This week, we get some important reveals regarding our heroine’s past and the reason why she keeps pushing our veterinarian away.
But even after the truth is out in the open, obstacles still stand in their way and won’t be eliminated unless our veterinarian makes some important decisions.
Bunny S. watches Motel California on Viki
Motel California Episodes 5 and 6 Highlights
“Seeing my childhood friends today, why did I feel like I was the only loser?”
During their high school days, Yeon-soo promised not to eat ice cream with anyone else but Kang-hee. So, she is sad to watch him treat Nan-woo to ice cream. But it is a misunderstanding. Yeon-soo went there to buy ice cream for Kang-hee and ran into Nan-woo by coincidence. It also seems Nan-woo is aware Yeon-soo likes someone else, though she has yet to learn it is Kang-hee.
Approaching Kang-hee, Yeon-soo asks whom she is berating. Yet, Kang-hee argues he has changed and takes off, telling Yeon-soo not to follow her. Poor Yeon-soo follows Kang-hee quietly from a distance yet hides away when Kang-hee says she knows he is there. However, Kang-hee didn’t mean any of the words she blurted both when she told Yeon-soo not to follow her or when she claimed their love was over.
Back at the motel, Kang-hee’s childhood friends, including Yeon-seo, throw a welcome party for her. The cozy and heart-warming vibes have Kang-hee reminiscing over their childhood memories while looking at her friends. Hearing about their achievements, Kang-hee feels proud of her friends. But when asked about how she is doing, Kang-hee turns pale and she takes off abruptly.
20 years ago, Kang-hee left the village with big dreams. Yet, sadly, she was thwarted by obstacles and never realized her dreams. Things got better after Kang-hee started working with Seok-kyeong. But her self-confidence has taken a hit already. Ashamed that her friends are doing better than her, Kang-hee resolves to pull off the motel renovation to show everyone what she has got.
[모텔 캘리포니아🏩 5-6회 스페셜 선공개]
강희야 환영해🙌
어느새 훌쩍 커버린 하나읍 친구들#모텔캘리포니아
금토 밤 9시 50분 방송🏩#이세영 #나인우#최민수 #김태형 #최희진#mbcdrama #MBC금토드라마 #MBC #MotelCalifornia pic.twitter.com/HjQMilxljz— MBC DRAMA (@mbcdrama_pre) January 23, 2025
“I have survived in Seoul for 10 years, starting from the bottom.”
Things happen and the construction schedule for the motel is at risk of getting delayed, making Kang-hee nervous, partly because she is worried about the construction and mostly because she wants to head back to Seoul. Hearing about it, Yeon-soo, along with their friends, steps up to help Kang-hee. But rather than feel grateful, Kang-hee gets mad at Yeon-soo for meddling in her business, arguing she can take care of it on her own.
Thankfully, it is all settled, and the construction will proceed smoothly without delay. Having calmed down, Kang-hee realizes she was wrong. It is okay to receive help from friends. They are people who look out for Kang-hee the most and she only needed to thank them for their help, but her pride got the best of her.
However, things turn sour again when Kang-hee spots Yeon-soo together with Nan-woo. Hearing people say Yeon-soo and Nan-woo look good together, Kang-hee gets jealous. Hence, Kang-hee claims she and Seok-kyeong are an item too. (Though unintentionally, Kang-hee is hurting both men through her actions. And even if Seok-kyeong has no qualms about playing Mr. Boyfriend, this is clearly wrong.)
To his credit, Yeon-soo wanted to clear up the misunderstanding and tell the villagers nothing was going on between Nan-woo and him. Yet Nan-woo stopped him. If their parents think they are dating, Nan-woo won’t get nagged to go on dates and Yeon-soo will be free to wait for the woman he likes without getting pressured. At first, it was a win-win situation. But now that Kang-hee is back, things are about to blow up.
Realizing the woman Yeon-soo likes is Kang-hee, Nan-woo encourages Yeon-soo to tell Kang-hee the truth. If he does so, Nan-woo will clear the misunderstanding with the villagers. But things happen and Yeon-soo misses the boat.
