'Record of Youth' Episode 14 promo hints at Jeong-ah parting ways with Hye-jun because of a scandal
The 'Record of Youth' Episode 14 end credit promo hints at a heartbreaking turn for Hye-jun and Jeong-ah's relationship after all the missed messages and unanswered phone calls. Since the time that Hye-jun's career took off, Jeong-ah and he have not had quality time to spend together and the essence of their comfortable but warm relationship that we had loved about the show in the initial days has vanished into thin air. The understanding that the two of them had is rooted in honest conversations between the two of them. Be it when she had invited him over to her place, or when she had confessed about being a child to divorced parents, there was understanding and support from Hye-jun that melted hearts.
We are talking of Hye-jun's considerate actions like letting Jeong-ah get drenched in the rain with him around so that the next time she is alone on a rainy day, she is reminded of a good day instead of the usual weary feeling that she experiences of being alone in the world. So with none of these to keep them close to each other, and the honesty in their relationship disappearing in the face of Hye-jun's stardom, things have not been as strong as Hye-jun or Jeong-ah had thought.
It is surprising how things have changed in the span of time it took for Hye-jun to become successful and rise to the top. He continues to be bothered by scandals every day that Min-jae has slowly learned to deal with, but the biggest of them has not been unresolved and it happens to be his connection to designer Charlie Jung who recently died by suicide. While a few fans have expressed that the show might be cashing in by using LGBTQIA+ tropes, the fact that the final message to Hye-jun has not been revealed as of now gives us hope that this is probably not the case. However, the barrage of scandals that surrounds Hye-jun has only increased and the man who started it all, Lee Tae-su, turns up at Hye-jun's door to pull him out of this mess and in return, he hopes to manage Hye-jun again. He wants a bit of the superstardom that Hye-jun has been enjoying and he is doing everything possible to get back on good terms with Hye-jun.
Meanwhile, the reporter who has been on the back of Hye-jun since the beginning after getting a tip about how Hye-jun betrayed his former manager Tae-su is now sniffing around Jeong-ah. In fact, it seems as if she also meets Jeong-ah and tells her how her relationship with Hye-jun could be perceived and hinder Hye-jun's career. Considering how Jeong-ah is also a fan of Hye-jun, she might not want to be an obstacle to his career because we hear her tell Hye-jun that she doesn't want to be his emotional outlet anymore.
This seems to come right after a tough day that he might be having as details about the last call made by Charlie Jung are revealed by the media. His brother, who was also sued for defamation after he replied to a troll with a hateful comment is not helping Hye-jun either. What will he do now?
'Record of Youth' originally airs on tvN on Mondays and Tuesdays in South Korea and can be streamed on Netflix in the US.