Summary
Episode 3 is all about communication and putting away prejudices before understanding something. The chemistry between characters drives the stories and embraces us with a warm atmosphere
This recap of Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha season 1 episode 3 contains spoilers.
This episode starts with the sound of Gongjin. From the sound of waves and sailing boats, a gentle guitar weeps, the sound of a printed transaction together with a happy customer, the sound of a police car going for patrols, the sound of a grilled chicken, the sound of a stretch, the yelling sound of the group of children who practice taekwondo, the chuckles of the wind bells, the joy of seeing a baby on her mother’s wombs, the sound of the spinning wheels for the hedgehogs, and the sound of Doo-sik who is calling out Hye-jin’s name alongside rushed footsteps to pick her delivery packages from overseas.
Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha season 1 episode 3 recap
Yup, our perfectionist Hye-jin is busy dressing for the engagement ceremony of her university colleagues in Seoul. Since pride and prejudices go hand in hand in Yoon Hye-jin’s world, she impulsively spends her budget on overseas clothes. Doo-sik, who has been coming back for packages to packages, asks her about all the spending. While Hye-jin is all about styles, Doo-sik finds clothes for its convenience. She later informs Doo-sik that she’s going to Seoul on the weekend. To add something, he secretly praises her beauty saying that a face like hers is rare in Gongjin. She unintendedly throws unnecessary words to Doo-sik by comparing his face to a spit gum in Seoul. Well, our Doo-sik remains unbothered. But, these are the start of everything for today’s episode: to humble the tongue of Yoon Hye-jin.
The next day, Hye-jin is surprised to see Doo-sik, who dresses accordingly and her three haelmonis (grandmas) welcomes her in front of her house. Doo-sik asks her to gives rides to the three elder women who want to visit their family in Seoul. Without room for further negotiation, Hye-jin forcefully accepts his favor. Keep in mind that Hye-jin dislikes meddling in other people’s business nor getting caught up in one. On their way to Seoul, one of the grandmas brings potato cakes for the journey, Hye-jin refuses to eat it while Doo-sik unwantedly puts the cake in her mouth. Later, the entire potato cakes shatter the car due to the dangerous drivers that almost cause an accident for them. Hye-jin rises her bar and tries to catch the car, she later asks the driver to be more responsible for his driving but gets mocked for being a woman instead, but our haelmonis is coming to the rescue and spitting fire to his face, leaving everyone speechless.
Her struggles continue as Hye-jin has to deal with stopping at numerous rest stop areas due to the three grandma weak blenders. Later, Doo-sik and the grandmas enjoy singing in the car, Hye-jin asks them to stop because she prefers to drive quietly. “You’re such a party pooper,” Doo-sik nags. One of the grandmas asks about Hye-jin’s background, from her hometown to her ancestors, and her parents. Everyone suddenly goes silent after Hye-jin tells them that her mother has passed away when she was still a child. Doo-sik looks at her quietly.
After dropping Doo-sik at the front of the urology center, Hye-jin attends the engagement ceremony only to hear them mock her by bragging about their luxurious life and success stories. They also shade her about being late due to being a hometown girl. While they try to provoke her while Hye-jin, who is known for her shabby words, starts to backfire them about growing clinics with an amazing view and exposure in rural areas. She also disses them for being narrow-minded since the rural area is steadily growing and being the only dentist in town is such a privilege for her. And just like that, she successfully puts them on silent mode. Well isn’t it ironic how Hye-jin spends the amount of time and money for a party that only brings her down and makes her uncomfortable?
On her way back to the car, she is caught staring at the heartfelt moment of a mother and daughter who bid their farewell upon her marriages, until Doo-sik calls her out which triggers her panic since she’s worried what her colleagues will think of her if they see her together. Again, pride and prejudices go hand-in-hand with Hye-jin. In the car, Doo-sik offers to take turns driving and touch her car desk, Hye-jin lightly punches her hand and refuses to take turns. Hye-jin goes on blabbering how she does not like people who cross the line and touch her belongings. So far, Doo-sik always seems to confront her boundaries. She later talks about her craving to drink a bottle of wine near the Hanyang river or visiting a great restaurant that serves one of the tastiest pasta in Seoul. Meanwhile, Doo-sik prefers eating marinated crabs and drinking by the shores. Yep, these two are living worlds apart but collide.
