To me, one of the things that was noticeable in this episode was Director Shin’s comparison of the physical intimacy. For expediency, I’ll give you wikipedia’s explanation of physical intimacy.

Physical intimacy is sensual proximity or touching. It is an act or reaction, such as an expression of feelings (including close friendship, platonic love, romantic love or sexual attraction), between people. Examples of physical intimacy include being inside someone’s personal space, holding hands, hugging, kissing, caressing and sexual activity. Physical intimacy can often convey the real meaning or intention of an interaction in a way that accompanying speech simply cannot do. Physical intimacy can be exchanged between any people but as it is often used to communicate positive and intimate feelings, it most often occurs in people who have a preexisting relationship, whether familial, platonic or romantic, with romantic relationships having increased physical intimacy. Several forms of romantic touch have been noted including holding hands, hugging, kissing, cuddling, as well as caressing and massaging. Physical affection is highly correlated with overall relationship and partner satisfaction.

source: wiki

Since this is kdrama, we take it as given that sex isn’t part of the physical intimacy shown. But we were shown holding hands and being inside personal spaces. I’ll walk you through the episode, beginning with the end.

1. SH patting Minha’s pillow

Minha thought she was delirious when she saw SH was standing in her cubicle.

Minha: Professor Yang is that you?
SH: Yes. It’s me. (approaching her) Are you alright? Are the cramps gone?
Minha: (wailing) Professor…
SH: What’s wrong? Why are you crying?
Minha: (wailing louder)
SH: Does it hurt? Are you in pain? Should I call Gwanghyeon?
Minha: No. I’m just so happy. Don’t call anyone.
SH: What?
Minha: (wailing)

He then patted the pillow instead of Minha.

To me, his gesture indicated that he was still vacillating between resistance and capitulation, between keeping her at bay and opening himself up to her. You see, when he first read the group text about Minha’s condition, he chose to ignore it and he continued vacuuming the floor. We weren’t shown how long it took him to change his mind. But eventually, he decided to skip the band practice to go to her side. To us, Flower Gardeners, his action reminded us of JW who hesitated outside the ER when Jang had her allergic reaction. SH was concerned enough about Minha’s condition to see her despite knowing that his visit would cause a stir.

But SH’s ambivalence towards Minha was on display when he patted her pillow instead of her head. He didn’t want to give her the impression that his presence signaled the start of a romantic relationship. He was still reluctant to encourage her affections for him. However, he couldn’t help himself. He yielded to his desire to comfort her.

Thus, in SH’s case, physical intimacy was a compromise. He wanted to soothe Minha but he didn’t dare stroke her head, and the pillow ended up as a proxy for Minha. I thought it was fitting because Minha used the teddy bear as proxy for him.

2. JW holding Rosa’s hand

Here’s the heart-to-heart conversation from Netflix:

JW: Mom. After you get discharged tomorrow, make sure you go for walks often and start exercising regularly.
Rosa: Okay. I will.
JW: And go out for nice meals with Mr. Ju often.
Rosa: Nothing’s better than home-cooked meals.

Noteworthy: I found it curious that JW didn’t envision Dir. Ju as his mom’s caregiver. I would have thought it was obvious who Songhwa was referring to when she said that she’d given patient care instruction to both Rosa and her “caregiver.” JW corrected Songhwa, saying that his mom had no caregiver. Songhwa said matter-of-factly that his mom actually had one. “His name is Ju Jong-su,” she said.

JW’s remark here, coupled with his odd expression when he saw Mr. Ju take Rosa’s hand in his, suggested that he had no clue how close those two people were.

To continue with the mom-and-son conversation…

JW: Mom. I want you to be selfish. Stop worrying about your children. And don’t worry about falling ill when you’re older. Only think about yourself from now on. And if later on…even if you are diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, don’t worry. Even if you don’t recognize us, we’ll recognize you every single day and tell you that you’re our mom, every single day.

JW: Mom. So live every day to the fullest. I want you to live like that, Mom.
Rosa: (nodding) Jeongwon. I want to get back to it.
JW: What?
Rosa: Can you buy it for me?

My Comments:

a. As mentioned in the comment section in the Open Thread, we think that Rosa wanted JW to buy her an electric keyboard. She wanted to play music again.

b. To be honest, I wasn’t moved by this Rosa actress’ tears anymore after “Start Up.” I wasn’t moved either by Yoo YoonSeok’s delivery of his lines because I’ve a skeptical view of his character’s maturity in matters of the heart after his continued relationship with Jang.

c. Holding Rosa’s hand was JW’s way of communicating his earnest wish and support for Rosa’s happiness. He wanted Rosa to listen to him, and be comforted by his reassurance of his constant presence by her side. He was being a filial son.

