SWAP 5

“Hyung, did things wrap up well?”

Click. It was the moment I had managed to roughly settle the situation and stepped out of the CEO’s office. At the sound of a voice calling out as if waiting for me, Seoul, who had been dragging Saheon halfway out, turned his head in surprise.

It was Heo Geonsu, his manager.

Just how long had he been there? Looking at him standing all alone by the door of the CEO’s office without making a sound, Seoul asked with a bewildered face.

“Geonsu, why are you here? Were you waiting for me?”

“Yes sir! I thought you’d be out soon. You’re going home now, right? I’ll give you a lift.”

Geonsu, who spread open his clenched fist, smiled brightly. Seeing the car keys dangling between his fingers, it seemed he had been standing guard lest Seoul leave without him. I had already told him to get off work early since there were no schedules starting tomorrow anyway….

My heart felt heavy because it seemed he had ignored those words and waited all this time. It felt like I had made him stand in the hallway as a punishment when I didn’t know when I’d be out. Even though it had been well over a year since he became my manager, he was the type who was devoted to his assigned celebrity to an almost excessive degree.

Enthusiasm is good, but no matter how many times I told him he didn’t need to go that far, it was useless.

“I told you to go home, yet you waited again. Even if I say I’ll contact you myself if I need anything…”

“Ayy, you aren’t going to call me. This is more comfortable for me. I was worried because you didn’t look so good earlier, Hyung, and I don’t have anything to do at home anyway.”

“…….”

If he had nothing to do, couldn’t he at least rest comfortably?

Still, I couldn’t scold a kid who had been on standby the whole time out of worry any further. When I let out an unintentional, airy laugh, his face brightened immediately as if he knew exactly what that signal meant.

Watching Geonsu add a cute “You aren’t going to be mad, right?” while his gaze shifted toward the back like a magnet, Seoul had no choice but to nod. It was because the next scene played out automatically.

“Still, thanks to waiting like this, I get to see Saheon Hyung-nim’s face too… it’s a total kill-two-birds-with-one-stone, hehe. You’ve been well, Hyung-nim? You’re still perfect even after not seeing you for a while.”

“Yes.”

As expected.

Seeing Geonsu finally unable to hold back his fan heart and greeting Saheon, Seoul burst into a small laugh.

The fact that Heo Geonsu was a hardcore fan of Seo Saheon was famous even within the agency. Look at him now. He’s on the verge of tearing up at that single “Yes,” a word in which you couldn’t find a grain of sincerity even if you washed your eyes and looked.

In comparison, Seo Saheon had eyes that weren’t just fish-like, but half-dead.

“I even bought four copies of Mono last week!”

“Just buy one copy.”

His tone suggested the paper was a waste of resources to anyone listening, but Geonsu preached his theory as if such a thing were impossible. One copy? That makes no sense.

“Ugh, how can I do that? One for keeping, one for display, one for appreciation, and one for burial—that makes four total! This is already your fourth time being the cover model there, right? You sold out the products again this time…! Man, you’re really cool. To think this Carde collaboration was tailored for you, my heart is racing so much, whew! You know what I mean, right!”

“Arrhythmia.”

“Hyung-nim, your jokes are just, wow. Truly innovative.”

“Why do you think it’s a joke?”

“Ah, my stomach hurts, seriously.”

What is “fan heart”? Despite Seo Saheon’s answer, which had completely tossed his manners out the window, Heo Geonsu roared with laughter as if he had heard the funniest story in the world. He was fearless, even though he clearly knew the person across from him was someone who could give you arrhythmia even if you didn’t have it. Suddenly, Seo Saheon, who didn’t have a lick of talent for making people laugh, became the world’s best comedian.

This made things awkward for Seoul.

When I stole a glance with a worried heart, sure enough, Saheon’s face had already turned icy.

Then get lost to a hospital.

Feeling like Saheon might inflict a justifiable injury on the other person at any moment, I gave the wrist I was holding a firm tug. The gaze that had been fixed on Heo Geonsu slid down. When I shook my head slightly as if telling him not to, he twitched an eyebrow once and, remarkably, kept his mouth shut.

He listens well at times like this.

Seoul, letting out a snort because the stubbornness he showed in the CEO’s office felt like a lie, turned his gaze toward Geonsu.

The man, who had stopped laughing, was now muttering in a voice dripping with regret, saying how great it would have been if he could have been the manager for both of them. Seeing how much he liked Saheon, I actually found it a bit cute.

