them give up and be compliant.
Until the moment they get into college,
you must keep a tight rein on them.
The White Haired Witch must have started her presentation.
You must have been disappointed by yesterday's event.
I'm sorry.
Don't mention it.
It must have affected you guys the most.
It would've been great if you stayed for Mr. Lee's lecture.
He performed better in an actual class.
You proceeded with the class?
Every student is important to us.
Good job.
When that kind of diligent behaviour continues,
it will improve our academy's image.
I feel even worse hearing a compliment from you.
Gosh, no.
I was worried you would be beating yourselves
with that negative thought.
So I called you early in the morning on purpose.
I thought meeting face-to-face would be better for everyone.
We didn't get the result we wanted with students from Heewon High.
But with students from Chanyoung High
You know what? This occasion
showed me an unexpected side of you, Ms. Seo.
Trying your best to train Mr. Lee properly
was such a selfless act from you.
You weren't afraid of a countermove and went with a bold strategy.
I didn't know that you were capable of doing this.
On top of that, you guys finished your class
for just one student.
Gosh. Seriously.
What you did showed
an exemplary attitude for your junior instructor
to learn from.
- That's
- Ms. Seo.
You don't deserve to be chained to a small classroom like this.
The second-year students from Chanyoung High?
I thought you would be happy.
But I requested to teach the first-year students.
My intention wasn't to take Ms. Seo's students.
I wanted to gather my own students.
So do you not want to teach them?
Well, that's not what I was saying.
How many second-year students do we have from Chanyoung High?
A little over 80 students.
- I don't know the exact number.
- I see.
If she splits them with Mr. Lee, it would be 40 students per class.
With Mr. Lee?
Why? Do you want to take all 80 students?
No. It's not that.
If that's not it,
are you disappointed that they will soon be seniors?
Because they'll quit soon?
No.
It's actually better.
New instructors rarely get to teach seniors.
In Daechi-dong,
getting this kind of benefit in the beginning of your career
doesn't come often.
Right. Of course, I know that.
I hope you will take the expectations we have
of you and Mr. Lee rather seriously.
Okay.
Ms. Seo will help you a lot.
I believe our Korean Department
is the heart of our academy.
I never doubted that for a second.
When we acquired Victoria Academy,
Vice-Director Woo Seung Hui's academy,
our academy began teaching more subjects.
But the Korean is the subject
that will continue the tradition of our academy.
I always had that in my mind.
Come to think of it,
I invested a lot into the Korean Department.
Starting with the advertisement, I tried my best to support
Korean instructors in every way possible.
Thanks to that, you established your position at a young age.
I'm grateful for that.
Right.
Despite everything, I always try
to introspect about myself
and look back on my actions.
I ask myself this.
"Am I being a good leader for the academy?"
"Am I just being content with the stable sales?"
"Am I wallowing in such lazy thoughts?"
After fiercely reflecting on myself,
I came to a conclusion.
That it's not time for us to expand the size of the academy.
Instead, we must improve the quality of our lectures.
One more thing.
I had been forgetting
that you were the perfect person for this task.
I regretted being shortsighted about that too.
Do you mean
It's proven that you give the best lectures.
Now, it's time to broaden our horizon.
Ms. Seo. Reduce the number of your lectures.
Spearhead the preparation task force to set up the Gangbuk branch.
(Director's Office)
Gosh.
Did you understand what's happening?
No.
Gosh.
Oh, my.
Goodness.
What was he talking about?
Where did this task force come from?
There's no such thing.
I bet no one else is in the task force.
The vice-director will want to speak with you.
So let me keep it simple.
Why would she want to see me?
She will have you teach some of my classes.
You'll probably teach second-year students
from Chanyoung High.
What do you mean?
They don't know how many first-year students
will switch over to Choisun Academy.
I'm still confused. Why am I taking over your students?
So they can kick me out empty-handed.
Just because the free lecture failed?
No. They were probably looking for an excuse for a long time.
Having an instructor like me is
a double-edged sword at academies.
I can increase their sales by a lot.
But if I were to quit and take my students somewhere else,
the academy will be taking a huge hit.
That's why
they were trying to come up with a way to split the students slowly.
"Demotions are often disguised as honourable positions."
It's good that you're catching on fast.
So it means you
Your career is ruined because of me, right?
Excuse me.
(Vice-Director Woo Seung Hui)
Answer it.
You said you guys just hung out last weekend after the academy.
We did after finishing all the homework.
You traitors.
I'm so busy. Who's calling me?
Your mom.
Hey, Mom.
Of course, I'm on a break now.
Didn't you know that when you called?
I see.
Was the presentation interesting?
What?
Mom, don't do that.
Don't sign up there on the spot.
What?
No.
Ms. Seo's class is fine.
You don't know anything, Mom.
Well,
we should start making draft questions
for the final exam pretty soon.
Yes.
You told your students
that you would only draw questions from the textbook.
I did.
Is there a problem with that?
Realistically speaking, I don't think that's doable.
What do you mean?
I'm sure you know why.
Those questions will be hard to assess the students' levels.
Right.
The level of their education is way too high.
In the end, we'll have to deduct points based on the periods
and commas from the essay questions.
It will be so chaotic during the grading period.
Could you see it from our point of view?
The teacher evaluation will begin soon too.
Please?
I'm looking for a way too.
Sir, you can't base the questions on the after-school class
you're conducting now
because not everyone is taking the class.
In the end,
teachers like us will be collateral damage.
Please?
No, Mom. Don't you know better by now?
Do you believe everything the academy director tells you?
Why are you feeling excited right now?
Given your skill sets,
I have no doubt you'll lead them without losing any students.
If you need more materials, do let me know.
Let me go over my notes for the students first.
Well,
this isn't what I intended.
I know that.
- Ms. Seo.
- Yes.
Because you have a lot of students,
they're afraid you might take them elsewhere,
so they're destroying your career proactively.
I know very well that this happens often in this industry,
but shouldn't you protest this, at least?
I'm still fine, aren't I?
No, but
It would've been one thing for them to give me the 10th graders,
since I know Mr. Pyo Sang Sub and all.
And we could stop the attack from Choisun Academy too.
That's why they didn't give you the 10th graders.
So that the two of you could stay safely out of the way.
Oh, I have something I want to ask you, Ms. Nam.
Yes, go ahead.
Mr. Pyo Sung Sub who teaches 10th grade.
Could he make the exam a cumulative one?
You mean
will he include the whole year's worth of material on the final exam?
No matter how much I think about it, I think he'll try to distinguish
the exam by broadening the exam's range.
I'll fill it in.
The academy will want me to become an empty castle,
but I don't intend to do so.
Hang on.
I think there was once from two years ago at Guksabong.
I'll go and get the material.
Don't look at me like that. I won't fall easily.
Shall I try meeting with Si Woo?
He left his number yesterday.
- If I meet him and plead
- Don't do that.
It'll only make things worse.
All right. Here.
