With such a title as Twenty-Five Twenty-One, you’d think the narrative will follow a youthful romance. Well, it does in part, but we have already reached the halfway point, and there’s no flash forward and we still haven’t met the characters when they are 21 and 25 yet. Fans are now dreading that the sweet romance is likely to meet a sad end. We sincerely hope that it doesn’t, but everything has been pointing towards that direction. 

Their romance ends at Twenty-Five, Twenty-One

A popular fan theory is that Hee do and Yijin’s burgeoning romance will end at 25 and 21. Much like how most high school love stories end. They remain just a sweet memory. This theory popped up after present-day Hee Do confessed that she didn’t remember the beach trip. Her mother brought up seeing Yijin some months ago, but we didn’t see any surprise or sadness on her face. Maybe in the present time, they are just reduced to strangers, mere acquaintances. Moreover her daughter, Kim Min Chae does not share her last name with Baek Yijin. 

The friends drifted apart and Hee Do is gravely sick

A particular scene at a hospital could be a hint that Hee Do is sick, which would explain her partial memory loss. She never mentioned her closest friends, Moon Jiung, Ko Yurim, or Ji Seungwan in the present. They all came off age in episode 12, and choose a different path in life. Maybe the quartet drifted apart, as is normal in life. Even though the writer is setting us up for a bitter-sweet ending, she is doing an excellent job of portraying the innocent part of our lives.  

Twenty-Five, Twenty-One can best be described as a love letter to youth. To the times when everything feels too heightened and trivial matters keep us up at night. Na Hee Do was a child prodigy in fencing until she fell off the ranks. After her father’s demise, she and her mother became estranged despite living under the same roof. She idolizes gold medallist, Ko Yurim and dreams to be her rival. When she meets, a rich conglomerate’s son, Baek Yijin, now bankrupt, they both drive each other to pursue their goals in life. Stream the Kdrama on Netflix now.