The long-awaited plot question of whether Im Sol’s attempts to save Sun-jae ultimately succeed is resolved in the ending episode of Lovely Runner with the story now fully explained
Im Sol frequently went back in time during the K-drama Lovely Runner to stop anything that would have led to Sun-jae’s potential demise. Im Sol and Sun-jae are in a different timeline towards the end of the show, where everything seems to be working out.
Im Sol’s stalker Kim Young-soo has played a crucial role that has had a significant effect on Im Sol and Sun-jae’s lives. Till the release of the most recent episode, the K-drama left us wondering if the ending would be happy or sad. Were Ryu Sun-jae and Im Sol able to finally have their happily ever after, or did Ryu Seon-Jae meet his ultimate demise?
Lovely Runner ending explained and is the end happy or sad
Sun-jae had retained all of the memories from the earlier timelines with Im Sol before the ending episode of Lovely Runner. Young-soo and the police pursue a car at the same moment, and he is about to collide with Sun-jae. Then Tae-sung notices what’s going to happen and steps in.
He avoids hitting Sun-jae by crashing his automobile into Young-soo’s. Young-soo runs away as Tae-sung tries to apprehend him, only to be struck by an approaching truck. He sustains potentially fatal injuries when the collision sends him into the river.
Young-soo passes away, however in a manner consistent with Sun-jae and Im Sol’s previous timelines. Sun-jae had previously been stabbed and died in the ocean; in Im Sol’s initial timeline, Sun-jae had saved her from drowning.
Can’t believe such a perfect ending episode exists…
An entirely dedicated ep for SolSun’s happy ending 😭 This drama was flawless from Ep 1 to the very last bit of Ep 16. My extremely Lovely Runner, THANK YOU for brightening up our Mon-Tues!! 💛#LovelyRunnerEp16 #LovelyRunner pic.twitter.com/xqu7IQFicE
— nedi 🍉 (@nedihalmeoni) May 28, 2024
The timeline ends with Young-soo having essentially assumed responsibility for their demise.
After Sun-jae acknowledges that she is aware of every detail from the previous timelines, their romance is reignited. They won’t need to worry once they realise that they’ve altered their destiny and that Young-soo is now formally deceased. As an actress, Sun-jae continues to be a well-known celebrity, and Im Sol left the production company.
As a happy couple, they both attempt to live a low profile, but it doesn’t work out so well because Sun-jae is too noticeable. As their romance develops, Sun-jae comes to love Im Sol and makes preparations to marry her. He chooses a ring and decides to announce his relationship status to the world, but he doesn’t say it’s with Im Sol just yet.
Tae-sung runs across them one day while dropping Im Sol off at home. He tells her that he just delivered a gift for her brother’s son.
The trio heads out for drinks to discuss Im Sol and Sun-jae’s relationship. Sun-jae thanks Tae-sung for helping to apprehend Young-soo and for taking care of Im Sol in every timeline.
Sun-jae sees the celebration of Im Sol’s brother’s son’s 100 days as a chance to introduce her family to each other.
Because of Sun-jae’s degree of popularity, everyone is astonished to see him there, and their disbelief only intensifies when they find out that Im Sol is the hidden woman in the paparazzi photos. The connection is accepted by Sun-jae’s father, who acknowledges that he has never seen his son grin so brilliantly.
Im Sol works on her movie for a while before submitting it. The two walk among cherry blossoms till the petals start to fall. Sun-jae makes a wish as she stands behind her and gathers the petals in her palms. The ring shows up the second time she shuts her eyes.
The ending of Lovely Runner shows Im Sol saying yes to Sun-jae’s proposal of marriage, and it concludes with them sharing a hug beneath the cherry blossoms.