Sorry about this.
I didn't know that the director would suddenly schedule
a makeup class.
It only made you lose time to study, didn't it?
It's fine.
Yesterday's class was fun too.
It was fun?
Yes.
Since you said you'd take a look,
I took all my notes on the printouts.
This is a copy.
Right.
Tell me in detail.
Since it was a 1-on-1 lesson,
she must've taken a rather sentimental approach.
Especially in modern literature,
she talked about stuff that wasn't related to the material.
It doesn't seem like he'll switch academies, does it?
How could he think such a thing?
(Slowly, as if making friends)
(The world is much wider outside of the passage.)
(Vocabulary is your imagination.)
(Director's office)
The person you have reached is unavailable. Please leave
The person you have reached is unavailable. Please leave
Hang on Where would he
Right, math.
Si Woo!
Hey, Lee Si Woo!
What
Why
Why didn't you answer your phone?
Oh, I had it on silent mode.
I turned it down while talking to you.
That's fine.
Come with me.
I have to go to my math academy.
And I haven't eaten either.
It'll only be a minute.
Please do this for me. Okay?
Gosh, I'm sorry.
It's time for you to go to your academy.
It's fine.
How's school?
Is it worth coming here from far away?
Yes. It's all good.
Yes.
It'd be best to get straight to the point, right?
I wanted to see you because I was curious
how the other academy's class was.
But
I thought you weren't aware of this
That's what I heard.
I heard you liked the class.
Which part did you enjoy?
Just this and that.
You can speak comfortably.
The analysis of the previous exam questions were meticulous.
I thought she had prepared for the strategy on answering
short-answer questions very well too.
And she provided questions from other schools in the area.
I could tell that from the materials you gave me.
Wouldn't it be better for me to take note of other teachers' classes
and become better myself?
That would be a good thing for you too, Si Woo.
I found this memo interesting.
"Slowly, as if making friends."
"The world is much wider outside of the passage."
"Vocabulary is your imagination."
What are all these?
It's nothing much.
I just want to hear what you were thinking.
Honestly, I
don't really like Korean.
Is that so?
For someone who says so, your scores are quite stable.
Well, that is
For things like grammar, there's a formula,
so it's not that hard.
But for literature,
I honestly don't get it, so I just try hard to memorize it.
That always made me nervous.
Since there are kids who are good at Korean because they like it.
I thought it'd be hard to beat them at it.
And on the first page of the textbook,
it says that the purpose of studying Korean
is in living like a human being.
I didn't think that reading this
made me feel any more like a human being.
And I didn't even know what living like a human being meant.
Anyway,
Korean felt like
a subject that was like chasing rainbows.
But after taking yesterday's class,
I felt like I knew why I had disliked Korean until now.
I think it felt similar
to the new school year starting,
going into the classroom for the first time,
and wondering who I'll eat lunch with that day.
So, what I mean by that is
It's my first time learning about the author of the piece.
And the characters in the piece are also new people to me.
But I have to eat with them,
and I have to quickly guess
what those people are thinking or what position they're in.
I think that was what was hard.
So, when I'd get a passage that I never saw before, I'd get flustered.
And I'd just rely on instincts.
But taking my time and approaching it slowly
made it feel kind of fun for the first time.
Although I didn't feel any more like a human being,
I also thought that I wanted to try writing
something like a literary critique.
Sorry. I'm not very good at speaking.
Si Woo, aren't you aiming to go to medical school?
I haven't decided yet.
Your parents must want it.
You could give it a shot with early admissions.
I could do that, but
Then, you should write a thesis that would give you an advantage
on your specific skills and talents section.
Why are you trying to research something not worth your time?
That's what I think is a shame with you, Si Woo.
You have a good brain,
but compared to kids who went to elementary and middle school here,
you don't seem to have very many experts
to give you good advice.
Or should I say that you seem to lack adults' guidance?
You should meet with a college entrance consultant.
They're experts.
I'll get you an appointment with someone I know well.
No.
That's fine.
You shouldn't feel burdened.
It's my present to you because I'm grateful for what you told me.
I'm really fine.
I'm going to
switch academies.
I'm upset.
Have you told the other kids too?
She's so scary.
Mr. Park.
Yes.
Did you call me?
What day does Ms. Seo Hye Jin not teach classes?
Mondays, ma'am.
It's today.
Let's eat and come back to work. It's on me.
Okay, let's go.
Oh, one second.
Shouldn't we be buying dinner?
Mr. Choi Hyung Sun.
I'm not sure if I called you
while you were resting after yesterday's event.
Is that so? Good.
I'd like to see you sometime at my academy.
Right. There are a lot of eyes watching.
I'll be waiting.
Until the hour that Daechi-dong becomes quiet.
I'm sorry.
You should eat without me.
- What?
- What?
Where are you going?
I have an urgent meeting.
Hey, are you finished?
Okay, I'll be there in a bit.
Okay. See you soon.
- I'll be going first.
- Bye, then.
Goodness. Bye.
Okay, I'll be right there.
Thank you.
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(The most famous place for Korean)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
Yes, come in.
Welcome, Ms. Seo Hye Jin.
It's nice to meet you, Ms. Choi Hyung Sun.
Mr. Park, you should get going.
Pardon?
Go on. Our conversation might last a while.
Right.
Yesterday must have been a tough day.
It was a meaningful time.
Thanks to you.
Heewon High School students are at a high level,
but from a teacher's perspective, they are lacking in many ways.
Since exams are approaching soon,
one can't help but notice all the missing pieces.
I understand.
Just think of it as an old woman's concerns.
What is it that you wanted to say?
Shall we get up for a minute?
There's something I want to show you.
Since I was in middle school, I've wanted to be a teacher.
My homeroom teacher in seventh grade was a cool person.
So, I studied very hard,
and I was quite good at it too.
What was your dream, Ms. Seo?
I graduated with a law degree.
I know that much.
I mean, what was your dream?
I don't remember.
I majored in Korean Education at Seoul National University.
I passed the teacher certification examination easily too.
And I became a teacher at the age of 24.
I worked in schools until the age of 40 with great satisfaction.
Should I underline "the age of 40"
Or under "schools?"
The characteristic of good students
is that they ask good questions, not give good answers.
You should underline "schools."
I realized
what I wanted wasn't just to teach.
What I wanted was absolute authority
and respect.
You might not know, Ms. Seo,
but when I was a schoolteacher,
we had a lot of power.
I guess that's what I yearned for.
But as time passed and things changed,
schools stopped being such a place.
I decided
to send as many students as possible to university
and be treated as the best in return.
That's why since I quit teaching
at a school, I never worked for anyone.
I started off immediately as a private tutor.
In six months I had enough students to teach in groups,
and it took me just one year to turn that into an academy.
You called me here to recite your history?
I grew the academy this much without anyone else's help.
I moved to this building about
six years ago.
We ran out of space, so we rented
another building for kids from foreign language high schools.
