The MBC romance drama In Your Radiant Season has arrived with its first four episodes, and viewers are already hooked on the emotional story of Lee Sung-kyung and Chae Jong-hyeop. The series, which premiered on February 20, 2026, tells the story of two people carrying deep wounds from their past who find each other again after seven years. With episodes 3 and 4 now aired as of February 28, the drama has set up a beautiful yet painful journey of healing. Here is everything that happened in the first week of this touching Korean drama.
The Tragic Beginning: How It All Started Seven Years Ago
The story opens with Song Ha-ran (Lee Sung-kyung) as a young, cheerful designer working at her grandmother Kim Na-na‘s fashion house, Nana Atelier. She wins her first major design award and excitedly calls her boyfriend, Kang Hyeok-chan (Kwon Do-hyung), who is studying at Boston University. The pen she used to create her winning designs was a gift from him, engraved with her name .
Ha-ran decides to surprise Hyeok-chan during a four-day holiday. She flies to Boston and sends him a video message saying she loves him. But tragedy strikes. Hyeok-chan’s roommate, Seonu Chan (Chae Jong-hyeop), sees the message and rushes to the lab to tell him. Just as Ha-ran’s car approaches the campus, a massive explosion tears through the building. Hyeok-chan dies in the blast .
Seonu Chan survives but is left with severe injuries. He has burn scars on his arm, partial hearing loss, and significant memory loss. The only thing he remembers clearly is Ha-ran—her voice, her face, and the video message where she said “I love you.” Before the accident, Ha-ran’s cheerful messages to Hyeok-chan had unknowingly saved Seonu Chan during a dark period in his life, even stopping him from attempting suicide .
Seven Years Later: Two People in Different Seasons
The story jumps to the present. Song Ha-ran is now the lead designer at Nana Atelier, but she is completely changed. The once-cheerful woman is now cold, distant, and refuses to get close to anyone. She has lost her parents in childhood and now her boyfriend too. She builds walls around herself to avoid losing anyone else she loves .
Seonu Chan, on the other hand, returns to South Korea with his colleague Ben for a work project. He is now a character animator who appears bright, cheerful, and friendly with everyone. But inside, he carries the trauma of the explosion and the gaps in his memory. He and Ben visit an art exhibition, where Chan is shocked to see Ha-ran. When construction materials are about to fall on her outside the gallery, he calls out her name and saves her, but runs away before she can see him .
The Fateful Reunion at Nana Atelier
Chan’s work project turns out to be a collaboration with Nana Atelier. He wants to design clothes for his animated character “Won” using the atelier’s designs. When he steps out to get a USB from his car, he comes face to face with Ha-ran. She does not recognize him at all .
During the meeting, Chan spills coffee on himself, and Ha-ran is asked to bring him a new shirt. She accidentally sees him shirtless and notices a tattoo on his arm. Later, Ha-ran finds Chan’s shirt in the changing room along with an invitation to the art exhibition she visited. The office also receives an envelope full of photos of Ha-ran taken without her knowledge. Ha-ran’s sister Ha-young (Han Ji-hyun) worries she might have a stalker, and Ha-ran begins to suspect Chan .
The Truth About the Stalker and Chan’s Confession
Ha-ran’s grandmother sets her up on a date with a photographer at a hotel. There, Ha-ran sees Chan in the lobby and confronts him, demanding to know how he knows her name. Chan explains he learned it from the company website. Just then, he spots the real stalker—a jealous ex-colleague of Ha-ran’s. Together, they catch the woman and take her to the police station. Ha-ran chooses not to press charges .
Ha-ran’s grandmother sees Chan’s name written repeatedly in Ha-ran’s work pad and misunderstands it as a sign of affection. She arranges a dinner for them. During the dinner, restaurant noise triggers Chan’s sensory issues, and he has to run outside. In the chaos, Ha-ran loses the special engraved pen that Hyeok-chan gave her .
The next day, Ha-ran frantically searches for the pen. Chan follows her, knowing she has a cold, and lends her his jacket. When he says she should not risk her health over “just a pen,” Ha-ran becomes upset and sends him away. Chan later remembers that he was the one who picked out that pen for Hyeok-chan to give Ha-ran for her birthday. The pen helped her overcome creative blocks and win her design contest .
Chan apologizes to Ha-ran for his harsh words. He tells her he will stay in Korea for three months for the collaboration and asks if he can treat her kindly and be part of her life. He proposes a “three-month neighborhood friend trial version” to help her rediscover her old, bright self. Ha-ran is left speechless .
Episode 3: Confronting Past Wounds
Episode 3, which aired on February 27, opens with a flashback to Chan’s childhood. We see young Chan begging his mother not to leave. His mother loved art, but after she died, his father resented painting and pressured Chan to focus on practical studies. Even after entering engineering school in the US, Chan could not let go of painting. Seven years ago, at his lowest point, he received Ha-ran’s video message to Hyeok-chan saying “You saved me.” Those words became the reason Chan chose to live .
