Episode 3 of Gap: The Series picks up the pace as we dive headfirst into Sam and Mon’s budding romance. Sam appears from behind and corners Mon as they enter the office. But it wouldn’t be Sam if she did not have a remark to accompany her actions as she blames Mon for scaring her with ghost stories because of which she has not slept.
Sam goes to her office and remembers the night before. Turns out her being scared of ghosts may be a serious thing for her as Mon’s joke of a ghost haunting her truly scares her as she lies alone in her bed. However, she has bigger concerns as she realises that someone has leaked their secrets to a rival company, owned by none other than Nita. Her page has the same content that Mon was preparing for ‘Diversity Pop’. Sam is furious and tries to root out the traitor by interrogating all the employees.
Nita’s company takes down the content and Sam is sure there is a mole who is relaying their every step. Kirk comes with snacks as he feels bad for the setback. He tries to cheer up Sam by asking her out and promising to protect the company. When she asks where was he during the crisis, it seems he had gone to confront Nita about ‘Diversity Pop’s content.
Turns out he was the one who did tell Nita about it as he wanted her to invest in the project. She tries to smoothen it out by saying that there was a misunderstanding and they didn’t mean to plagiarize. She also proposes becoming their business partner so that the project will be successful. Kirk thinks back to the meeting but doesn’t tell Sam about it.
While leaving the office, Sam switches off all the lights. As she turns to leave, she runs into Mon and smacks her thinking she is a ghost. Mon is actually hurt and Sam takes care of her while also chiding her for popping up from nowhere. Mon shares that she was staying back late to work on the project and Sam asks her to work with her alone so no more secrets are leaked.
Mon takes her to a garden and Sam lets it slip that she feels comfortable around her. They take photos together and as they stand close, Sam thinks that they might have met before. Mon pleads with her eyes for Sam to remember but she doesn’t. They have an awkward farewell but Sam looks happy when she sees the selfies.
Sam goes to meet her grandmother and tells her that she misses her sister, Song. Grandmother feels the same but is disappointed that Song did not listen to her. In a flashback, we see a dutiful Song with a good degree and a job. Grandmother offers to vet suitable grooms for her and Song wishes to tell her about her girlfriend.
Sam watches Song and her girlfriend support each other and promise to come out to Grandmother at the right time. But it turns out that after the birthday fight when Song was leaving she got into a car accident and died. Both Grandmother and Sam are heartbroken and we finally learn why Sam continues to listen to her. Grandmother requests her to marry Kirk as she will always have her best interests at heart.
At work, all the employees are worried they will be fired as during the interrogation they all ended up confessing that they had called Sam cold and brutal. But Sam is least interested in them as she simply calls Mon to her office so that they can work on the project together. It becomes late but Sam doesn’t want Mon to be alone as she thinks she will slack off. She invites Mon home but words it so that it looks like it was Mon’s idea.
Mon wonders if she can stay over since they have to work late and Sam allows it. She personally asks for permission from Mon’s father who is so happy that he ends up telling Sam that his daughter likes her very much and is also her fan. Mon is embarrassed and cuts the call while Sam teases her for being a fan. Mon’s parents are happy that she and Sam are working well together but Nop who overhears the phone call feels jealous.
At Sam’s place, she pours herself a drink and says that she would like to take a bath to which Mon simply replies that she will wait and work on the sofa till she is done. Sam looks for an excuse to stay longer and even invites her to her bedroom. Mon declines but continues with their inside joke of being haunted as she tells Sam to be careful while having a shower. Sam gets scared and tells Mon to keep talking outside her bathroom door as she washes up. Mon decides to sing a romantic song and Sam can’t help but smile.
After she comes out, Sam announces that it is too late to work and that Mon should go to sleep. As Mon turns to leave, Sam tells her to sleep in the same bed with her. Mon asks if it is because of ghosts to which Sam reveals that that is the excuse she is ready to give if Mon will stay with her.
Mon changes into a nightgown of Sam’s and both feel awkward with the rising sexual tension till Sam finally turns away. A worried and jealous Nop keeps calling Mon and unable to sleep with the ringing, Sam decides to sit by the pool. Mon wakes up and goes to sit beside her.
They talk about Mon’s family and she then tells a story with a moral that Sam doesn’t get. When Mon teases her for it, she sulks. They start tickling each other and fall into the pool laughing. They are close to kissing each other but Sam suddenly leaves the pool. As Mon comes out, she almost falls and Sam catches her in her arms.
It is quite nice to see the writers not making everything a joke as seen with Sam’s fear of ghosts. While her actions are comedic from her checking under her bed to bringing a Buddha statue to protect her, we do feel for this strong woman who lives all alone in her huge house with no one to look after her even if it is to assure her of inconsequential things like ghosts. Even if she uses it as a hilarious and feeble excuse to get Mon to keep her company, it adds to her personality.
But just while it was going well, we had to go back to predictable plot twists in episode 3 of Gap: The Series. Kirk’s meeting with Nita in episode 2 and his suspicious behaviour pretty much gives it away that he was the mole before we get the flashback to their meeting. While we cannot predict the future, we will probably get Nita trying to sabotage Sam to get with her, get even with her or get her company. And while we expected to leave the ‘women beware women’ trope in the past, it seems that that is where this Nita storyline is going.