We also have a branch in Banpo-dong.
Why is this room vacant
if you're short on space?
It's the vice director's office.
I've accomplished almost all I wanted,
but I hadn't yet found the owner of this room.
I'd been searching for the person for years,
and today, I got to invite you over.
I knew you wouldn't be surprised.
Ms. Seo.
Do you really think she can get more Chanyoung students to come?
I bet.
With 80 students, she could start her own academy.
That would be a miracle.
That's her speciality.
Why is it just you two?
Ms. Seo said she had something to do.
What's the matter?
We have a team dinner.
Would you like to join us?
Yes. I do.
Come along.
Maybe next time.
You guys go ahead.
Okay.
- You ate already. Is it okay?
- I'm fine.
Many instructors are great at teaching,
making teaching material, and managing students.
What I saw in you
is the boldness and the ability to plan things.
Just a moment.
This is the first flyer I made
after quitting as a schoolteacher.
It's a shabby design,
but the headline caused quite a stir.
My selling point was the fact that I'd set up the rules
at Heewon High on how Korean exams were created.
You have no idea what a hard time I had after these went out.
The Korean teachers at Heewon High rose against me like a pack of dogs.
We have
some things in common.
I like that.
Have you signed a contract for your next year's lectures?
No. Not yet.
Why don't you sign one with me?
What's your current split
with the academy when it comes to sales?
I can't tell you that.
It's our secret.
Then tell me the ratio you want.
I can see you get it.
You won't have to worry about the minor stuff
like dealing with moms and students, and managing your teaching material.
I'll assign you a great TA.
Provide great classes
and help me grow my academy.
I think you overestimate me.
I reached
my twilight years
without a husband or child.
As the person who established this academy,
I want to maintain a stable income and the absolute respect
before retiring majestically.
To do so, I need someone with a long-term view
to grow this academy well
and take over from me.
If you were to bring your Chanyoung High students
and join Choisun Academy,
we can build up a strong Korean academy
that rivals most places that teach multiple subjects.
I apologize.
What did you find funny?
It wasn't funny.
I lost control momentarily because I was so relieved.
I guess Si Woo said he'd switch.
And take his friends.
I'm pretty sure Lee Si Woo will come.
I had the biggest class of Heewon students for 20 years,
and that won't fall so easily.
Didn't you make me this offer because you thought
it would be a problem in the long run?
Starting immediately with the new kids.
If you must pay a penalty for breaking your current contract,
I'll cover that too.
Ms. Choi.
Thank you for the great offer.
I mean that.
Would you like to take a draft of the contract?
But there's something I must set straight.
The boldness and planning.
That wasn't all me.
Oh, right. Of course.
You did raise one great student.
But the person I want is you, Ms. Seo,
who teaches the biggest class
of Chanyoung High students.
May I think about it?
Of course.
Where are you?
Hey.
Where did you go?
Why did you come back?
I came for my car, saw the lights, and came upstairs.
Your bag and stuff were here,
but you weren't, so I wondered where you were.
Did you go out to see the director or vice-director?
What did they say this time?
You're not entirely wrong.
Take this. It's my consultation log.
One for the parents, one for the students.
Consultations are an important part of the job.
I had put that off because you had something much more pressing.
There are some set questions.
I'll tell you how to answer them.
Who did you meet?
Hello?
Si Woo will join us.
With his friends.
My gosh.
That's such a relief.
- I'm not yet sure
- I'm sure.
I was thinking about that. That he'd come here.
You seemed just fine. Were you actually disappointed?
I was this close to calling the kid, okay?
My gosh.
How did you find out?
It happens a few times a year.
Though this was the most shocking offer
I'd ever received.
I haven't decided yet.
Can I ask you something?
What is it?
If I go to Choisun Academy,
will you not be able to start a class for Heewon High kids?
Right.
There's that too.
When you got the offer,
did you feel like jumping for joy?
The question you asked earlier.
If I'm to answer it now,
I wasn't that overjoyed.
Because I thought
I deserved that kind of offer.
Go on home. I'm tired.
Okay.
Bye.
Text me when you're home.
See you.
(Bangbae New Green Hill 201)
Here's the draft of your contract with Choisun Academy.
I left the academy and instructor
profit ratio a blank.
Read through it and tell me what ratio you want.
Lawyer Cha.
Come on in.
Am I disturbing your busy schedule?
Enough with the niceties and sit down.
Give me what you brought.
Okay.
You asked for it right away.
We're both busy.
How long do I have to review these?
I'd like your feedback sooner than later.
The thin one's the real deal. The one that mentions money.
Why is my heart beating so fast
when it's not even my contract?
Are you going to make history by changing jobs?
With a huge pay raise?
It's not like that. Just go through it for me.
What's not like that?
Why isn't it like that?
So Young.
Yes, speak.
I feel so weird.
The Seo Hye Jin before the free lecture
and the Seo Hye Jin after seems like a different person.
What do you mean?
Like you said, I should write what I want
on the two-page contract
and walk off with no regrets.
I should spit with hatred on my current job and move.
Spit on them.
If they sue, I'll represent you.
So why am I so reluctant to leave?
What?
I had no problems so far.
I taught hard and well and made enough money.
The more kids I taught, the bigger my account balance got.
I lived and worked for that.
But what?
I don't think I can go back to that.
It's really hard to explain.
There's something you find hard to explain?
Exactly.
So what?
Do you want me to ask more detailed questions,
or to just watch over you?
Just watch over me.
I'm scared.
(Daechi Chase's miracle Lee Jun Ho, Main instructor Seo Hye Jin)
Bus number 38 will arrive shortly.
Though this was the most shocking offer
I'd ever received.
Sorry for asking you to come all the way.
The moms took over the cafe,
and the instructors are slowly coming to work.
I don't mind.
I don't know when I last walked in the sun.
Tell me if your feet hurt.
It's fine.
Tell me what this is about.
Ms. Seo.
How can I stop you from going to Choisun Academy?
What?
I won't make any more silly suggestions.
I'll recruit 100 more students from Chanyoung High if you want.
I'll recruit 100 from Heewon High if you ask.
I'll help you earn much more than Choisun Academy offered.
Well, I can't do that right away, but I'll work really hard
and expand your class.
Can't you work with me for one more year?
You said you wanted to buy a building in Gangnam.
But you'll recruit more kids for my class?
It's an investment on my part too.
Can't you teach me for one more year?
I'm grateful for the offer,
but you have no collateral.
Well Just believe in me.
You said I could do anything.
Once we open a class for the Heewon High students,
the director will change his tune.
If you just keep doing what you do,
I'll do anything.
I'll make textbooks all night if you tell me to.
I'll improve the students' grades
Can you promise that?
What?
Will you let me teach all the students you recruit?
Yes.
But just for one year.
After that, they're mine.
(Daechi Station)
(Daechi Chase)
The doors are closing.
- Going up.
- Can I get in?
Yes.
Isn't he from Heewon High?
He is.