— MBC DRAMA (@mbcdrama_pre) January 24, 2025
“That is all I can do because that’s all there is.”
Giving in to her feelings, Kang-hee goes to see Yeon-soo. Why did he help her? Is it because Yeon-soo still likes her? Misinterpreting those words for Kang-hee feeling burdened by his feelings for her and refusing to receive help from him, Yeon-soo asks Kang-hee for some time to forget her before leaving first in a sad state.
Instead of going after him and admitting that she still likes him too, Kang-hee rants about how difficult it is for her that Yeon-soo knows of all her wounds and dark past. And by this point, it is getting difficult to understand Kang-hee. Yeon-soo has been nothing but sweet and supportive of Kang-hee and never exploited any of her weaknesses. Also, Kang-hee’s situation is now more stable. So, what is holding Kang-hee back from getting together with Yeon-soo?
“I hope Yeon-seo’s partner is a cheerful and kind child, loved by both parents in an ordinary family.”
In a flashback, we see Yeon-soo’s grandfather entrust Kang-hee with two wedding rings (that used to belong to Yeon-soo’s grandparents) to hand over to Yeon-soo when he finds the one. Grandpa wants Yeon-soo to be with someone who received much love growing up from both parents. In other words, Grandpa doesn’t approve of Kang-hee as his granddaughter-in-law. Hearing that, Yeon-soo tosses the rings away since he only wants Kang-hee. But even still, Kang-hee can’t be with Yeon-soo because of his mother.
As we come to learn, Kang-hee’s mother had a miscarriage while pregnant with Kang-hee’s younger brother yet they couldn’t reach Chun-pil at this time because he was busy helping Yeon-soo’s mother catch a con artist who tricked her and stole her money. That day, Kang-hee lost her brother, mother, and father all at once. That incident caused a rift in Kang-hee’s relationship with Chun-pil that is left unresolved.
Instead of Chun-pil who didn’t learn from his mistakes and still looks out for Yeon-soo’s mother, Kang-hee wants someone who will always be on her side. So, if Yeon-soo wants to get together with Kang-hee, he should cut off his mother. Though Yeon-soo’s mother is toxic, only caring about herself and extorting money from her son, Yeon-soo can’t bring himself to cut her off. Thus, getting Kang-hee disappointed.
To take a breather, Kang-hee heads briefly to Seoul. But she keeps thinking about Yeon-soo and can’t take her mind off him. Yeon-soo misses her too but lacks the courage to do what is necessary. The next thing we know, Kang-hee is back in the village, suggesting they be only friends and nothing more than that. And Yeon-soo’s reply is a kiss. Normally, getting a kiss signals the beginning of a relationship. But as things stand, our leads might as well call it a mistake and get back to their usual frustrating selves.
Motel California Episodes 5 and 6 Musings
This is supposed to be a romantic story, but we can’t help but think that our leads should resolve their childhood baggage before getting into a relationship. Whether they get together or not comes second. But first, they need to heal from their past traumas. It is undeniable that they are in love, but Yeon-soo and Kang-hee keep hurting each other and this toxic cycle won’t stop before they come to terms with their past.
Watching her mother bleed while being unable to do anything to save her traumatized Kang-hee and made her hate Chun-pil who was busy taking care of another woman while his family was suffering. Growing up, Kang-hee was lucky to have Yeon-soo. But now, she has to stay away from him because of his nasty mother. That woman is shameless enough to claim she won’t accept Kang-hee as her daughter-in-law though she basically ruined Kang-hee’s life!
Aside from his relationship with Kang-hee, Yeon-soo needs to cut his mother off for his sake. That selfish woman only causes trouble for him without an ounce of guilt. Last week, she almost sold off the animal hospital and Yeon-soo had to move out of his house and stay at the motel to stop her and it doesn’t seem she has any plans to stop messing around anytime soon.
As for our second leads, we like them both, especially Nan-woo, who is so far the most decent person in the drama. Also, Seok-kyeong is giving us second lead syndrome with how charming he is. If it were up to us, we would ship Kang-hee and Seok-kyeong together. But Kang-hee’s heart is already settled.
Photos and Videos: MBC Drama
Leave a Reply