Familiar Wife Season 1 Episode 12 Recap

Ju-Hyeok tells Wu-jin that they were married. He tells her they fell in love when they were young, but Wu-jin changed when they got older. Wu-jin doesn’t believe Ju-Hyeok. She tells him that if he doesn’t like her, he can just say so instead of making up stories. Wu-jin goes home and finds her mother drawing a family. She asks her mother if she knows the truth and how much of the truth she knows. Wu-jin’s mother tells her that whatever it is that Ju-Hyeok said, Wu-jin shouldn’t hate him because Ju-Hyeok had been good to them. Wu-jin cries as she holds the drawing her mom made. She doesn’t understand whether to believe Ju-Hyeok or not.

The next day, Wu-jin tells her team leader she can’t make it to work because she’s sick, but the truth is Wu-jin just doesn’t want to go to work. “He’s waiting. You should go. He’s missing you badly. He’s worried about you,” Wu-jin’s mom says. Though her mom didn’t mention a name, Wu-jin thinks she knows who she’s talking about. Ju-Hyeok makes an excuse and leaves the office to look for Wu-jin. When they finally meet, they realize they are looking for each other. Wu-jin tells Ju-Hyeok she thinks it’s impossible that Ju-Hyeok went back in time.“But all the weird things that have happened to me, the repeated dream, my mom’s strange actions toward you, the familiar feeling from the first time I met you, the fact that you know so much about me, and most importantly, what happened on the bus is something you cannot know if you weren’t there,” Wu-jin says. She asks Ju-Hyeok why he chose to abandon her. Ju-Hyeok says he was scared about how Wu-jin changed and even more afraid that he would have to deal with it for the rest of his life. He admits it’s his fault because he didn’t listen to Wu-jin more. He falls to his knees and starts crying. “I know it’s too late, but I’m so sorry, Wu-jin,” Ju-Hyeok says. Wu-jin walks away from Ju-Hyeok, but just a few steps away from the door, she returns and tells him that since relationships are not one-sided, then maybe they are both to blame. She says she’s not the weak person Ju-Hyeok married, so she’ll give him another chance.

When Ju-Hyeok returns to the office, Jong-hu sees him crying. Jong-hu tells him not to think about what other people will say and just do what he wants to do. Ju-Hyeok cries as he leans toward Jong-hu, so he comforts Ju-Hyeok as he wipes his tears. That night, Ju-Hyeok thinks about how everyone seems to be giving him another chance, so he runs to Wu-jin’s house and asks her to go out with him the coming weekend. Meanwhile, the strange man is at the train station and tells people about a black hole to go back in time. 

The next day, on his way to meet Wu-jin, Ju-Hyeok hears about a bus accident. He picks up Wu-jin from her house, and they go to where they had their first date in their previous life. While at the beach, Ju-Hyeok receives a phone call from Mr. Byeon, so he rushes to the office. They tell Ju-Hyeok that the company he referred, Wu-seong company, is bankrupt. Ju-Hyeok immediately calls his ex-father-in-law to ask him about it, but his ex-father-in-law says he can’t contact the company owner. The head office calls for the bank manager. Since the bank manager ignored the proper procedure, the head office thinks he received a commission from the Wu-seong company. The employees think he could get fired, or worst, their branch will be closed.

While looking for things that could help them solve the problem, they find out that the papers they received from Wu-seong company are fabricated. Ju-Hyeok goes to his ex-father-in-law’s company where he hears him talking to someone on the phone. Because he’s caught in the act, the chairman has no choice but to tell Ju-Hyeok the truth. The chairman says they need extra money to open an overseas branch, and they plan to return the money as soon as they sign the deal, but things went wrong. “What do you think? Can you keep your mouth shut, just this once?” the chairman asks. Ju-Hyeok says he can’t do it because their bank manager will take all the blame. The chairman tells Ju-Hyeok that if he reveals Wu-seong is a paper company of the JK group, he could also get in trouble because he is the one who introduced the company owner to their bank manager. Also, Ju-Hyeok is a family member, so they will suspect that he was in it. The chairman says he could lose everything, but the same goes for Ju-Hyeok. Ju-Hyeok feels sorry for their bank manager who has to take all the blame for what happened.

The next day, he goes to head office and tells them what he knows. He says that as a loan specialist, it’s his fault for not discovering the errors in the paperwork. “I’ll accept any penalties for that. But I cannot agree that I was an accomplice in this plot,” Ju-Hyeok says. The head office finds it hard to believe. After the investigation, the bank manager is penalized, while Ju-Hyeok gets dismissed. 

While Wu-jin’s mother is at a store, she sees the strange man from the train station. She gives him a nice smile and then nods her head. That night, Ju-Hyeok goes to the station to meet the strange man. Ju-Hyeok thinks he’s unlucky and is being punished for what he did. The strange man looks at him and says Ju-Hyeok still has a chance. “A chance to restore everything. Today is the day,” the old man says. Ju-Hyeok says he doesn’t want to do it again. He says he’s afraid and is tired of living shamelessly.

Everyone is worried that they haven’t heard from Ju-Hyeok yet. They try contacting him, but Ju-Hyeok is not answering his phone. Wu-jin keeps on calling him and even looks for him. But since she doesn’t know where to find him, she goes home to check on her mom. She asks her mom to let her go even if it’s already late because she has an important thing to do. Her mom hands her a 500 won coin printed in 2006. “You’ll need it more than I do,” her mother says. “There comes a moment when you want to go back. You won’t know where you’ll be heading, and it might not turn out as you wish, but it’s a rare opportunity,” she adds. She hugs Wu-jin tight and tells her to hurry because they are running out of time.

Wu-jin goes to the beach where they had their first date and sees Ju-Hyeok walking toward the water. She tells Ju-Hyeok that it’s not too late for him; he can just look for another job and start again. Ju-Hyeok says he made life hard for Wu-jin once again. He tells her to leave while she still can, but Wu-jin says she doesn’t want to leave alone. Ju-Hyeok gets angry and pushes Wu-jin away when she grabs him by the hand. “If that’s what you want, I’m going to change our fate myself. Because chances don’t come by easily,” Wu-jin says. She drives her car to the mysterious tollgate.

After Wu-jin leaves, Ju-Hyeok looks up and sees the moon. He realizes Wu-jin wants to go back to the past to change things. Wu-jin flips the 500 won coin into the machine at the tollgate. The barrier is already going down when Ju-Hyeok arrives, so he drives as fast as possible and manages to pass through. He looks at Wu-jin, then it happens again. They scream as their cars move so fast that they disappear. When they open their eyes, they are both back to 2006.

Our Thoughts

We are somewhat confused about what is happening. When they go back in time, do they create a different timeline? Or is there only one timeline for when they can live over again? Because how come Wu-jin’s mother knows Ju-Hyeok? How come she knows the strange man? And if she knows about the mysterious tollgate, why didn’t she go back in time to see her husband again? Maybe she’s worried about Wu-jin, but if she goes back in time, Wu-jin wouldn’t know it.

They are both back in 2006. What will happen? This is repetitive. They can never get it right. Sometimes they just have to live with the results of their decisions. Ju-Hyeok keeps on doing it, but we doubt he’ll ever get it right. He keeps on changing his mind, affecting everyone around him. It would be nice to see what would happen if only Wu-jin returned.