In the present, Chan and Ha-ran go on a palace date disguised as a work survey for their collaboration. Chan wears a traditional royal robe (gonryongpo) and lights up the place with his energy. Ha-ran tries to maintain her distance but struggles .
At the palace, Ha-ran hears a woman’s voice that sounds like her mother, who died in an accident 13 years ago. The long-suppressed grief bursts out, and she cries. When Chan returns, Ha-ran lowers her guard for the first time. She apologizes for her past behavior and confesses that after losing her family and boyfriend, she became afraid of getting close to anyone. The walls she built to protect herself now feel like a prison .
Chan carefully shares his own wounds. He tells her they should find a way together this time, not alone. The moment marks the first time their “different seasons” touch each other .
Back at home, Ha-ran’s youngest sister Ha-dam (Oh Ye-ju) drops a bombshell. The high school student announces she wants to get married to her boyfriend Cha Yoo-gyeom (Kim Tae-young), a baseball player who is about to leave for New York. The family is shocked, but grandmother Na-na surprises everyone by calmly saying they should at least meet him .
Episode 4: The Three-Month Trial Begins
At the end of episode 3, Ha-ran asks Chan if his “three-month neighborhood friend trial” offer is still valid. She requests, “Please tell me how to get out of winter.” Chan replies with a warm smile, “So now I can openly be good to you, right? Let’s try to do well from now on. Like we’re on a spring picnic, excitedly” .
Episode 4, which aired on February 28, shows the two beginning their trial friendship. However, the happiness is short-lived. While they are driving together, a motorcycle’s loud horn triggers Chan’s trauma. He experiences tinnitus (ringing in the ears) and blurred vision, revealing that his injuries from the accident still affect him. Ha-ran witnesses this episode firsthand and begins to understand the depth of his wounds .
The episode also delves deeper into the family dynamics. Ha-young and Ha-dam notice changes in their older sister. Ha-ran’s gradual warming toward Chan affects the entire family. Meanwhile, grandmother Kim Na-na has her own romantic subplot developing with cafe owner Park Man-jae (Kang Seok-woo), her childhood first love. Their story runs parallel to the main couple’s healing journey .
By the end of episode 4, the mystery surrounding the accident and Chan’s memory loss continues to unfold piece by piece. Ha-ran shows surprising changes that leave her sisters wondering what is happening to their previously closed-off sister .
The Cast Bringing the Story to Life
Lee Sung-kyung delivers a powerful performance as Song Ha-ran, convincingly portraying the character’s transformation from a bright young woman to someone trapped in grief. Chae Jong-hyeop brings warmth and depth to Seonu Chan, hiding deep pain behind his character’s sunny smile .
The supporting cast adds richness to the story. Lee Mi-sook plays the formidable yet caring grandmother Kim Na-na. Han Ji-hyun is Ha-young, the middle sister who works at the atelier and looks out for everyone. Oh Ye-ju plays Ha-dam, the youngest sister whose surprise marriage announcement shakes the family. Kang Seok-woo brings gentle warmth as cafe owner Park Man-jae, Na-na’s childhood sweetheart .
Where to Watch and What’s Next
In Your Radiant Season airs every Friday and Saturday at 9:50 PM KST on MBC. The drama is also available for streaming on Disney+ in selected regions, including South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, India, and other countries where the platform operates .
The series consists of 12 episodes total. Episodes 5 and 6 are scheduled to air on March 6 and March 7, 2026 .
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Why Viewers Are Loving This Drama
The first four episodes of In Your Radiant Season have connected with audiences because of their honest portrayal of grief and healing. The drama does not rush the relationship between Ha-ran and Chan. Instead, it slowly shows how two broken people can help each other mend .
The ratings reflect this positive reception. Episode 3 recorded 4.3% nationwide viewership, ranking first in its time slot and making it the number one Friday-Saturday drama for two consecutive weeks. A key scene where Chan reads Ha-ran’s message reached a peak rating of 5.5% .
Viewers appreciate how the show handles sensitive topics like trauma, loss, and mental health. The contrast between Chan’s external brightness and internal pain, and Ha-ran’s external coldness and internal longing, creates a compelling dynamic. The mystery surrounding their past connection keeps audiences guessing while the slow-burn romance gives them reasons to care .
With episodes 1 through 4 now complete, In Your Radiant Season has successfully set the stage for a healing romance that promises to bring warmth to viewers’ screens. The three-month trial between Ha-ran and Chan has just begun, and audiences are eager to see how these two damaged souls will help each other find spring again.
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Stay with VvipTimes for more updates on In Your Radiant Season and all your favorite Korean dramas as the healing story of Ha-ran and Chan continues to unfold.
