"Good morning, Teacher Jing Yu."
"Morning, Teacher Jing Yu."
"Teacher Jing Yu!"
As the director arrived at the set on his motorcycle, everyone in the 'White Album 2' crew greeted him cheerfully.
It was now late September. Almost all the fall season dramas had concluded, and the major TV stations had begun airing previews for the upcoming winter line-up.
But none of this affected the 'White Album 2' production team.
To be honest, at this point, it no longer mattered to them how high the ratings would ultimately go.
They had already far exceeded expectations. No matter what, this show was an undeniable success.
For Jing Yu, however, the biggest question still lingering was:
How should 'White Album 2' end?
If he went with the Kazusa ending, there was only one route: Kazusa's True Ending from the original game.
Which meant nothing but pain.
The story would lead to Haruki and Kazusa flying off abroad together. Meanwhile, Setsuna—having graduated from Haruki—would pick up her dream of music again.
But... Jing Yu felt that the ending would utterly destroy Haruki's image.
Haruki was already getting roasted online as one of the worst male leads ever.
If the show ended with him betraying Setsuna again, then once Jing Yu leave Jinhui TV, his next series would likely be massacred by furious Setsuna fans.
So he ruled that out.
He also considered the Infidelity Ending—
Haruki, ever the weak-willed coward, elopes with Kazusa, but midway through their trip, she has a moment of self-realization. Feeling guilty toward Setsuna, Kazusa disappears from Haruki's life without a word.
Then Haruki—shamelessly—returns to Setsuna.
And even though he's betrayed her twice, Setsuna—who loves him too deeply—still takes him back.
The ultimate "queen of taking back trash" ending.
Jing Yu, in truth, was jealous of Haruki.
No matter how awful, how disloyal, how reckless he was—
As long as he was willing to return, Setsuna would always forgive him.
In this story, Haruki could never end up alone.
Setsuna would 100% take him back.
But even if he was scum, Haruki was still the male lead of this drama.
And this was now a television adaptation. He had to consider what the audience could accept.
Right now, the audience could tolerate Haruki's scumbag persona—barely.
But Jing Yu was sure: if Haruki was portrayed as both a scumbag and a coward, that would be unforgivable.
So he tossed that ending, too.
As for the "Coward's Ending"...
Haruki, still in love with Kazusa, chooses to suppress his feelings and stay with Setsuna, all while silently longing for Kazusa.
Gross.
So, in the end, there was only one logical route left:
Setsuna's True Ending.
The only perfect ending in 'White Album 2's multiple route canon.
The same three people who debuted together on stage during the school festival,
Finally, after years of emotional wreckage, reconciled—
And came together once more at Haruki and Setsuna's wedding.
A true ending for all three.
Jing Yu wasn't a devil.
He had said in interviews that the show would end in a way fans could accept—
And he meant it.
It had been almost a year since his "rebirth" at Jinhui TV.
The endings of his previous two dramas had left people unsatisfied.
This time, 'White Album 2' deserved a little perfection.
So when he distributed the final version of the script to the crew today, everyone let out a collective sigh of relief.
Yes, the journey had been agonizing.
But the ending—finally—was something they believed the audience could accept.
September 25th.
'White Album 2' Episode 13 aired.
After a full week of cliffhangers and speculation, fans were finally getting the continuation they'd been waiting for.
Haruki and Kazusa's reunion in that foreign city—
Kazusa spotting him on the street, chasing after his taxi barefoot through the snow, her shoes lost along the way…
That was the origin of the final scene in Episode 12.
Haruki's hesitation.
His lingering feelings for Kazusa are still unresolved.
The pain in his eyes as he applied medicine to her frostbitten feet.
And then—
Haruki returned to the hotel to meet Setsuna, who had just flown across continents to see him.
He lied.
Spoke to her with a calm, casual tone.
Of course, he couldn't bring himself to say it—
That he'd just met Kazusa again, treated her injuries, and spent hours talking with her.
But to the audience?
This was textbook scumbag behavior.
The next day, he lied again.
Said the interview was just another job.
Though, to his credit, once he returned home, he did come clean to Setsuna.
That honesty helped soften the backlash a little.
"At least he finally grew up a little. He's not lying forever—some growth, I guess."
"Nope. I still think this is heading for disaster. It's so obvious he still has feelings for Kazusa."
"Damn, I'm getting angrier with every scene. Can this guy grow a spine already?"
"Ugh. At this point, we all get it—he only ever sees Kazusa as number one. Setsuna's always second place when Kazusa's around."
From Episode 13 onward, the show returned to its familiar, stomach-churning territory.
Especially the final scene of the episode:
Kazusa, having returned to Japan for a concert after reuniting with Haruki, avoided her hotel due to media attention.
She got caught in the rain and fell ill.
She called Haruki.
He rushed into the streets, found her—weak and soaked—
And carried her back to his apartment.
Yup. That happened.
Surprised?
Shocked?
Well, if she were sick, of course, she needed a shower.
So she took one.
And then… she put on pajamas.
Setsuna's pajamas.
Because Setsuna wasn't there today.
And Haruki only had her clothes in the apartment.
In the fan groups, the creative posts exploded once again.
"Kazusa, why are you wearing Setsuna's clothes?"
"If we're gonna go full drama, let's go all in."
"Hey, what's up with that pajama set? Why does it have the name 'Pinru' embroidered on it? Is that some luxury brand? I want one!"
"I work on the 'White Album 2' set. That pajama set was custom-ordered by Teacher Jing Yu himself. He insisted on those two characters being stitched in. Must have some personal meaning to him."
Jing Yu was having his fun, throwing in little Easter eggs from his past life.
At least he hadn't gone full meme and made Kazusa say, "You're so lewd."
Honestly, that showed restraint.
Meanwhile, Setsuna fans were emotionally destroyed.
They felt like their intelligence was being ground into the dirt by Jing Yu's script.
Kazusa fans, on the other hand, were in full-blown celebration mode.
Just one episode—
And the long-dormant war between Setsuna stans and Kazusa stans reignited in full force.
"I'm picking up the pace now. Time to move the main characters onto a bigger stage.
Let's not stay stuck in Jinhui TV forever."