He's a cutie.
So,
- let's not do that.
- Okay.
Tell them to prepare the ad to coincide with the holiday
Excuse me.
Hey, Heewon
You must attend Heewon High School.
Yes.
Who do I talk to about the final exam special lecture?
Some kids say they've given up
on studying for exams
and want to ace the SAT or even plan to take it many times.
Okay.
A student from Heewon High is here for a consultation.
Let's go.
The student's here alone? With no parent?
He's alone.
Come on, let's go.
You're on your own.
Why That's not right.
He's your first student.
Don't think about
how to seduce him or use him to start a new class.
Feel and relish in the emotions your first student gives you.
Okay.
I'm off, then.
(Consultation Room 2)
It's good to see you, Si Woo.
- Hello.
- Hi.
I knew you'd come. I just wondered when.
Thanks for keeping the wait short.
Sure.
Do you have plans for later?
No. It's my free day today.
Sounds good.
What?
I didn't get a good look at you
the day of the free lecture.
As you know,
I was expecting to be massively humiliated.
I'm enjoying the emotions only now.
I haven't yet registered or paid.
Right.
You can be pretty cold.
Okay, then. So I can get you to pay,
let's take care of some formalities.
Answer my questions freely.
The typical questions academy people ask.
I prepared some answers.
Okay. Can I hear them?
Yes.
I'm a freshman at Heewon High.
I don't like Korean much, but I'm not bad at it.
I got 100 percent on the midterm.
Gosh.
I study Korean 1 or 2 hours a day.
I skip when I have an academy class.
I do my homework on time, and I put my effort into it.
And
I have trouble understanding and solving literature questions.
I could memorize everything and get full marks,
but I get flustered when I come across something new.
I say my goal is to get into a medical school in Seoul,
but that's my mom's goal.
I don't know yet.
I haven't chosen an elective yet.
I'd like to know if you have a scholarship program.
That's about it.
Okay.
You don't like Korean?
I think so.
That's strange.
Aren't you good at writing?
Not in the logical essay sense.
Isn't there a field or topic you're good at writing about?
Like reviews or blogs.
How did you know?
Because you're a great teen who can't help but be a good writer.
I haven't paid yet.
Let's talk about the scholarship.
I can talk about that with confidence.
I'm this academy's first-ever scholarship recipient.
It's a glorious title.
You can start without me.
No. An important issue came up at my academy.
Yes. I'll call you when I get there.
Do you think we can open a class?
I can't say. He's just one student.
We don't know how much influence he has at his school.
We don't know his grade class or about his friends.
Right.
We should've asked
who the one student who stayed for the lecture was.
What he's like.
If we do end up opening a Heewon class,
won't it be a huge deal?
We didn't make a big mistake, did we?
Elision means there are
fewer syllables to say.
With that in mind, read this again.
Which one doesn't match?
(Consultation Room 2, Administration Office)
- A Heewon kid's here?
- Yes.
That's a huge deal.
We don't know anything yet.
We can't start a new class with one kid.
The next passage.
Let's take a 15-minute break.
(Consultation Room 2, Administration Office)
(Daechi Chase)
Take care.
I will. Goodbye.
- Bye.
- Goodbye.
Well?
It's over.
The other students
Heewon High has a shorter day tomorrow, so
they'll come then.
- My gosh.
- How many do you think will come?
Enough to open a class?
Yes, that shouldn't be a problem.
Oh, how nice.
I should assign a great classroom.
Right, Ms. Woo?
- Congratulations.
- Thank you.
Congratulations, Ms. Seo.
Thanks.
- Ms. Seo.
- Fill me in after class.
I took a short break.
Let's talk in my office.
- Yes.
- Let's go.
- Come along.
- Okay.
(Daechi Chase)
(The Midnight Romance in Hagwon)
Choisun Academy. You can go.
That hurts.
I hoped for a beautiful farewell.
Don't act like you're so noble.
Let go!
I can't imagine our academy without Seo Hye Jin.
Once someone like that turns away,
it could be really scary.
Do you have time to slack off?
Focus on your own goal.
I'm holding back
much more desperately than you think.
Ms. Seo. You're a real headache.
What am I to do if you do this?
Dramaday.me
(Jung Ryeo Won)
(Wi Ha Jun)
(Scriptwriter: Park Kyeong Hwa)
(Director: Ahn Pan Seok)
(The Midnight Romance in Hagwon)
They still taught the class?
Yes.
Lee Si Woo was absent today, so I gave him a call.
Are you sure it was just him alone?
Kids from other academies could have gone too.
He said it was just him.
He said it was supposed to last only two hours,
but it lasted much longer than that.
He stayed for the whole class after skipping my class?
I'll ask him for more details next week before the class.
I can't wait to hear from him
about their class.
(Episode 5)
It's coming.
- I'll get going then.
- Thank you for your help.
- Sure.
- Bye.
- Bye.
- Goodnight.
We still have stuff to discuss, right?
I thought the dizziness was going to be the end of me.
Let's go for a walk.
Hey.
If you have nothing to do, why don't you help me with this?
Hold on.
I'm thinking about another man.
Who? Mr. Lee Jun Ho?
Don't you find him a bit odd?
What? What do you mean?
To be precise,
when Hye Jin is with him,
something feels off about her.
What are you talking about?
Oddly enough, she acts like her old self around him.
That's possible.
When people meet their friends from elementary school,
they start acting like they're in elementary school.
Around the people they served in the military together,
they start talking as if they're in the military.
I never served in the military.
Gosh. It was only an example. You know?
Anyway, that's a thing with guys.
Is that so?
Aren't you cold?
No, I'm okay.
What are you thinking about?
Si Woo.
Me too.
I wonder if he'll have a good impression of us.
He'll remember our class for the rest of his life.
How do you know that?
I'm the living proof.
Because I had never forgotten it.
I do think it's not fair, though.
Why?
Compared to my 1st class with you, his 1st class with us
was about two times better
because half of today's class was
conducted by me.
Weren't you flustered?
We barely got to use half of the materials we prepared today.
Not at all.
But I was curious what went through your head at that moment.
If it's difficult to explain, you don't have to.
Oh, that?
It was because my head went blank.
The materials we prepared
I wondered if I should give him something else
than useful tips on how to get perfect scores.
Initially, that random thought just crossed my mind.
Then I found myself standing in front of the blackboard.
At that moment, everything we prepared together disappeared.
Everything like my secret tips
on how to get perfect scores and improve school grades.
So I just thought about having fun with the reading materials.
I was reminded of my first class with you.
It felt somewhat similar to that day.
Of course, Si Woo wasn't a dumbhead like you, though.
Gosh.
I wasn't a dumbhead.
I was just an undiscovered gem who had always been smart.
Anyway, the academy will try to give me
as many disadvantages as possible.
You should keep your distance from me.
I don't care if people think we had a falling out because of this class.
Don't come to work tomorrow.
What if I don't want to do that?
What?