3. JWan and IJ wrestling each other

JWan: What are you doing?
IJ: I’m eating a cookie.
JWan: That’s mine! What? It’s my only joy and happiness.
IJ: Same here! This is my only joy and happiness. Getting on your nerves.

They started pulling each other’s hair. In the foreground, JW ignored them both. This kind of skinship demonstrated their close relationship. They could fight and remain friends.

4. SeonBin and Seokmin clowning around

This is how playful couples  when they’re together.

They were worried for their Songhwa but after seeing that Songhwa was okay, they began flirting with each other. Notable: Seokmin instigated the whole thing by playfully tapping her from behind. SeonBin retaliated by elbowing him. Then he checked that nobody was around to see them as they crossed a corridor.

5. Jang and JW holding hands

This is NOT how normal couples act – especially after 15 months of dating.

a. Jang knocked on the door. Dir Ju said, “Who’s that? How courteous.” Then, she entered so timidly into the room, then bowed deferentially to Rosa. I never thought Meghan Markle could be out-faked, but this character is giving her a run for her money.

pic

In my bitchy opinion, Jang should have inquired after Rosa since that was the reason for her surprised visit. But she lapped up the attention given to her, giving me the Meghan Markle vibes.

b. JW’s unmistakable lack of excitement when he saw her. His mom was more excited that he was.

He was surprised to see her there. But judging from his facial expression, I wouldn’t be surprised if other things were running in his head…like, Jang again kept something from him. He was happy that she was back, but it must have bothered him that she wasn’t forthcoming about her schedule.

c. That’s why they stood awkwardly apart while waiting for the elevator. The contrast between this scene and the scene in Episode 1 when they hugged in front of the ER exit was glaring. Unlike when they stood in front of the ER exit, there was nobody around them here, yet he didn’t touch her.

d. It doesn’t take a relationship expert to realize their conversation is a red flag.

JW: When did you get back?
Jang: In the morning.
JW: You should’ve called me.

There. Her habit of hiding things from him vexed him. She had all day to call him at work, but she didn’t.

Jang: I wanted to surprise you.

This is a lame excuse. If she was going to surprise him, she could have prepared something more. Like, she could’ve gotten him food before meeting him. (She’s the real piggy in this drama. She needs to be constantly fed, and she doesn’t buy anybody food.)

JW: Is your mother okay?
Jang: Yes. She’s much better now, so I brought her to Seoul. I figured it’d be better for her to stay with me.
JW: I see.

Note: JW actually just said, “Ohhhh,” but literally speaking, he must have noticed that Jang was avoiding eye contact with him. This is a sign of Jang lying to him.

Also, she didn’t make sense. If her mother’s situation was “better,” then why would she need to bring her back to Seoul with her.

Note: Jang didn’t like JW being inquisitive about her affairs, so she counterattacked. Remember now, I pointed out that she’d shown us how good she was at this passive-aggressive behavior. Whenever Minha commented innocently on her appearance, she retaliated with put-downs full of spite.

Jang: Professor, why didn’t you tell me about your mother’s surgery?

She intentionally changed topic to stop JW questioning her further. She didn’t think he had any right to sulk about her furtiveness when he himself didn’t tell her about his mom’s illness.

JW: I know you have a lot going on. I didn’t want to add to your stress.

There’s a difference here. JW withheld the truth from her about his mother’s health condition out of consideration for Jang. He wanted to tell her because he needed her moral support. The truth didn’t bother him. However, he didn’t want to add to her stress. In contrast, Jang withheld the truth from him about her mother’s situation out of SHAME. Unlike JW, she didn’t want to tell him because the truth embarrassed her. She wanted to keep her secret as long as possible from him. Do you get see the difference?

JW: By the way, how did you find out?
Jang: I stopped by the hospital to go over some patient charts, and happened to hear about it. (snorting) Actually, everyone at the hospital knows.
JW: Right, I’m sure.