After a long ride, Hye-jin pampers herself. She receives a notification on her colleague’s group chat which turns out to be her photo with Doo-sik is being exposed. Feeling anxious about the prejudices that come her way, she immediately types to clarify that he is not her boyfriend and they just happened to meet each other. Before she clicks enter, the group chat suddenly fills with positive feedback saying Doo-sik is cute and they look good together, which later makes her delete her words and send that she’s not interested but he keeps on chasing her anyway. Oh, my Hye-jin. Well, the famous-group-chat-cute-guy is in the middle of making candles and reminiscing the time where Hye-jin carefully lowers his car seats so he can sleep comfortably. But later, we also get a glimpse of how Doo-sik is having trouble sleeping and consumes pills to put him at ease.
The next day, Ms. Yeo and Doo-sik causing a fuss in the town hall due to the anonymous people who keep on throwing trash. They demand to install a camera to track down and monitor the area, also, the parks ignite at the dental clinic as Mi-jeon is crushing with their first-ever patient, who happens to be a police in Gongjin. One day, Doo-sik brings Gam-ri to the Hye-jin’s dental clinic after noticing how she has experienced trouble eating due to her teeth. After conducting an examination, Hye-jin offers to give her an implant to help her condition. Gam-ri refuses due to asking Gam-ri whether she ran out of money, which offends her. After failing to persuade her and hearing Gam-ri endlessly brag about her successful son and grandaughters, Hye-jin asks her to leave.
Gam-ri offendedly walks herself out of the clinic. Doo-sik comes back to her office and nags her about how she should have put the words in a good way. Hye-jin finds it too bothersome, besides she will not conducts anything without her patient’s consent. Doo-sik still emphasizing the way she communicates and she argues that Gam-ri is not her grandmother. Doo-sik is thrown off in disappointment by her words. Once again, their world contradicts one another. Hye-jin finds Doo-sik too nosy, while he finds her too self-centered. But the main problem is, they just barely know each other to fully understand each other’s shoes.
At home, Hye-jin can’t seem to stay still because Doo-sik keeps on mistaking her. Mi-seon notices how her besties have never been so warmed up by someone before since she begins to rants about him. Speaking of the devil, Doo-sik calls her late at night to meet. Doo-sik asks for a favor to conduct Gam-ri’s treatment and lies about certain things to persuade her since he will pay for her treatment instead. He also shares a story about how Gam-ri really loves squids, but even though she’s been working with squids for ages, she hasn’t eaten them for years. Hye-jin refuses to do it because it violates the values of a doctor and she will not change her decision out of pity. Doo-sik negotiates about paying the treatment and explaining Gam-ri is the most selfless person he knows, that’s why it’s burdensome for her. Hye-jin, on the other side, thinks that what Gam-ri did is selfish, which leaves Doo-sik bewildered.
The two get into another argument. Hye-jin gets emotional. She argues that the most important thing a parent can do for their family is to take care of themselves and stay healthy. She leaves afterward. Through the silence, Doo-sik remembers the day where she finds Hye-jin staring at a couple of mother and daughter who are going separate ways after her marriage and how she shallowly tells about her mother has passed away. Meanwhile, at home, Hye-jin reminisces back to her youthful days where she is staring at the sundae shops she used to enjoy with her mother. She later buys it with her money. After coming home, she excitedly looks for her to enjoy sundaes together only to find her mother is throwing up in the toilet.
After getting splashed by water on his first attempt at persuading Gam-ri, Doo-sik comes to Gam-ri’s house again. This time he did not bring any money, but Hye-jin’s words. Doo-sik initiates to help wash the laundry. The wind of Gongjin blows and the sound of the bells fills the day. “I really love the bells you hang.” Gam-ri smiles. Doo-sik later tells Gam-ri that the best thing that parents do for their children is to stay healthy. The words seem to affect her. Later, Gam-ri calls her busy son, “I’m very busy but I can spare minutes to talk.” It’s is quite saddening and relatable at the same time how we only spend minutes to talks to our parents as we grow older. Later, he asks Gam-ri about her teeth condition because Doo-sik informs her. Gam-ri excitedly asks for her son’s opinion on getting an implant and unfortunately, he asks to delay her treatment due to the financial situation. Gam-ri has no option but to understand.