"I'll take care of the mess. You keep moving forward."
I think you want to tell me something cool like that.
No way.
I'm fine.
Although it happened a long time ago,
I had some failed attempts too.
Given my position, the academy can't come after me that easily.
You know, I quit my office job
and joined this academy, so I could quickly make
a lot more money than all of my superiors
at my previous company.
If I was going to hide behind my superior to keep my job,
I wouldn't have joined this industry.
As your fellow instructor,
I was part of this project.
So I will take responsibility for the failure just as equally.
Besides
Well, I got what I wanted all along.
Yes. Our boss was definitely angry.
Gosh.
It's unfortunate that people will hear about our failure.
But I'm happy that I got a lot of attention with my first class.
There are two exams in each semester.
We will always have more chances.
You just focus on keeping
your dominance over Chanyoung High School.
I'll get the students from Heewon High School.
(YG Science Academy)
(Heewon High School)
Good morning.
(Presentation: How to Prepare for the Final Exam)
(Chanyoung High School, Year 1, Semester 2)
I have your supplementary materials.
Come and pick them up tonight.
You can tell me about yesterday too.
Everyone who signed up for the presentation is seated.
It's a full house.
Take the USB flash drive from my laptop.
Go and switch the slides with the ones on that flash drive.
I already put up the slides you reviewed last.
I checked several times.
Seo Hye Jin and Lee Jun Ho held their class for Si Woo.
My teaching style may be too graceful.
So I put together those slides.
(Presentation: How to Prepare for Final Exam)
(Chanyoung High School, Year 1, Semester 2)
(Parent Information Session, Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Doing your best will make you the best.)
(Presentation: How to Prepare for Final Exam)
(Chanyoung High School, Year 1, Semester 2)
(Special Lecture by Director Choi Hyun Sun)
I'm Director Choi Hyun Sun of Choisun Academy.
Dear parents of Chanyoung High. Nice to meet you all.
Let's get started right away.
("Feeling excited")
I'm sure you all remember this.
At the last midterm exam,
this very phrase caused the students to retake the exam.
I have a question for you.
What's the most important exam for your children?
Their first midterm exam in high school
since it's the first exam that will count toward their school grades?
Or their exams in the second year since those exams weigh more
in their student records?
Or the university entrance exam?
Those are all incorrect answers.
The right answer is
(The upcoming exam)
The styles of exam questions change every exam.
Whenever that happens,
do you expect us to be clueless on how to handle the situation
and barge into schools?
So we can argue with a schoolteacher
who will have to fill out your children's student records?
The schoolteacher's pride was bruised,
so he decided to change the direction of his questions.
Was that really necessary at the risk of causing confusion?
Your children
are much weaker than you think.
They want to stay where they are because they're used to
studying with the same teacher on the same days.
Do not let them give up and be compliant.
Until the moment they get into college,
you must keep a tight rein on them.
The White Haired Witch must have started her presentation.
You must have been disappointed by yesterday's event.
I'm sorry.
Don't mention it.
It must have affected you guys the most.
It would've been great if you stayed for Mr. Lee's lecture.
He performed better in an actual class.
You proceeded with the class?
Every student is important to us.
Good job.
When that kind of diligent behaviour continues,
it will improve our academy's image.
I feel even worse hearing a compliment from you.
Gosh, no.
I was worried you would be beating yourselves
with that negative thought.
So I called you early in the morning on purpose.
I thought meeting face-to-face would be better for everyone.
We didn't get the result we wanted with students from Heewon High.
But with students from Chanyoung High
You know what? This occasion
showed me an unexpected side of you, Ms. Seo.
Trying your best to train Mr. Lee properly
was such a selfless act from you.
You weren't afraid of a countermove and went with a bold strategy.
I didn't know that you were capable of doing this.
On top of that, you guys finished your class
for just one student.
Gosh. Seriously.
What you did showed
an exemplary attitude for your junior instructor
to learn from.
- That's
- Ms. Seo.
You don't deserve to be chained to a small classroom like this.
The second-year students from Chanyoung High?
I thought you would be happy.
But I requested to teach the first-year students.
My intention wasn't to take Ms. Seo's students.
I wanted to gather my own students.
So do you not want to teach them?
Well, that's not what I was saying.
How many second-year students do we have from Chanyoung High?
A little over 80 students.
- I don't know the exact number.
- I see.
If she splits them with Mr. Lee, it would be 40 students per class.
With Mr. Lee?
Why? Do you want to take all 80 students?
No. It's not that.
If that's not it,
are you disappointed that they will soon be seniors?
Because they'll quit soon?
No.
It's actually better.
New instructors rarely get to teach seniors.
In Daechi-dong,
getting this kind of benefit in the beginning of your career
doesn't come often.
Right. Of course, I know that.
I hope you will take the expectations we have
of you and Mr. Lee rather seriously.
Okay.
Ms. Seo will help you a lot.
I believe our Korean Department
is the heart of our academy.
I never doubted that for a second.
When we acquired Victoria Academy,
Vice-Director Woo Seung Hui's academy,
our academy began teaching more subjects.
But the Korean is the subject
that will continue the tradition of our academy.
I always had that in my mind.
Come to think of it,
I invested a lot into the Korean Department.
Starting with the advertisement, I tried my best to support
Korean instructors in every way possible.
Thanks to that, you established your position at a young age.
I'm grateful for that.
Right.
Despite everything, I always try
to introspect about myself
and look back on my actions.
I ask myself this.
"Am I being a good leader for the academy?"
"Am I just being content with the stable sales?"
"Am I wallowing in such lazy thoughts?"
After fiercely reflecting on myself,
I came to a conclusion.
That it's not time for us to expand the size of the academy.
Instead, we must improve the quality of our lectures.
One more thing.
I had been forgetting
that you were the perfect person for this task.
I regretted being shortsighted about that too.
Do you mean
It's proven that you give the best lectures.
Now, it's time to broaden our horizon.
Ms. Seo. Reduce the number of your lectures.
Spearhead the preparation task force to set up the Gangbuk branch.
(Director's Office)
Gosh.
Did you understand what's happening?
No.
Gosh.
Oh, my.
Goodness.
What was he talking about?
Where did this task force come from?
There's no such thing.
I bet no one else is in the task force.
The vice-director will want to speak with you.
So let me keep it simple.
Why would she want to see me?
She will have you teach some of my classes.
You'll probably teach second-year students
from Chanyoung High.
What do you mean?
They don't know how many first-year students
will switch over to Choisun Academy.
I'm still confused. Why am I taking over your students?
So they can kick me out empty-handed.
Just because the free lecture failed?
No. They were probably looking for an excuse for a long time.
Having an instructor like me is
a double-edged sword at academies.
I can increase their sales by a lot.
But if I were to quit and take my students somewhere else,
the academy will be taking a huge hit.
That's why
they were trying to come up with a way to split the students slowly.
"Demotions are often disguised as honourable positions."
It's good that you're catching on fast.
