Aahana Swrup
Netflix’s South Korean romance drama show, ‘Destined With You,’ follows an unlikely pair’s rocky relationship as they learn to accept their fated destinies together. In a pursuit of ridding himself of a generational curse that manifests as a terminal illness, Jang Shin-yu, a successful lawyer, equips the help of an ordinary civil servant, Lee Hong-jo, the true owner of an age-old spellbook. However, the plan backfires after Shin-yu accidentally puts himself under a love spell that leaves him besotted. Nevertheless, the bickering duo only find themselves inconvenienced by the ordeal as it continues muddling their lives.
In Episode 5, Shin-yu and Hong-jo deal with the aftermath of a monumental realization that they cannot undo the love spell since their destinies cannot be severed. Still, even when the couple tries to run away from their predestinations, they only find themselves getting closer to one another. Let’s see what this new chapter adds to their reluctant romance! SPOILERS AHEAD!
Destined With You Episode 5 Recap
Picking up where the previous episode left off, Shin-yu and Hong-jo stay at the beach til nightfall. Over a commemorative dinner, Hong-jo tells Shin-yu that the beach trip is a tribute to her father, who died when she was young. Afterward, the pair have a conversation on the beach, where Shin-yu brings up the topic of their intertwined fates. Both blame each other for their predicaments until finally agreeing that they will do their best to go against fate, unwilling to end up with each other.
Nevertheless, Shin-yu can’t maintain his distance from Hong-jo on account of the love potion’s influence. As a result, he starts using different opportunities to meet with or call Hong-jo, only to turn around and criticize her for falling for his tests. His contradictory behavior annoys Hong-jo, and he’s equally distressed by them. As such, Shin-yu accepts when his ex-girlfriend, Na-yeon, reaches out to him, trying to surprise him with a marriage proposal.
Shin-yu has complicated feelings for Na-yeon. Although he claims to have broken up with her to spare her the heartbreak of his fatal disease, his attraction toward Hong-jo played a significant part in their breakup. Meanwhile, Hong-jo manages to get closer to her long-time crush, Jae-kyung, who recently became her downstairs neighbor at their quaint two-story house.
Eventually, Jae-kyung invites Hong-jo for a homemade dinner at his house as a small housewarming party after she plants flowers for him in their shared yard. The meal has an awkward start, but the duo begin to hit it off, enjoying each other’s company. However, Shin-yu’s insistent calls crash their conversation. Once Shin-yu realizes that Hong-jo is spending time with another man, he becomes helplessly jealous. His confusing feelings for Hong-jo, which clash with his recent engagement to Na-yeon, weigh down on him, leading him to find solace in a bar.
Destined With You Ending: Do Hong-jo And Shin-yu Kiss?
Following the last episode’s lovesickness, Shin-yu begins to get tired of his uncontrollable feelings for Hong-jo. Despite the complications of his relationship with Na-yeon, Shin-yu considers her to be a stable girlfriend. Considering their social standings, it makes sense for Shin-yu to be with Na-yeon, and perhaps it’s even expected at some level. In contrast, his feelings for Hong-jo are fake and fabricated, not to mention entirely unreciprocated, as far as he can tell.
As such, Shin-yu tries to fight against his intense feelings but often only ends up pestering or criticizing Hong-jo. Yet the more he gets to know the woman, the more he finds himself drawn toward her. In doing so, Shin-yu can’t help but doubt whether or not his feelings for Hong-jo are entirely fake.
Therefore, when Shin-yu realizes Hong-jo is presumably on a date with someone else, it grates at his heart. Even though Shin-yu has never drunk alcohol in his life, due to his previous hereditary ailment, he gets drunk the same night, hoping it will help him not think about Hong-jo. Instead, what happens is that Shin-yu ends up arriving outside Hong-jo’s house at ungodly late hours of the night.
Although at first Hong-jo ignores Shin-yu, playing by their ground rules, she comes down to help him once she realizes what’s happening. While the two talk outside Hong-jo’s house, the woman tries to tell Shin-yu to call his driver back and return to his house. However, Jae-kyung interrupts their interaction. Jae-kyung knows Shin-yu has a girlfriend and confronts him about his unseemly behavior.
In retaliation, Shin-yu maintains that his situation is Hong-jo’s fault. The latter can’t argue against it and agrees to drive Hong-jo back home despite Jae-kyung’s offer to take care of it for her. The interaction finally puts the love triangle between the trio into motion, creating tension between Shin-yu and Jae-kyung. In the end, while driving to Shin-yu’s house, Hong-jo has to pull over by a park after the former gets sick, given his drunken state.
Afterward, the two sit down under the stars for some fresh air. At this time, Hong-jo informs Shin-yu that she will use the Disaster Nullifcation Spell on the 19th, the night of the full moon, in the hopes that it will counteract the effects of Shin-yu’s love spell. Consequently, Shin-yu asks Hong-jo if she’s ever reciprocated his feelings even once since this thing started.
Hong-jo hesitates but asserts that she hasn’t. Her uncertain response prompts Shin-yu to lean in for a kiss under the guise of a newfound “drunken habit.” Funnily enough, rather than stopping him, Hong-jo leans in as well, discrediting her previous statement. The episode ends before the couple actually kiss, leaving it up to speculation until the next episode. Nonetheless, this interaction is bound to change Hong-jo and Shin-yu’s dynamic moving forward.
How Did Hong-jo’s Father Die?
Despite Hong-jo’s assertions that she and Shin-yu should try to outrun their destiny and choose their own future, she unwittingly gets closer to Shin-yu by drunkenly sharing her grief with him during their car ride back from the beach. While half-asleep and half-drunk, Hong-jo tells Shin-yu how her father died on a fishing trip. Hong-jo was getting bullied at school, partly by Na-yeon, and had decided to drop out.
Although Hong-jo expected her father to be mad about it, he only used the opportunity to plan a trip with her to the river. Things took a turn for the worse when two kids nearby fell into the river, leading Hong-jo’s father to jump in after them. Even though he managed to save the kids, Hong-jo’s father died, leaving no dead body for a funeral behind.
Since Hong-jo’s brash decision to drop out of high school led to the trip, Hong-jo blames herself for her father’s death. By sharing such an intimate life story with Shin-yu, Hong-jo forms a connection with him, which leads Shin-yu to question the illegitimacy of his feelings for Hong-jo further.
Read More: Destined with You Episode 4 Recap and Ending, Explained