On the other side, Hye-jin is out for lunch with Mi-seon with squids and other seafood dishes. She remembers that Gam-ri really loves squids but hasn’t got a chance to eat them for years. She later eats in discomfort after realizing how the squids and other dishes are too hard to chew especially for elders. Hye-jin makes up her mind and tries to persuade Gam-ri to receive her implant. Upon arriving in front of Gam-ri’s house, she hesitates, but Gam-ri notices her first and asks her to stay for dinner. She serves her with a potato dough soup, Hye-jin surprisingly finds the soup delicious. Gam-ri later plays her favorite records. She begins to excitingly blabber about her father who served the country during the war, the origin of her name that comes from the national flag, and of course, her golden boy Doo-sik. This scene also explains why Gam-ri asks Hye-jin about her ancestor and the importance of knowing them at the car.
Later, Hye-jin asks Gam-ri to come again to her clinic. She emphasizes how it feels to have a toothache, it’s hidden but greatly painful, not even your own children will understand it. Gam-ri empathizes with her words, especially after her son offers her to delay her treatment due to her granddaughter’s tuition fee. For the first time, Hye-jin puts aside her pride and offers a discount for her treatment but asks her to keep it a secret. Gam-ri feels burdened, but Hye-jin sincerely tells her how she wants her to enjoy squid again since it is her favorite food, just like how her mother loves sundae. “Doo-sik must have said something to you, right. He’s kindhearted but too nosy,” Gam-ri mumbles. Hye-jin smiles and agrees to it.
As the wind blows, the chuckling sounds of the bells ringing fill the night. “Doo-sik hung it for me,” Gam-ri said. After watching her phone calls with her son, I understand how the bells bring comfort to her silent days. That’s probably why she’s fond of it and he hangs it so she doesn’t have to feel lonely.
The next day, Gam-ri willingly comes to the dental clinic while bringing all the money she has earned for the love of her squids. “After working like a dog for years, don’t you think I deserve to enjoy squids?” She declares. Hye-jin smiles and warns her to enjoy it once a week. On the other side, Doo-sik once again is busy dealing with the divorcee couple that endlessly bickers, but Ms. Yeo still gives the cucumber kimchi that her ex-husband craves after spending their son’s birthday together. Well, from the tense Hye-jin and Gam-ri encounters to Ms. Yeo and her ex-husband, good food brings people together.
Suddenly Doo-sik’s phone rings, Gam-ri asks him to bring porridge. Doo-sik rushes her way to her beloved grandma anxiously, turns out she successfully put her implant in leaving Doo-sik in surprise. Gam-ri tells her that Hye-jin visited her yesterday and offered her a discount so she can receive her treatment right away. She feels relieves that her prejudices upon Hye-jin are wrong; she used to think that Hye-jin is a sly fox. “On the outside, she’s as cold as ice. But she actually got a soft heart. She must have gone through a lot,” she explains. Well, Doo-sik is also surprised by the facts over Hye-jin visiting Gam-ri. Yup. How you communicate things is very important and everyone has reasonings for each of their choices.
The night has come at Gongjin. While Hye-jin washes her hair. the electricity went off. At the same time, Doo-sik arrives in front of her house. He lights a candle to light the room and checks the fuse box for her. After calling the electricity department, he offers to accompany her for a while. She candidly offers him ice cream and just like that, both of them enjoy their ice cream in an awkward atmosphere. Doo-sik is bewildered by Bo-ra’s hedgehog and teases her that they look similar. Hye-jin mumbles how he does not accept Bo-ra’s favors on taking care of her hedgehog. “I don’t take things that are alive.” He said oddly.
Doo-sik apologizes to her for misjudging her when he barely knows her. He also expresses his gratitude for successfully persuading Gam-ri on treating her teeth. Of course, this time.. Hye-jin is the one who is bewildered. Doo-sik later pulls a tissue and wraps it on Hye-jin tiny hands, because her ice creams start to melt. After that, he thank her for the ice creams and leaves. Not even five minutes after her depature, Hye-jin receives a text from Doo-sik. He asks her to check her fuse box. She is astonished after finding out that the other pair of her favorite heels are inside. She rushes outside and calls Doo-sik to asks him where do he finds it. Well, little did she knows that the shoes literally come to him by the shore while he goes fishing and he meticulously dries it.
As she put on her shoes, the light turns on. Her dazzling smiles fill the silent night as Doo-sik rides his bike while chuckles with a smile on his face.
You can stream Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha episode 3 right now on Netflix.