So it means you
Your career is ruined because of me, right?
Excuse me.
(Vice-Director Woo Seung Hui)
Answer it.
You said you guys just hung out last weekend after the academy.
We did after finishing all the homework.
You traitors.
I'm so busy. Who's calling me?
Your mom.
Hey, Mom.
Of course, I'm on a break now.
Didn't you know that when you called?
I see.
Was the presentation interesting?
What?
Mom, don't do that.
Don't sign up there on the spot.
What?
No.
Ms. Seo's class is fine.
You don't know anything, Mom.
Well,
we should start making draft questions
for the final exam pretty soon.
Yes.
You told your students
that you would only draw questions from the textbook.
I did.
Is there a problem with that?
Realistically speaking, I don't think that's doable.
What do you mean?
I'm sure you know why.
Those questions will be hard to assess the students' levels.
Right.
The level of their education is way too high.
In the end, we'll have to deduct points based on the periods
and commas from the essay questions.
It will be so chaotic during the grading period.
Could you see it from our point of view?
The teacher evaluation will begin soon too.
Please?
I'm looking for a way too.
Sir, you can't base the questions on the after-school class
you're conducting now
because not everyone is taking the class.
In the end,
teachers like us will be collateral damage.
Please?
No, Mom. Don't you know better by now?
Do you believe everything the academy director tells you?
Why are you feeling excited right now?
Given your skill sets,
I have no doubt you'll lead them without losing any students.
If you need more materials, do let me know.
Let me go over my notes for the students first.
Well,
this isn't what I intended.
I know that.
- Ms. Seo.
- Yes.
Because you have a lot of students,
they're afraid you might take them elsewhere,
so they're destroying your career proactively.
I know very well that this happens often in this industry,
but shouldn't you protest this, at least?
I'm still fine, aren't I?
No, but
It would've been one thing for them to give me the 10th graders,
since I know Mr. Pyo Sang Sub and all.
And we could stop the attack from Choisun Academy too.
That's why they didn't give you the 10th graders.
So that the two of you could stay safely out of the way.
Oh, I have something I want to ask you, Ms. Nam.
Yes, go ahead.
Mr. Pyo Sung Sub who teaches 10th grade.
Could he make the exam a cumulative one?
You mean
will he include the whole year's worth of material on the final exam?
No matter how much I think about it, I think he'll try to distinguish
the exam by broadening the exam's range.
I'll fill it in.
The academy will want me to become an empty castle,
but I don't intend to do so.
Hang on.
I think there was once from two years ago at Guksabong.
I'll go and get the material.
Don't look at me like that. I won't fall easily.
Shall I try meeting with Si Woo?
He left his number yesterday.
- If I meet him and plead
- Don't do that.
It'll only make things worse.
All right. Here.
Sorry about this.
I didn't know that the director would suddenly schedule
a makeup class.
It only made you lose time to study, didn't it?
It's fine.
Yesterday's class was fun too.
It was fun?
Yes.
Since you said you'd take a look,
I took all my notes on the printouts.
This is a copy.
Right.
Tell me in detail.
Since it was a 1-on-1 lesson,
she must've taken a rather sentimental approach.
Especially in modern literature,
she talked about stuff that wasn't related to the material.
It doesn't seem like he'll switch academies, does it?
How could he think such a thing?
(Slowly, as if making friends)
(The world is much wider outside of the passage.)
(Vocabulary is your imagination.)
(Director's office)
The person you have reached is unavailable. Please leave
The person you have reached is unavailable. Please leave
Hang on Where would he
Right, math.
Si Woo!
Hey, Lee Si Woo!
What
Why
Why didn't you answer your phone?
Oh, I had it on silent mode.
I turned it down while talking to you.
That's fine.
Come with me.
I have to go to my math academy.
And I haven't eaten either.
It'll only be a minute.
Please do this for me. Okay?
Gosh, I'm sorry.
It's time for you to go to your academy.
It's fine.
How's school?
Is it worth coming here from far away?
Yes. It's all good.
Yes.
It'd be best to get straight to the point, right?
I wanted to see you because I was curious
how the other academy's class was.
But
I thought you weren't aware of this
That's what I heard.
I heard you liked the class.
Which part did you enjoy?
Just this and that.
You can speak comfortably.
The analysis of the previous exam questions were meticulous.
I thought she had prepared for the strategy on answering
short-answer questions very well too.
And she provided questions from other schools in the area.
I could tell that from the materials you gave me.
Wouldn't it be better for me to take note of other teachers' classes
and become better myself?
That would be a good thing for you too, Si Woo.
I found this memo interesting.
"Slowly, as if making friends."
"The world is much wider outside of the passage."
"Vocabulary is your imagination."
What are all these?
It's nothing much.
I just want to hear what you were thinking.
Honestly, I
don't really like Korean.
Is that so?
For someone who says so, your scores are quite stable.
Well, that is
For things like grammar, there's a formula,
so it's not that hard.
But for literature,
I honestly don't get it, so I just try hard to memorize it.
That always made me nervous.
Since there are kids who are good at Korean because they like it.
I thought it'd be hard to beat them at it.
And on the first page of the textbook,
it says that the purpose of studying Korean
is in living like a human being.
I didn't think that reading this
made me feel any more like a human being.
And I didn't even know what living like a human being meant.
Anyway,
Korean felt like
a subject that was like chasing rainbows.
But after taking yesterday's class,
I felt like I knew why I had disliked Korean until now.
I think it felt similar
to the new school year starting,
going into the classroom for the first time,
and wondering who I'll eat lunch with that day.
So, what I mean by that is
It's my first time learning about the author of the piece.
And the characters in the piece are also new people to me.
But I have to eat with them,
and I have to quickly guess
what those people are thinking or what position they're in.
I think that was what was hard.
So, when I'd get a passage that I never saw before, I'd get flustered.
And I'd just rely on instincts.
But taking my time and approaching it slowly
made it feel kind of fun for the first time.
Although I didn't feel any more like a human being,
I also thought that I wanted to try writing
something like a literary critique.
Sorry. I'm not very good at speaking.
Si Woo, aren't you aiming to go to medical school?
I haven't decided yet.
Your parents must want it.
You could give it a shot with early admissions.
I could do that, but
Then, you should write a thesis that would give you an advantage
on your specific skills and talents section.
Why are you trying to research something not worth your time?
That's what I think is a shame with you, Si Woo.
You have a good brain,
but compared to kids who went to elementary and middle school here,
you don't seem to have very many experts
to give you good advice.
Or should I say that you seem to lack adults' guidance?
You should meet with a college entrance consultant.
They're experts.
I'll get you an appointment with someone I know well.
No.
That's fine.
You shouldn't feel burdened.
It's my present to you because I'm grateful for what you told me.
I'm really fine.
I'm going to
switch academies.
I'm upset.
Have you told the other kids too?
She's so scary.
Mr. Park.
Yes.
Did you call me?
