Ryu Eun Jung grew up with a single mom who worked doing odd jobs for the wealthy people in their town. She meets Sang Yeon when she shows up as a new student in her elementary school class. The pair eventually become best friends, but their relationship is filled with complicated feelings of inferiority, jealousy, and their own personal struggles. They lose contact when Sang Yeon’s family moves away after the death of her older brother. But over the years, the pair will form a pattern of drifting apart and being thrown back together in unusual and surprising ways.

But when Sang Yeon steals a drama project from her as working adults, Eun Jung breaks ties with her and hopes to never see her again. So she is shocked when Sang Yeon mentions her in a televised award ceremony and then contacts her personally. But with Sang Yeon, there always seems to be a price. In this case, Sang Yeon is dying of a terminal illness and she asks Eun Jung to accompany her to Switzerland, where she can “legally” end her life. Now Eun Jung will have to decide if she wants to become involved with Sang Yeon again and if she is willing to be there for her in her final moments.

Ryu Eun Jung is straightforward, resilient, and emotionally aloof. She has faced a lot of personal adversity in her life, which has caused her to become introspective and analytical. She understands that her feelings about Sang Yeon are much more complicated than simple love and friendship. And that understanding makes it difficult to be around her, but also to walk away from her. Kim Go Eun has proven herself to be a strong actress and she has a talent for portraying this kind of thoughtful, introspective character. I loved her in this role and her character was my favorite part of the drama.

Cheon Sang Yeon grew up in a wealthy family with a father who was strict and demanding and a mother who always favored her older brother over her. When she meets Eun Jung in elementary school, she is jealous of her because her mother is so caring and kind, even though her family life is much more humble than her own. But Sang Yeon’s family life goes from bad to worse when her older brother suddenly takes his own life. Her parents divorce after the tragedy and Sang Yeon and her mom pick up and move to a new town for a fresh start. 

The pair will reconnect a couple more times throughout their lives, although things always seem to end in some kind of fight. But when Sang Yeon finds out that she is terminally ill, she realizes she has no one else to turn to. So she visits Eun Jung and asks her to be her legal companion and guardian on a trip to Switzerland to end her life.

Cheon Sang Yeon is calculating and selfish. Her feelings of inferiority ruin not just her own life, but Eun Jung’s in the process. And her inability to take responsibility for her own actions leaves her lonely and bitter for her whole life. As much as I could never bring myself to like or sympathize with Sang Yeon’s character, I thought Park Ji Hyun did an amazing job portraying this character. She portrayed the complex dimensions of her personality perfectly.