Warning: Spoilers ahead: This weekend, fans of Twenty-Five Twenty-One are preparing for a good cry for they will finally learn if and why Baek Ye-jin (Nam Joo-hyuk) and Na Hee-do (Kim Tae-ri) don’t end up together. The tvN drama is headed to its finale weekend and fans have been trying to decode the biggest mystery on the show — why Baek Ye-jin (Nam Joo-hyuk) and Na Hee-do (Kim Tae-ri) don’t end up together and who is Kim Min-chae’s father.
Initially, there were theories that much like Na Hee-do’s father, Baek Ye-jin is also not alive. However, the makers shot that theory down when Na Hee-do’s mother claimed she saw Baek Ye-jin in town. The most popular theory after that has been that Baek Ye-jin might have changed his name to keep his and Na Hee-do’s relationship away from the scandals. However, Twenty-Five Twenty-One episode 14 ended on a note that has shattered most fan theories. The fan predicts that much like La La Land’s ending, Twenty-Five Twenty-One could also end on a bittersweet note.
In the ending moments, Baek Ye-jin congratulates Na Hee-do for her wedding and mentions that he is late for the wishes but nevertheless passes his best regards. Na Hee-do says, “Wherever I am, I will give you my unwavering support, Mr Baek,” before she tells in her mind, “Wherever you are, I’ll make sure my support reaches you. I’ll take care of everything.” Throughout the scene, Hee-do appears to be fighting through the pain of being apart from him. The episode also appeared as though the former lovers were meeting after a long time.
The episode helped set a timeline and it is due to this timeline that a fan with the Twitter handle @taeri_yeosin drew out a rather convincing theory. The fan pointed out that as mentioned in the episode, the interview took place on July 10, 2009. This means, Hee-do is 29 and has won three medals in a row — at Madrid in 2001, Prague in 2005 and San Francisco in 2009. Considering her daughter Min-Chae is 15 years old in 2021, it means she was born in 2006.
If Hee-do is Min-chae’s biological mother, the athlete must have gotten pregnant after her match in 2005. Baek Yi-jin congratulate her marriage, ‘even it’s too little late’, in 2009. So, given the timeline, Hee-do already gave birth in 2006 and Min-chae was four years old.
“(Does) that mean her husband whom she’s married in 2009, is not Min-chae’s biological father? Did he adopt her and gave his surname,’Kim’? (Because) Yi-jin is still ‘Baek Yi-jin’ in 2009, he didn’t change his name like some popular theories before,” the fan pointed out. The Twitter user also argued that if, as per popular fan theories they got married and kept it a secret due to both their prolific careers, why would Baek Ye-jin congratulate her during a live broadcast? That would only reveal their secret.
But if they can’t hide their marriage why people didn’t know Heedo’s mom is Anchor Shin ? – it’s 1998, internet not as fast in 2009.-When she won gold medal she’s only a newcomer, even the news room used the only photo (yes, that photo) they had.-Different surname— Touché by Tae Ri (@taeri_yeosin) March 27, 2022
“Like all 2521 stans, of course, I wish that they have a happy ending. But what if they got their own but not together? Like ‘La La Land’ where they support each other’s lives and achieve success, but not together. A bittersweet ending, that sometimes first love didn’t come true,” the fan concluded the theory.
For the unversed, La La Land featuring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone ended with both the characters getting their individual happy endings while their relationship broke apart. The Twenty-Five Twenty-One fan theory does sound convincing for if Ye-jin was Min-chae’s father — keeping the theories that they changed their surnames to avoid a scandal — Min-chae would have recognized his father the least. Throughout the show, Min-chae appears as a stranger to Ye-jin. To top it off, even when Hee-do’s mother brings up Ye-jin’s name during their conversation, Hee-do appears rather sad, hinting that things did not end well for them.
Fans will hopefully get all their answers this weekend! Twenty-Five Twenty-One will air its last two episodes on Saturday and Sunday. Fans in India can watch it on Netflix.
