Heartbeat (2023) K Drama Episode 14

Episode 14 of Heartbeat begins with Woo-hyeol getting trapped in Man-hwi’s secret house. Someone knocks on the door and when Man-hwi goes to check he’s attacked by Dong-seop, Rose and Sang-hae. Rose goes downstairs to help Woo-hyeol while the other two hold off Man-hwi. She uses her powers to break open the cells and everybody escapes. Woo-hyeol helps In-hae’s father, Joo Dong-il, without realising who he is.

Outside, Man-hwi is gaining the upper hand over the other two vampires but Woo-hyeol fights him off. Man-hwi escapes and Woo-hyeol grows weak as his wounds don’t heal. Dong-il approaches him and introduces himself. Woo-hyeol is ecstatic and tells him to come to the mansion. Later, Do-sik arrives at the house but can’t get in touch with Man-hwi. He goes to the basement and sees the empty cells.

On the way back home, the others tell Woo-hyeol how Rose sensed something was off while on her delivery route and brought help to investigate. When they reach the mansion, Dong-il implores Woo-hyeol to not tell In-hae the truth since she would worry. They go inside and she is shocked to see him. Woo-hyeol leaves them to talk alone. Unaware of the truth, In-hae gets angry with her father for abandoning her and tells him to leave. Woo-hyeol counsels In-hae to forgive him but she can’t.

Meanwhile, Rose finds out that Woo-hyeol is dying and is distraught. Ko Yang-man turns up and tells them all to respect Woo-hyeol’s decision and protect him till the end. As for Dong-il, Woo-hyeol sets him up in one of the mansion’s rooms. He convinces Dong-il that In-hae will change her mind. They talk about Woo-hyeol’s failure to become human but he claims he found something even more precious.

Do-sik is frustrated. When Man-hwi finally calls, he tells him to focus on getting Woo-hyeol’s blood.

In the morning, Woo-hyeol advises Dong-il to clear up any misunderstandings with In-hae. Dong-il then narrates how Man-hwi made him an offer for the mansion and kidnapped him when he kept refusing. Man-hwi ultimately trapped him in the cell in order to ruin Woo-hyeol’s plan. Dong-il describes thinking about his family the entire time he was captured. In-hae overhears the entire conversation and tears up.

Hae-won tells her lawyer to make a move against In-hae. She also instructs him to restart the redevelopment project in the mansion’s neighbourhood. Do-sik is also shocked when he gets Hae-won’s notice of the investment withdrawal.

In-hae looks for her father but finds his room empty. Just then, Woo-hyeol and Dong-il enter the mansion, having got him a haircut and new clothes. In-hae speaks curtly to them and goes to her room. Dong-il follows her and speaks to her, apologising for his absence. In-hae finally breaks down and admits how much she missed him. Outside the room, Woo-hyeol listens in on their reunion.

Do-sik meets with Hae-won and blames her for acting solely on her emotions. She refuses to back down.

In-hae tells Dong-il about her mother’s death. She shows her father the pocket watch he used to give her and he grows emotional. Outside, Woo-hyeol looks at the tree he put lights on to reassure In-hae that she can love and be loved. He hopes she continues to believe that even when he’s gone.

She comes up from behind and gives him a hug, thanking him for everything. When he hugs her back, In-hae tells him they should turn him human soon. Woo-hyeol uses the scar on his neck as an excuse, saying he wants to remain this way for a while longer so he can protect In-hae. Meanwhile, Gwang-ok and Ki-suk rejoice over the renewed redevelopment project.

In-hae and her father bond over dinner while Woo-hyeol and his friends eat their dinner on the roof. During their conversation, Dong-il suspects something about Woo-hyeol and In-hae but doesn’t say anything.

Do-sik and Man-hwi discuss how to capture Woo-hyeol. Man-hwi agrees to tell him how to capture a half-vampire if Do-sik tells him why he needs it. When In-hae receives an envelope from the court, Sang-hae calls her out. Everybody ends up finding out about Hae-won’s investment withdrawal.

Woo-hyeol calls Hae-won and asks to meet with her. He goes to her house and tells Hae-won to stop. Hae-won makes it clear that she wants him and the mansion and won’t stop trying. Meanwhile, Sang-hae approaches Dong-il and interrogates him about the gold in the basement. But this seems to be the first that Dong-il is hearing about it.

After visiting a lawyer, In-hae gets a call from Do-sik and meets him. Turns out, Do-sik paid what In-hae owed Hae-won. Even after everything, he doesn’t want to see her get kicked out of the house. After all, he still has feelings for her. Later, Hae-won storms into Do-sik’s office and the two argue about him helping In-hae. Hae-won insists she will keep going till she gets what she wants.

While hanging up the laundry, Woo-hyeol grows weak and collapses. In-hae gets to him in time and sees the black marks on his arm. While he sleeps, In-hae asks his friends if this is happening because he needs her blood. Sang-hae tells her to ask Woo-hyeol when he wakes up. While on her own, In-hae decides she’ll give him her blood as soon as he wakes up.

Gwang-ok and Ki-suk are fantasizing about the redevelopment compensation, when Hae-won turns up. She tells them she wants to buy the neighbourhood. Elsewhere, Secretary Ko hands Do-sik a package, which turns out to be a knife made of Hawthorne wood and silver. When Woo-hyeol wakes up, he thinks about everything that happened with In-hae. He seems to make a decision about something.

Later on, In-hae can’t find Woo-hyeol anywhere or even contact him. Dong-seop and Sang-hae arrive and inform her that Woo-hyeol has disappeared. Sang-hae finally reveals that Woo-hyeol is dying. He went to die on his own, to save In-hae. In-hae rushes outside to look for him while Woo-hyeol stands atop a hill.

The Episode Review

To be honest, this is one of the weaker episodes of the K-drama. It does start off strong, with a riveting vampire fight (it’s great to see Rose fight Man-hwi) as well as In-hae’s emotional reunion with her father. Hae-won’s and Do-sik’s respective attempts at achieving their goals also keep things interesting. But overall, episode 14 has quite a slow pace.

There is a lot of emotional strain regarding In-hae and her father as well as amongst Woo-hyeol’s friends about his approaching death. It makes sense to emphasize these beats but in doing so, the story feels a bit dragged out. That said, the story as a whole is still moving in an engaging way. Hae-won and Do-sik are bound to stir up more trouble and meanwhile, Woo-hyeol’s decision to leave does make sense.

Although, it’s not quite like him to disappear without even a goodbye. Hereafter, the story will be on a rickety path. It’s clear that Hae-won will be including the neighbourhood people and I’m not sure if this is the right choice, in terms of the writing. Hopefully, the writing of the last two episodes doesn’t unravel the strong emotional base of this drama.