SWAP 42

What does that mean? Seoul parted his lips and cast his gaze at Sukyung, who had a subtle expression. It was true that he was generous to Saheon, but the question didn’t seem to be in that sense. He rolled his eyes, going over the previous interview content again.

Then one word caught him. Seoul, with a look of realization, adjusted his posture. The tension that had finally eased slowly crept up from his fingertips again. His manner of slowly opening his mouth was quite stiff, unlike before.

“Well. Of course, I admit I’m generous because we’re close… but it’s also true that he has an affectionate personality. Actually, this is what always upset me. I feel like many people misunderstand him. His appearance might be a bit cold, but if you get to know him, he has many completely naïve sides. He’s been like that since he was young, so I know him best…. Moments when I feel unnecessarily upset just arise.”

It was sincerity with nothing to hold back.

Lee Seoul was always upset by Seo Saheon, who was easily misunderstood.

Even when he was an ordinary person, he was constantly plagued by attention, and after he suddenly debuted as a model, all sorts of rumors and gossip poured out as if it were a natural sequence. Seoul couldn’t possibly be unaware of that situation. He would never look up public opinion related to himself, but he secretly got upset, individually clicking the report button on malicious spliced articles and videos that contained Saheon’s name.

Then he eventually fell ill and collapsed.

It was the result of him unnecessarily pouring his heart into the gazes of others, which the person concerned didn’t even care about. Naturally, Seo Saheon was furious. He had just left it alone, feeling like he didn’t give a damn about whatever they badmouthed him behind his back. He never dreamed that Seoul, who detested the internet, would be watching all of that.

‘Why on earth are you searching for such trash, Lee Seoul?’

Saheon, from a time when he had learned a little patience, pressed down the anger that threatened to burst out with foul language at any moment, and muttered. Seoul couldn’t answer. He knew that no answer would satisfy Seo Saheon.

Instead, he just held his hand tightly as it came to his forehead. Hoping that he would know there was at least one person who didn’t misunderstand anything.

So, it was Saheon’s turn to lose his mind again.

Despite the tearful appeal of Yeom Gangsik, the CEO of his agency, Seo Saheon, who had said, “Just leave them be,” hired a group of lawyers from a famous law firm the very next day. Wasn’t the easiest problem to solve always the one that could be settled with money? Fortunately, he had an overflowing amount of it.

The lawsuit rush that began like that had neither mercy nor settlement.

While posts like ‘Is this really being sued?’ popped up everywhere, a rumor even broke out that he was the youngest son of a certain chaebol family.

More rumors were generated as if on cue, but Seo Saheon responded by hiring more lawyers. In short, it was an invitation to see who was crazier. They would fight until death, and the one who got exhausted and collapsed first would become the dog.

And naturally, the ones who became the dogs were the fake news disseminators who just spat out their own delusions.

They cried their eyes out, writing handwritten apology letters on all fours, like ‘Hello, this is [Name]. First, what I did was blah blah… Please show leniency blah blah…’ but it was useless. There was no image that could get worse than his, and even if there was, Seo Saheon was the kind of person who wouldn’t bat an eyelid. His reply to an apology letter would probably have been something like, ‘Yes. Get lost.’

That was the epic story of how Seo Saheon’s nickname changed from ‘Dashcam Muse’ to ‘Dashcam Towing Man,’ and ultimately to ‘Dashcam Scrapping Man.’

He had not just made a mark in the world of lawsuits but became its godfather, yet the person involved had no interest in such titles. While the scrapped dashcams were fuming and frequenting lawsuit forums, he was entwining pinky fingers with Lee Seoul.

“Don’t you dare watch that kind of stuff again. Huh? Just you dare fall ill again, Seoul.” Unlike his fierce tone, the action of gently shaking the right hand that had linked with his was just cute. Only after adding the threat that he would immediately scrape and read aloud all the cringey posts from Seoul’s fan cafe if he got caught, did Seoul finally nod, saying he understood.

Saheon, having finally gotten the answer he wanted, then collapsed. With a sigh, without releasing their linked fingers, he buried his face in Seoul’s shoulder and said, “You know. I don’t care what others babble. It’s enough if you don’t misunderstand, so what’s the problem? Every time you do this, I feel like I’m going crazy. Damn it, seriously, I wish everyone but you would just disappear….”

