More Than Blue 2009

Kay (played by Kwon Sang-woo) and Cream (portrayed by Lee Bo-young) are two orphans who meet in high school and form a deep, enduring bond. They decide to build a life together, sharing a home and all their vulnerabilities. Kay keeps his leukemia a secret to protect Cream from fear, and he urges her to marry someone healthy who can give her a stable future, even as the illness quietly shadows his days.

When Cream reveals that she has fallen in love with a wealthy dentist, Kay’s heart breaks not for himself but because he wants her to have happiness with her chosen partner. He accepts that she has found her ideal match, even as he quietly bears the burden of his own illness and the sacrifice it demands.

To safeguard Cream’s future, Kay asks Cha Joo-hwan (played by Lee Beom-soo)’s fiancée to end their relationship. She agrees, but only on one condition: Kay lets her photograph him for an exhibit about death. This twist highlights the complex beats of love, loss, and the boundaries people set to protect one another.

Cream first learns the truth about Kay’s illness when she rummages through his belongings to find inspiration for a song, only to discover that the item she finds is pain medication used by terminal cancer patients. This revelation deepens the sense that life is fragile and that secrets have real consequences. Earlier in the narrative, Cream, already aware of his illness, tests what defines a “good man” by asking Kay for his view on love and responsibility—only to reveal in her diary that she faked falling in love with Joo-hwan to appease him, a manipulation born from her knowledge of his condition.

Kay’s health takes a turn for the worse as the two spend their last day together, celebrating Cream’s birthday. When she asks what he wishes for, he answers with a quiet line that becomes a defining memory: > It’s a secret. Cream teases that she doesn’t believe in such secrets and reminds him of a wish she already placed years earlier—that in the next life, he might find her sooner. Their final portrait as a family becomes a haunting memory, and Kay passes away.

In the aftermath, Cream apologizes to Joo-hwan for the past deception, and he visits their grave, suggesting that Cream’s life may have ended in despair after Kay’s death. The story closes on a somber note, leaving behind questions about love, sacrifice, and the price of keeping someone you cherish safe.