My impression here is that she resented that she was the last one to know about it. What gave her away was her pouty face and her continued avoidance of eye contact. If she had been looking at him and smiling while she said this, then that would indicate that she didn’t mind.

e. I thought that the deities were again interfering in their lovey-dovey moment when the elevator stopped but nobody got on.

f. In the elevator, they held hands. He asked her again if she was really okay. She nodded. He asked her out to dinner since he only had one appointment left. She said, “Next time. I have to hurry home.”

To me, their act of holding hands belied their lack of real intimacy.

This is like putting “lipstick on a pig.” You know that expression, “Even if you may put lipstick on a pig, it’s still a pig.” Meaning, no matter how hard the writer and director pass off WG’s holding hands (and stolen kisses) as romantic, they cannot convince us to overlook the fundamental flaws of this couple. They have no shared values in life, and they don’t even communicate with each other. Their relationship is superficial.

Consider their phone conversation in the beginning of the episode.

JW: Hey, are you all right? I was so worried.
Jang: I’m sorry, Professor. I’ve been all over the place. I’m fine though. Have you had your lunch yet?

lol. As I mentioned earlier, she didn’t really care about him eating lunch. She just wanted to change topic.

JW: Hold on, GU. Don’t hang up.

What a weird thing to say! Why would he worry that she would hang up in the middle of the call? To me, he sensed that she wanted to sidestep the next part of their conversation.

JW: I’m relieved now that I’m hearing your voice. You’re really okay, right?
Jang: Yes, I’m fine. My mom wasn’t doing so well, but she’s okay now.

lol. There are only two ways to understand this. Either she’s lying and trying to sound upbeat to hide the seriousness of her mother’s case or she’s a callous wretch. Her mother’s injuries were so severe that she had to undergo surgery, yet she was downplaying it.

JW: What’s wrong with her? Bring her to Yulje.
Jang: Oh…She tripped and fell and hurt herself pretty badly. She has a broken rib and a few other fractures.
JW: How did she fall that she ended up with a broken rib? And where are the other fractures?

Eyerolling here. This is the Writer Lee’s attempt at REHABILITATING this Jang character. As many of the FGers, like @miracle23 and @nrllee, have pointed out several times, if Jang witnessed physical abuse growing up, how come she couldn’t recognize the two TEXTBOOK cases of a father beating up his child in Season 1, and a husband beating up his wife in this season? Writer’s Lee’s logical fallacy is evident here. She’s appealing to our emotions, to our pity. She attempted to depict Jang as deserving of a happy ending with JW merely because she’s a daughter of a battered woman. I believe I told y’all about this: orphans, rape victims, and victims of abuse are considered “untouchables” in kdramas. They’re holier than saints.

JW: Which hospital in Gwangju? Who’s the professor there? Should I come now?
Jang: It’s the biggest hospital in Gwangju, and the professor in charge is very thorough. Besides, you can’t come all the way here. You’re fully booked with surgeries.
JW: (sighing) Did you eat?

He sighed because he knew that Jang had blocked him again. Subtly but effectively, she rebuffed his offer to help. She didn’t want him involved in her affair. That’s why he switched the topic to food. lol. When they have nothing more to communicate, their default neutral topic is food.

Jang: Yes, I had some food here with my mom.
JW: Did you sleep there? At the hospital?
Jang: Yes, my brother and I are taking turns. Professor…
JW: Mmm?
Jang: I may not be able to call you often. I probably won’t be able to text you back right away too.
JW: It’s okay. I got to hear your voice today, so its all good. I’m fine so don’t worry about me. Just take good care of your mom.
Jang: Okay. I’m sorry.
JW: You don’t have to be. It must be very stressful. I’m sorry there isn’t anything I can do. GU, are you okay with me texting you? You don’t need to text me back. I’ll stop if you find it distracting. I’ll be totally fine so feel free to tell me if it bothers you.
Jang: You can text me anytime. I like it because it helps me escape reality even for just a moment.

Is this what their relationship all boils down to for her? An escape from reality? I thought JW sounded pathetic when he asked permission to text her once a day.

JW: All right. I won’t text you too often. Just once a day. GU. You’re really okay, right?
Jang: (lying) Yes. I’m fine. Everything’s good. Professor, my mom’s looking for me. I’ll call you back later.
JW: Okay.

This is how dysfunctional couples behave.

6. Songhwa and IJ avoiding each other

Unless ShinLee change the endgame to pander to the IkSong fangirls, this is not how normal couples act either.