His murmuring voice truly sounded as if he wished for the end of the world.

No, more than that, it seemed like he was praying for everything to crumble away, leaving only this one room….

Seoul, unable to reprimand him as usual, could only pat Saheon’s back. Without ever knowing, even if he died and woke up, what kind of dark imaginations the guy leaning on him was having in his head.

Anyway, after that, Seoul’s YouTube account was deleted for reasons: 1. algorithm contamination, 2. illegitimate browsing, 3. just share it with me. Since Seoul only subscribed to cooking recipe channels and movie review channels anyway, he had no lingering regrets. They then shared a new account, and for a while, his search history was subject to unannounced inspections, but well. It was a situation that happened occasionally even before, so he often showed it first.

Because Seoul knew everything.

He knew Saheon’s anxieties, his worries, and where the roots of all those actions, which could only be considered excessive, originated.

In any case, what could he do when Saheon hated him getting sick from seeing rumors and gossip more than the rumors and gossip themselves? After that day, Seoul caught a “disease” where he couldn’t even type the first letter of Seo Saheon’s name into a search engine. Still, there was no way to block the gossip that came to his ears unexpectedly.

Isn’t the entertainment industry also a place full of talk and trouble?

Even in a place where various incidents and accidents exploded daily, Saheon’s actions were not just noticeable but uniquely unparalleled.

After his debut like a comet, he constantly served up high-stimulus dopamine, making it even harder to pretend not to notice. Moreover, even after all that chaos, not only did he not fall, but things only went well for him, which was bizarre. Did that guy save a country in his past life? No, looking at him, it seemed like he sold the country and then saved it again….

Naturally, various stories about him circulated, and Seoul’s filming set was no different. He didn’t want to reveal their relationship himself and tried hard to pretend not to know, but just as the level of explicitness increased, ‘that’ breaking news broke out.

A two-shot of Seo Saheon and Lee Seoul.

When a photo released by IsPatch and Saheon’s OnStar were uploaded, everyone became cautious as if by agreement. Of course, it was natural in front of a lifelong friend who was more than just a childhood buddy. Seoul’s mood was always subtle, even as he watched people naturally change the subject and guard their words.

Yes, just like now.

Seoul once again focused on Sukyung’s lips, which were moving silently. The camera was still blinking a red light, its pupil wide open.

[Q. What was the most upsetting moment?]

“When he took being misunderstood for granted. When he just brushed it off without correcting it, saying it was enough if only his people understood, no matter what others said. Every time that happened, I felt so frustrated and upset, but he would rather get upset about that. Without budging on his own issues.”

[Q. Then, what kind of person is Seo Saheon in the eyes of his best friend?]

“He’s someone who can’t bear other people’s wounds more than his own. At least the Saheon I know is like that. In fact, one of the reasons I appeared on this program was that. I wanted people to know that he’s actually a good person when you get to know him.”

Of course, there was another main reason. It was Mr. Momo’s stubborn insistence, not stubbornness, to finally put a stop to the public’s disbelief that Lee Seoul and Seo Saheon were best friends. Although the situation began because of that, the reason Seoul just mentioned was actually more significant to him. Since he had decided to appear, shouldn’t he gain something from it?

He didn’t wish for much.

He just wanted the baseless speculations surrounding Saheon to die down even a little through this program. Because some hatred also stems from not knowing the person well. Seoul hoped these two weeks would be used for that.

He explained with such a sentiment…, but Sukyung’s face, looking at him, was putting on a real-time face-changing show.

She nodded as if moved by Seoul’s answer, then drew a question mark, shuffled through the question sheet on the table, and then suppressed a laugh. Then, when their eyes met, she made an effort to put on a serious expression, her mouth trembling slightly. Not knowing why she was acting like that because of his story, he blinked, and Sukyung cleared her throat, saying, “Uh, I’m really sorry to break the good atmosphere, Mr. Seoul….”

[Q. Saheon said he decided to appear because Mr. Seoul told him to break off their friendship?]

“…What?”

At the sudden, baseless fabrication that came out of nowhere, Seoul had no choice but to give a dumbfounded answer for the first time since the interview began.