What day does Ms. Seo Hye Jin not teach classes?
Mondays, ma'am.
It's today.
Let's eat and come back to work. It's on me.
Okay, let's go.
Oh, one second.
Shouldn't we be buying dinner?
Mr. Choi Hyung Sun.
I'm not sure if I called you
while you were resting after yesterday's event.
Is that so? Good.
I'd like to see you sometime at my academy.
Right. There are a lot of eyes watching.
I'll be waiting.
Until the hour that Daechi-dong becomes quiet.
I'm sorry.
You should eat without me.
- What?
- What?
Where are you going?
I have an urgent meeting.
Hey, are you finished?
Okay, I'll be there in a bit.
Okay. See you soon.
- I'll be going first.
- Bye, then.
Goodness. Bye.
Okay, I'll be right there.
Thank you.
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
(The most famous place for Korean)
(Daechi Choisun Academy)
Yes, come in.
Welcome, Ms. Seo Hye Jin.
It's nice to meet you, Ms. Choi Hyung Sun.
Mr. Park, you should get going.
Pardon?
Go on. Our conversation might last a while.
Right.
Yesterday must have been a tough day.
It was a meaningful time.
Thanks to you.
Heewon High School students are at a high level,
but from a teacher's perspective, they are lacking in many ways.
Since exams are approaching soon,
one can't help but notice all the missing pieces.
I understand.
Just think of it as an old woman's concerns.
What is it that you wanted to say?
Shall we get up for a minute?
There's something I want to show you.
Since I was in middle school, I've wanted to be a teacher.
My homeroom teacher in seventh grade was a cool person.
So, I studied very hard,
and I was quite good at it too.
What was your dream, Ms. Seo?
I graduated with a law degree.
I know that much.
I mean, what was your dream?
I don't remember.
I majored in Korean Education at Seoul National University.
I passed the teacher certification examination easily too.
And I became a teacher at the age of 24.
I worked in schools until the age of 40 with great satisfaction.
Should I underline "the age of 40"
Or under "schools?"
The characteristic of good students
is that they ask good questions, not give good answers.
You should underline "schools."
I realized
what I wanted wasn't just to teach.
What I wanted was absolute authority
and respect.
You might not know, Ms. Seo,
but when I was a schoolteacher,
we had a lot of power.
I guess that's what I yearned for.
But as time passed and things changed,
schools stopped being such a place.
I decided
to send as many students as possible to university
and be treated as the best in return.
That's why since I quit teaching
at a school, I never worked for anyone.
I started off immediately as a private tutor.
In six months I had enough students to teach in groups,
and it took me just one year to turn that into an academy.
You called me here to recite your history?
I grew the academy this much without anyone else's help.
I moved to this building about
six years ago.
We ran out of space, so we rented
another building for kids from foreign language high schools.
We also have a branch in Banpo-dong.
Why is this room vacant
if you're short on space?
It's the vice director's office.
I've accomplished almost all I wanted,
but I hadn't yet found the owner of this room.
I'd been searching for the person for years,
and today, I got to invite you over.
I knew you wouldn't be surprised.
Ms. Seo.
Do you really think she can get more Chanyoung students to come?
I bet.
With 80 students, she could start her own academy.
That would be a miracle.
That's her speciality.
Why is it just you two?
Ms. Seo said she had something to do.
What's the matter?
We have a team dinner.
Would you like to join us?
Yes. I do.
Come along.
Maybe next time.
You guys go ahead.
Okay.
- You ate already. Is it okay?
- I'm fine.
Many instructors are great at teaching,
making teaching material, and managing students.
What I saw in you
is the boldness and the ability to plan things.
Just a moment.
This is the first flyer I made
after quitting as a schoolteacher.
It's a shabby design,
but the headline caused quite a stir.
My selling point was the fact that I'd set up the rules
at Heewon High on how Korean exams were created.
You have no idea what a hard time I had after these went out.
The Korean teachers at Heewon High rose against me like a pack of dogs.
We have
some things in common.
I like that.
Have you signed a contract for your next year's lectures?
No. Not yet.
Why don't you sign one with me?
What's your current split
with the academy when it comes to sales?
I can't tell you that.
It's our secret.
Then tell me the ratio you want.
I can see you get it.
You won't have to worry about the minor stuff
like dealing with moms and students, and managing your teaching material.
I'll assign you a great TA.
Provide great classes
and help me grow my academy.
I think you overestimate me.
I reached
my twilight years
without a husband or child.
As the person who established this academy,
I want to maintain a stable income and the absolute respect
before retiring majestically.
To do so, I need someone with a long-term view
to grow this academy well
and take over from me.
If you were to bring your Chanyoung High students
and join Choisun Academy,
we can build up a strong Korean academy
that rivals most places that teach multiple subjects.
I apologize.
What did you find funny?
It wasn't funny.
I lost control momentarily because I was so relieved.
I guess Si Woo said he'd switch.
And take his friends.
I'm pretty sure Lee Si Woo will come.
I had the biggest class of Heewon students for 20 years,
and that won't fall so easily.
Didn't you make me this offer because you thought
it would be a problem in the long run?
Starting immediately with the new kids.
If you must pay a penalty for breaking your current contract,
I'll cover that too.
Ms. Choi.
Thank you for the great offer.
I mean that.
Would you like to take a draft of the contract?
But there's something I must set straight.
The boldness and planning.
That wasn't all me.
Oh, right. Of course.
You did raise one great student.
But the person I want is you, Ms. Seo,
who teaches the biggest class
of Chanyoung High students.
May I think about it?
Of course.
Where are you?
Hey.
Where did you go?
Why did you come back?
I came for my car, saw the lights, and came upstairs.
Your bag and stuff were here,
but you weren't, so I wondered where you were.
Did you go out to see the director or vice-director?
What did they say this time?
You're not entirely wrong.
Take this. It's my consultation log.
One for the parents, one for the students.
Consultations are an important part of the job.
I had put that off because you had something much more pressing.
There are some set questions.
I'll tell you how to answer them.
Who did you meet?
Hello?
Si Woo will join us.
With his friends.
My gosh.
That's such a relief.
- I'm not yet sure
- I'm sure.
I was thinking about that. That he'd come here.
You seemed just fine. Were you actually disappointed?
I was this close to calling the kid, okay?
My gosh.
How did you find out?
It happens a few times a year.
Though this was the most shocking offer
I'd ever received.
I haven't decided yet.
Can I ask you something?
What is it?
If I go to Choisun Academy,
will you not be able to start a class for Heewon High kids?
Right.
There's that too.
When you got the offer,
did you feel like jumping for joy?
The question you asked earlier.
If I'm to answer it now,
I wasn't that overjoyed.
Because I thought
I deserved that kind of offer.
Go on home. I'm tired.
Okay.
Bye.
Text me when you're home.
See you.
(Bangbae New Green Hill 201)
Here's the draft of your contract with Choisun Academy.
I left the academy and instructor
profit ratio a blank.