IJ entered her room and saw her crying. He asked her, “What’s wrong? Did something happen?” And she told him that her mother has Parkinson’s disease. Neither of them moved to bridge the space between them. While it’s possible that IJ didn’t know how to comfort Songhwa, I think he stood still because he was waiting for Songhwa to move first. I think that after their camping trip, he was resigned to the fact that Songhwa had friendzoned him.

After a brief moment, IJ asked, “Shouldn’t you go home?”

Songhwa: (nodding) Yes. I’m going to head out now.
IJ: (pausing) Do you want a ride?
Songhwa: (pausing even longer) Yes, please.

Her pause was revealing. It didn’t make sense for her to hesitate because she was obviously in no condition to drive by herself. Her pause indicated that she was weighing her words before saying yes. Like SH who patted the pillow instead of Minha’s head, Songhwa’s hesitation indicated her ambivalence toward IJ. She considered him as a friend, and didn’t want him to get the wrong impression.

IJ: Get changed and come down. I’ll be out front.
Songhwa: Mmm.

She stood up and walk to her desk. She stopped beside IJ and visibly struggled to compose herself. Frankly, I was waiting for her to bridge the gap and lean her head on his shoulder. But she soothed herself.

She bit her lips to stop herself from crying. She was the opposite of Minha who gave in to her tears.

If I were IkJun, I would have taken this as a sign that she didn’t need me to hold her.

If her hesitation earlier was revealing, then her self-control was even more striking.

Both of them were mindful of each other’s personal space. Although she was visibly distressed, IJ didn’t want to touch her, hug her or pat her on the back. As I said, I think he was waiting for her to make the first move toward him. But since she chose to calm herself, IJ understood that she didn’t need him to comfort her. Despite their “preexisting” platonic relationship, she literally didn’t want to lean on him for physical or emotional support.

In my opinion, she avoided any physical contact with him because it could be misconstrued. Songhwa was keeping to her boundary, and IJ respected it.

Of course, ShinLee may decide to alter the endgame and foist another flashback/montage upon us, like they did in S1:Ep12.

Moreover, their interaction in this scene is conspicuously different from SH and Minha’s interaction in the ER. As I noted, despite SH’s initial shyness at touching Minha, he knew he needed to calm her down. He acted on instinct, while IJ left the room.

As for Minha, she knew her wailing disconcerted SH, but she unleashed more tears because she wanted SH to comfort her. She was unlike Songhwa who forced herself to calm down because she didn’t want to turn to IJ.

7. Songhwa patting JW

Songhwa: Have you noticed her becoming more forgetful than usual as of late or seen her suddenly flop down as her legs gave out?
JW: Come to think of it, she has been more forgetful than usual. More recently, she totally forgot about her favorite niece’s wedding. And I have noticed her unsteady gait.
Songhwa: She probably fell last night because her legs gave out.

She then recommended checking her in and explained the procedures.

JW: All right. Thanks. You must have appointments. Go, hurry.
Songhwa: I start late today. Don’t worry. I’ll go say bye to your mother.
JW: Okay.
Songhwa: (reading his facial expression) It’s okay. Based on the CT scan, it’s not serious. Even if she needs surgery, she’ll recover quickly if the surgery goes well.
JW: How could I not know? I’m her son! I visited her every weekend. I saw it but still didn’t know. Am I really a doctor? Her doctor son is useless.
Songhwa: (comforting him) Hey, it happens. Most people would blame old age. No one would suspect an illness first.

She touched his arm.

Songhwa: It’s okay.

Comments:

a. Songhwa read his mood very well. She knew he was beating himself up over this, and she comforted him with words. She wasn’t like JW who couldn’t read Jang’s emotions so he kept on asking if she was okay.

b. The pat on his arm might appear inconsequential to others. But considering that IJ didn’t even touch her when she was holding back her tears for her mother, I thought this discreet gesture was Songhwa’s style. She wouldn’t go for overboard. But I took this as a sign that she cared for him. She couldn’t resist touching him to reassure him.

c. I like that he opened up to her. At first, he didn’t want to impose on her time because he knew that her days were busy. Once she reassured him that she had a late start, he voiced his self-recrimination.

d. I also like that Songhwa didn’t leave him to explain Rosa’s illness to her. She made herself available to talk with Rosa and allay her fears, although JW could have easily explained the illness himself.

8. Last but not the least, Rosa and Dir Ju holding hands

They’ve been friends for a long time so holding her hand came naturally to him when he wanted to comfort her.

So there you have it: eight ways that physical intimacy was shown (or not shown) in this drama.