Lovers’ Concerto

In the summer of 1996, Ji-hwan, an amateur photographer, pesters Gyung-hee and Soo-in after hours at the cafe. He declares his love on the street, then returns with a clock held over his face and a note claiming he wound back time so the declaration never happened. This surreal moment launches a non-linear sequence that frames their complicated feelings.

They begin to bond as a trio, and both women seem to develop feelings for Ji-hwan. They quote Il Postino together, signaling shared romantic fantasies. The tension between friendship and romance becomes more pronounced as they spend more time together around the city.

Gyung-hee discovers a potential match through a magazine test, while the cafe owner’s praise for others heightens Gyung-hee’s insecurity. The three flee on a road trip to escape scrutiny, a move that deepens connections but also fuels jealousy. The journey sets up the fragile balancing act among the trio.

On the road, Soo-in watches Ji-hwan sleep and touches a mole on his ear. In the morning she is absent, and Ji-hwan nearly kisses a sleeping Gyung-hee. Soo-in shares a memory of a first love with a boy they swapped names with to stay connected, deepening the sense of fragile loyalties.

The trio is caught in the rain, and Soo-in becomes ill. Gyung-hee consoles Ji-hwan with quiet tenderness, leaning in and kissing him as Soo-in's presence softens into distance. The illness unsettles the balance of their growing feelings and shifts the mood to vulnerability.

Back in Seoul, Soo-in remains ill while the others go out. Ji-hwan treats it like a date, but Gyung-hee grows uncomfortable with his behavior toward both women and leaves under a cloud. The emotional distance widens, threatening the friendship they share.

At a party, Ji-hwan jokes that Soo-in is taking a long time to recover. Soo-in sings a love song about the three of them and leaves early, asking Ji-hwan to walk with her. Ji-hwan writes a note confessing his love for Gyung-hee and asks Gyung-hee to give it to Soo-in, but Gyung-hee secretly tears it up, misreading his intent.

Later, Gyung-hee visits Soo-in in the ICU, where Soo-in reads aloud a letter she wrote to Gyung-hee about their expected visit as a couple. Soo-in passes a wax-sealed letter to be given to Ji-hwan, foreshadowing a final, hidden message. The moment underscores the quiet tragedy shaping their fates.

In late autumn or winter 1996, Ji-hwan is chided by his boss for losing touch with friends. Gyung-hee invites him for a drink and their confrontation reveals hardship and distance. After a drunken night, a flashback shows Gyung-hee tending to his wounded hand and kissing him before she quietly leaves, hinting a fragile bond persists.

By 2001, Ji-hwan opens a handmade envelope containing a black-and-white photo with no sender. He visits his old cafe and learns from a classmate that Gyung-hee died five years earlier and Soo-in left Seoul after that. The revelation pushes him to track down what remains of his old circle.

Ji-hwan travels to a small town and discovers the ongoing repercussions of the past as Gyung-hee accompanies him to the cafe owner's wedding. They appear as a wonderful couple, hinting at reconciliation despite the years apart. The wedding scene reaffirms the bond that time could not completely erase.

The envelopes finally reveal Soo-in's deathbed letter with dating advice for Gyung-hee and Ji-hwan. Gyung-hee also confesses she tore up Ji-hwan's letter to Soo-in and thanks him for inspiring her photography. She shares funeral wishes and says goodbye, while the last shot recalls the trio together in happier times from a road-trip photo.