Read through it and tell me what ratio you want.
Lawyer Cha.
Come on in.
Am I disturbing your busy schedule?
Enough with the niceties and sit down.
Give me what you brought.
Okay.
You asked for it right away.
We're both busy.
How long do I have to review these?
I'd like your feedback sooner than later.
The thin one's the real deal. The one that mentions money.
Why is my heart beating so fast
when it's not even my contract?
Are you going to make history by changing jobs?
With a huge pay raise?
It's not like that. Just go through it for me.
What's not like that?
Why isn't it like that?
So Young.
Yes, speak.
I feel so weird.
The Seo Hye Jin before the free lecture
and the Seo Hye Jin after seems like a different person.
What do you mean?
Like you said, I should write what I want
on the two-page contract
and walk off with no regrets.
I should spit with hatred on my current job and move.
Spit on them.
If they sue, I'll represent you.
So why am I so reluctant to leave?
What?
I had no problems so far.
I taught hard and well and made enough money.
The more kids I taught, the bigger my account balance got.
I lived and worked for that.
But what?
I don't think I can go back to that.
It's really hard to explain.
There's something you find hard to explain?
Exactly.
So what?
Do you want me to ask more detailed questions,
or to just watch over you?
Just watch over me.
I'm scared.
(Daechi Chase's miracle Lee Jun Ho, Main instructor Seo Hye Jin)
Bus number 38 will arrive shortly.
Though this was the most shocking offer
I'd ever received.
Sorry for asking you to come all the way.
The moms took over the cafe,
and the instructors are slowly coming to work.
I don't mind.
I don't know when I last walked in the sun.
Tell me if your feet hurt.
It's fine.
Tell me what this is about.
Ms. Seo.
How can I stop you from going to Choisun Academy?
What?
I won't make any more silly suggestions.
I'll recruit 100 more students from Chanyoung High if you want.
I'll recruit 100 from Heewon High if you ask.
I'll help you earn much more than Choisun Academy offered.
Well, I can't do that right away, but I'll work really hard
and expand your class.
Can't you work with me for one more year?
You said you wanted to buy a building in Gangnam.
But you'll recruit more kids for my class?
It's an investment on my part too.
Can't you teach me for one more year?
I'm grateful for the offer,
but you have no collateral.
Well Just believe in me.
You said I could do anything.
Once we open a class for the Heewon High students,
the director will change his tune.
If you just keep doing what you do,
I'll do anything.
I'll make textbooks all night if you tell me to.
I'll improve the students' grades
Can you promise that?
What?
Will you let me teach all the students you recruit?
Yes.
But just for one year.
After that, they're mine.
(Daechi Station)
(Daechi Chase)
The doors are closing.
- Going up.
- Can I get in?
Yes.
Isn't he from Heewon High?
He is.
He's a cutie.
So,
- let's not do that.
- Okay.
Tell them to prepare the ad to coincide with the holiday
Excuse me.
Hey, Heewon
You must attend Heewon High School.
Yes.
Who do I talk to about the final exam special lecture?
Some kids say they've given up
on studying for exams
and want to ace the SAT or even plan to take it many times.
Okay.
A student from Heewon High is here for a consultation.
Let's go.
The student's here alone? With no parent?
He's alone.
Come on, let's go.
You're on your own.
Why That's not right.
He's your first student.
Don't think about
how to seduce him or use him to start a new class.
Feel and relish in the emotions your first student gives you.
Okay.
I'm off, then.
(Consultation Room 2)
It's good to see you, Si Woo.
- Hello.
- Hi.
I knew you'd come. I just wondered when.
Thanks for keeping the wait short.
Sure.
Do you have plans for later?
No. It's my free day today.
Sounds good.
What?
I didn't get a good look at you
the day of the free lecture.
As you know,
I was expecting to be massively humiliated.
I'm enjoying the emotions only now.
I haven't yet registered or paid.
Right.
You can be pretty cold.
Okay, then. So I can get you to pay,
let's take care of some formalities.
Answer my questions freely.
The typical questions academy people ask.
I prepared some answers.
Okay. Can I hear them?
Yes.
I'm a freshman at Heewon High.
I don't like Korean much, but I'm not bad at it.
I got 100 percent on the midterm.
Gosh.
I study Korean 1 or 2 hours a day.
I skip when I have an academy class.
I do my homework on time, and I put my effort into it.
And
I have trouble understanding and solving literature questions.
I could memorize everything and get full marks,
but I get flustered when I come across something new.
I say my goal is to get into a medical school in Seoul,
but that's my mom's goal.
I don't know yet.
I haven't chosen an elective yet.
I'd like to know if you have a scholarship program.
That's about it.
Okay.
You don't like Korean?
I think so.
That's strange.
Aren't you good at writing?
Not in the logical essay sense.
Isn't there a field or topic you're good at writing about?
Like reviews or blogs.
How did you know?
Because you're a great teen who can't help but be a good writer.
I haven't paid yet.
Let's talk about the scholarship.
I can talk about that with confidence.
I'm this academy's first-ever scholarship recipient.
It's a glorious title.
You can start without me.
No. An important issue came up at my academy.
Yes. I'll call you when I get there.
Do you think we can open a class?
I can't say. He's just one student.
We don't know how much influence he has at his school.
We don't know his grade class or about his friends.
Right.
We should've asked
who the one student who stayed for the lecture was.
What he's like.
If we do end up opening a Heewon class,
won't it be a huge deal?
We didn't make a big mistake, did we?
Elision means there are
fewer syllables to say.
With that in mind, read this again.
Which one doesn't match?
(Consultation Room 2, Administration Office)
- A Heewon kid's here?
- Yes.
That's a huge deal.
We don't know anything yet.
We can't start a new class with one kid.
The next passage.
Let's take a 15-minute break.
(Consultation Room 2, Administration Office)
(Daechi Chase)
Take care.
I will. Goodbye.
- Bye.
- Goodbye.
Well?
It's over.
The other students
Heewon High has a shorter day tomorrow, so
they'll come then.
- My gosh.
- How many do you think will come?
Enough to open a class?
Yes, that shouldn't be a problem.
Oh, how nice.
I should assign a great classroom.
Right, Ms. Woo?
- Congratulations.
- Thank you.
Congratulations, Ms. Seo.
Thanks.
- Ms. Seo.
- Fill me in after class.
I took a short break.
Let's talk in my office.
- Yes.
- Let's go.
- Come along.
- Okay.
(Daechi Chase)
(The Midnight Romance in Hagwon)
Choisun Academy. You can go.
That hurts.
I hoped for a beautiful farewell.
Don't act like you're so noble.
Let go!
I can't imagine our academy without Seo Hye Jin.
Once someone like that turns away,
it could be really scary.
Do you have time to slack off?
Focus on your own goal.
I'm holding back
much more desperately than you think.
Ms. Seo. You're a real headache.
What am I to do if you do this?
Dramaday.me