Like Flowers in Sand 2023 K Drama Episode 10

Episode 10 of Like Flowers in Sand begins with Yu-gyeon’s voiceover with the young children leaving their houses to go to school together. She says that even though people pitied her for being lonely, she never felt lonely as a child since she had all her friends arounds – Baek-du , Jin-su, Seok-hui and even Mi-ran. 

In the present, Yu-gyeong feels flustered by Baek-du’s sudden confession and is about to give her answer when Baek-du stops her. He feels he is not ready for an answer yet but he didn’t want to have any regrets. He expresses his desire to help her with the investigation.

Meanwhile, Baek-du’s mother drinks with Mrs. Lim while discussing about Du-shik. Mrs. Kim feels concerned about Baek-du as she realises that he must have been very hurt to remember Du-shik after all these years.  She has to be carried home by Baek-du’s father and while all on the way, they agree that adults have made many mistakes. 

Back home, Mr. Kim talks to Baek-du and tells him that back then, he had no choice. He says that there are moments when he doesn’t make right decisions but try to find the best answer in a given solution, and what happened to Du-shik 20 years ago felt like a best answer but maybe it wasn’t a right decision. 

The next-day, Baek-du tries to avoid the townsfolk who are discussing about his sudden outburst regarding Du-shik. Meanwhile, Yu-gyeong is distracted when Hyeon-wook tries to discuss more about the case. She receives a phone call and is told that the used car company sells fake car plates. Through the owner, they might be able to get Choi’s phone number which will allow them to look into his call log for the culprit’s tracks. 

As Seok-hui discusses his suspicions about Baek-du and Yu-gyeong’s affair with Jin-su.  Elsewhere, Baek-du and Yu-gyeong talk about their previous exchange and Yu-gyeong asks him when did he began having feelings for her. Baek-du counts for a long time and declares 30 years.

Yu-gyeong mentions that they’re 32 years old to which Baek-du corrects himself and says for 31 years. They joke amongst themselves about the whole issue and Jin-su witnesses their exchange. To him, they look like the young Baek-du and Du-shik. 

At the Seoul headquarters, Mi-suk receives the call logs from Choi’s phone. Sometime later at the arena, the wrestlers are having their training when the juniors ask Baek-du if he likes the general manager of the team. Baek-du on seeing Yu-gyeong from afar declares that it’s nonsense and the only person he likes is Du-shik. He seems to believe that he is being witty while Yu-gyeong expressions convey the ridiculousness of the whole scene. 

Elsewhere, Seok-hui has again found the lost Snowball. He suspects that someone is purposely unleashing Snowball but doesn’t have an explanation for his suspicion. While Baek-du is accompanying Du-shik home, she asks him why he kept measuring his height on her house’s wall like they used to do as kids.

Baek-du says that it was so he could imagine how much Du-shik would have grown in comparison to him. Yu-gyeong replies that she wants to know the truth about what happened 20 days year and why she had to face such a fate as she did. She finally allows Baek-du to help her with the investigation.

At the same time, Hyeon-wook comes and Baek-du jealously barges into the house asking for a cup of coffee. 

Some time later, Hyeon-wook questions Baek-du’s participation in the investigation. He challenges Baek-du to drink in order to accept him. Baek-du blacks out after 2 glasses even when his makgeolli is mixed with soda. Yu-gyeong takes Baek-du’s place and Hyeon-wook also passes out just when he says that Yu-gyeong likes Baek-du. 

Late at night, when the town is dead silent. An unknown figure unleashes Snowball who runs to the reservoir site and begins digging the ground. The next morning, when Hyeon-wook denies about agreeing to have Baek-du on the team, Yu-gyeong says that he did and as a proof tells him his account password.

Seok-hui brings Snowball back yet again. Snowball’s owner tells Seok-hui that someone heard a dog barking near the reservoir on the day on the accident and it could have been Snowball. It seems the culprit is someone who Snowball would trust enough to not bark at them. 

Seok-hui sees Baek-du and Yu-gyeong leave the house together with Baek-du having “dishevelled hair”. He calls Jin-su and reiterates that Baek-du has gone on an immoral path. Meanwhile, at Mrs. Lim’s restaurant, one of the neighbourhood uncles who is often the leader of the old ssireum group, Park Pil-Du talk about the old days and rumours surrounding Mi-ran’s father. His expression changes when she brings up if he had seen him last on the day but he says that he doesn’t remember since it has been a long time. 

At the office, Yu-gyeong receives the location of Cheol’s device. She signals Baek-du to meet her outside. Jin-su, again, sees their exchange and says, “wow, so it was true”. Seok-hui sees the pair leave together yet again. He meets Jin-su. Jin-su tells Seok-hui that Yu-gyeong is really Du-shik. Seok-hui is relentless and says that she couldn’t be Du-shik because Du-shik was ugly.

To clarify Yu-gyeong’s identity they reach Mi-ran’s cafe where Hyeon-wook, Baek-du, Mi-ran and Yu-gyeong have assembled to discuss the case. Seok-hui asks her point blank if she’s Du-shik and goes on to narrate how Du-shik was exceptionally ugly. Yu-gyeong tries to maintain her cool but eventually says, “You really haven’t changed a bit”.

Seok-hui is confused before breaking into a run apologizing while Yu-gyeong chases him and the others try to seperate the two. The episode ends with, “And after 20 years, we’re still together”.  

The Episode Review

This episode had most mesmerising scene of the series yet. Even though Like Flowers in Sand is a visually appealing show with its aesthetic and cinematography, this particular scene is just breathtaking.

When Baek-du and Yu-gyeong are on their way to Du-shik’s house, the camera captures the setting sun as they talk about their childhood as if the setting sun signifies the end of an era – their childhood. The warm hues of the sunset fall beautifully on the figures, shielding the two friends from sight at times, making them appear hazy as akin to lost memories which are resurfacing as they walk and live their past in a very nostalgic sequence. 

This episode was particularly heartwarming as the theme was of the old friends reuniting again after 20 years. Yu-gyeong’s identity has been unravelled and it’s particularly interesting to watch the characters evolve and rekindle their friendships.