The month of love is here and what is your luck with finding love? Close to none? Many of us were confined at home throughout 2020 thanks to the pandemic. Unable to find someone to fill our empty hearts, we resorted to watching drama after drama.With a ruined body clock and an endless rollercoaster of emotions, we found ourselves opening our hearts to these four second leads who deserve to be protected at all costs! 

Open your hearts because we are about to show some love to these second lead characters!

This list contains some spoilers for True Beauty, Start-Up, Itaewon Class and Crash Landing On You.

Han Seo Jun from True Beauty

Starting off this list is none other than True Beauty’s bad-boy-but-is-actually-so-cute, Han Seo Jun. If you are familiar with the web-toon, you would know that the current drama plot has deviated away from it. Nevertheless, Han Seo Jun carries the sad weight of the second lead and has his heroic moments stolen away. With the typical cold look of a bad boy, Han Seo Jun looks like he would kill anyone that crosses his path.

But he is in fact the complete opposite! As a family orientated person, he does not hesitate to protect the ones he loves, even if it means he has to suffer.

In earlier episodes, we see Han Seo Jun take up a part-time job to help out with the family and he constantly looks out for his little sister. Above all,  he protects Joo Kyung all the time even if it means that he has to suffer. While his efforts are constantly overshadowed by Suho, he still ensures that Joo Kyung does not get hurt and tries to help the couple out whenever they have a problem.

The saddest scene would be watching a helpless Han Seo Jun apologise to a crying Joo Kyung, only to find out the reason why she cried is because her crush, Suho, did not like her back.

Now, who is going to comfort our little broken softie?

Even though the drama has just ended, and our hearts are aching *cues tears*, we can relive the heartache together by welcoming Han Seo Jun into our hearts. We know he will be able to get mothers’ stamp of approval with his mandu making skills and awesome dancing!

Fun Fact: Despite playing a high schooler with his youthful looks, Hwang In Yeop (Han Seo Jun) is actually 30 years old (D.O.B: January 19, 1991). He has also completed his mandatory military service (so yes, you do not have to wait another two years)

Han Ji Pyeong from Start-Up

Centered around the struggles and passionate dreams that youths have, Start-Up was a much needed drama last year amidst a bleak outlook. Despite the hardships he faced while growing up, Han Ji Pyeong was a total sweetheart throughout the drama. Even though he always puts on a tough facade in front of Dal Mi’s grandmother and struggles to express how he really feels, he is the true definition of a good boy — elders will love him.

He was taken in by Dal Mi’s grandmother when he was younger and helped her out by penning love letters to a young Dal Mi, who struggled with her parents’ divorce. Although he was forced to do it at first by Dal Mi’s grandmother, he eventually started doing it out of his earnest heart, and those letters brought much hope to Dal Mi while growing up.

When they meet as young adults, Han Ji Pyeong goes all out to rope in the actual Nam Do San (the name Han Ji Pyeong used in the letter), just so that he can replicate the role model that Dal Mi had in mind. Despite Dal Mi not knowing that Han Ji Pyeong was actually the one behind all the letters, he was willing to give everything to Nam Do San. This was so that Dal Mi could stay in this beautiful dream, even if it meant that he was not credited for it.

Throughout their entire start-up journey, Han Ji Pyeong goes all out to mentor them, provide guidance to Dal Mi, and encourage her all the way until she becomes a true CEO. Eventually when the real Nam Do San catches feelings for Dal Mi, and despite putting up a good fight, Han Ji Pyeong chooses Dal Mi’s happiness and lets go.

While we might not have a Han Ji Pyeong everywhere, we believe that his ambition, humble personality, cute smile (ugh, those dimples), looks and wealth (a bonus), will definitely get approval from one of your most important family members, your grandmother!

Fun Fact: Kim Seon Ho (Han Ji Pyeong) wanted to become a doctor as a child because he wanted to help others. Well, if he really did become one, we guess he can be a love doctor

Oh Soo Ah from Itaewon Class

Imagine knowing you and your crush like each other, not for a few months but for an entire decade. The thought of having that constant spark between two parties is a love story that everyone wishes for. Relationship goals!

Unfortunately, Oh Soo Ah never scored that goal. As an independent orphan girl whose concern was to live by putting herself first, this woman set that aside and planned out her decade long revenge to avenge her benefactor — Park Saeroyi’s father who helped to sponsor a portion of her education.

When Oh Soo Ah’s benefactor was killed off in the first episode, she vowed to pay back by working for the company that caused his death. She powered through years of working for the same company that murdered Park Saeroyi’s father in order to collect 10 years of evidence of the wrongdoings the company had to avenge him. Despite her struggles, she did not quit. Even though Saeroyi swore to take down the company and help her leave, she did everything by herself.

Throughout the drama, the spark between Park Saeroyi and Oh Soo Ah is strong till Jo Yi Seo comes along. Oh Soo Ah believed in Saeroyi for not just one or two years, but an entire decade. She even constantly helps Saeroyi with his revenge plan. Talk about hard carrying your group work, our girl over here did it for 10 years only to have Saeroyi fall in love with Yi Seo.

Being the better person, Oh Soo Ah moves on from Park Saeroyi, opens her own business and even has a potential new love interest at the end of it all . While Oh Soo Ah might not have the ideal ending we had in mind, she definitely was happy at the end and we applaud her battle scars.

Fun Fact: Kwon Nara (Oh Soo Ah) was part of K-Pop girl group Hello Venus. The group debuted in 2012 (Disbanded: 2019) under a joint venture between Fantagio and Pledis Entertainment. An actress that can sing and dance as well? We stan!

Seo Dan from Crash Landing On You

Last, but not the least, we have the queen of second leads, Seo Dan. She is probably one of the most (if not, the most) dignified and sophisticated second female leads in the world of K-dramas. From being educated and rich, to having unparalleled looks, and an amazing personality, Seo Dan is definitely the dream girl for any guy.

Seo Dan is actually like a cute little puppy, loyal to anyone she loves. She is in an arranged marriage with Ri Jeong Hyeok and she patiently waits for him to open up and look at her. Even when she finds him together with Yoon Se Ri, she never once loses her cool. As the drama progresses, she realizes that this arranged marriage will never work out since Ri Jeong Hyeok only has eyes for Yoon Se Ri. She slowly lets go and confides in Gu Seung Jun and actually learns how falling in love could possibly be.

Despite their nationality differences, the couple has so many cute moments together that we were earnestly rooting for her happiness after getting her heart broken by Ri Jeong Hyeok. After all, it is only what she deserves, a happy ending.

But when Gu Seung Jun eventually dies while protecting her, we see her become so broken that she swears that she can never love another man after his death. We love the message that Seo Dan sends at the end of it all, that you can still be a complete woman even if you are single and that you do not need anyone to make you feel whole. 

Even though we really hoped that she could have a happy ending as well, the message that she sends is really what we all needed to hear. We do not need anyone to make us feel happy because we are the ones who define what happiness means to us. 

Here’s a famous last message from our queen: 

Fun Fact: If you miss Gu Seung Jun and Seo Dan as a couple, you can check out Dinner Mate where they had a cameo as a couple again!

Now that we have highlighted some second leads who we think deserve happy endings, share with us any other K-drama second leads that you think deserve some love too!

P.S: Can we start a petition to start giving second leads their own happy ending in each drama? They really deserve every single ounce of happiness to nurse their broken hearts! 

Written by: Phebs
Feature Image by: Agnes

Established in 2011, The Seoul Story is a Southeast Asia-based Korean Events, Entertainment & Lifestyle News Site On The Go

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