Still, I felt I had to stop him soon, so I opened my mouth.

“Um, Geonsu.”

“Seoul is going in my car, so you go home now.”

However, I couldn’t properly finish my sentence.

At the voice that cut in firmly as if he had never been silent, Heo Geonsu’s non-stop fanboying talk came to a dead halt. Oops. Snapping his fingers at his main job which he had momentarily forgotten, he shouted with a bright smile as if he had just thought of a great idea.

“Did you drive here? If you’re tired, I can drive for you. I don’t have any outside work tomorrow anyway!”

“I see. Go home.”

“Yes sir!”

Being a long-time fan of Seo Saheon, Heo Geonsu, who was well aware of his no-retreat personality, quickly agreed and backed off. Saying the same thing twice was a danger signal. If he didn’t want to “retire” from life, it was right to get lost now.

As he slid out of the way, clearing the path he had been blocking, Saheon moved his feet as if he had been waiting.

Seoul, who was holding his wrist, was also dragged along by inertia.

Seoul, unable to keep up with the situation, took a few steps while saying “Uh, uh,” and then turned his head late. Heo Geonsu, back to his usual beaming face, was now waving both hands.

“W-we’ll go first. You worked hard today, Geonsu. …Hey! Go slow!”

The speed was too fast. Because of Saheon who was striding forward as if to brag about his long legs, Seoul, who ended up practically shouting his farewell into thin air, got a little annoyed. As soon as I loosened my grip to let go of the wrist I was holding, he noticed it like a ghost and grabbed my wrist in return. I couldn’t tell what he was doing.

“Why are you being like this, is someone chasing us?”

“Yeah.”

“There’s no one here…?”

On the 8th floor where the CEO’s office was located, not even a single ant was passing by except for them. Even so, when Saheon answered brazenly and I chattered something in disbelief, more nonsense came back. It was a side of him he could only show because there were no other employees around.

The two, who began bickering like that, disappeared around the end of the hallway.

Until then, Heo Geonsu stood there with his hand raised, his expression unchanged.

“Don’t get too close to him.”

It was just as we had gotten into Saheon’s car, parked in a corner of the underground parking lot. Seoul’s face turned puzzled at the out-of-the-blue remark while he was fumbling to find the seatbelt clip. Without even having to dig through his memories, the only person he had just met was his manager.

“Are you talking about Geonsu by any chance?”

“Yeah.”

“What’s this? Are you doing fan management, Seo Saheon?”

Fan management. It was a phrase so ill-suited to Seo Saheon that the corners of Seoul’s mouth turned up into a smile. Saheon, staring intently at Seoul who was snickering at his own words, reached out and pulled the clip for him. After buckling the belt, he grabbed the small face with one hand and squeezed both cheeks, making the lips pop out like a bird’s beak.

Only then did Seoul finally stop laughing and shook his head as if he understood.

Whenever Saheon didn’t want to hear something or was being cranky, he always squashed my cheeks like this, so I couldn’t say a word.

Nevertheless, he didn’t let go immediately but kept squeezing both sides alternately with his fingers, until I finally slapped the back of his hand. Seoul, glaring without any real malice at Saheon who finally withdrew his hand after getting hit, covered his cheeks which had already become stinging. He hadn’t even applied much pressure, but the skin that had been pressed felt hot.

In the meantime, the car, which had been started, began to leave the parking lot quickly.

“Why, he acts like that because he likes you. He’s just a bit excessive, but he’s a good kid. He always tries to work hard.”

“…….”

“You say this, but you get along well with him too. You usually don’t even respond if you don’t like someone.”

Since they even exchanged numbers and kept in touch, I was more puzzled as to why he was acting like this. Just a moment ago, too. Normally, Seo Saheon, who would ignore people and be consistent with his silence, had actually given a “response.”

So I had made my own guess.

Or did something happen between the two of them separately?

I tilted my head since nothing specifically came to mind, and the car body came to a slow stop. Saheon, looking at the red light of the traffic signal, muttered nonchalantly.

“It’s because he’s your manager.”

If it’s not that, what other reason is there to contact him. It’s just because of you.

At the slowly added sentence, Seoul’s face, which had been looking out the window, froze exactly as it was. It was a million times fortunate that he was turning his head to the side. If he hadn’t, it was obvious his awkward expression would have been caught.

I know. I know it’s a statement without any special meaning.

Just as I bit my lip, thinking I was a fool for being startled even while knowing that, Saheon spoke as if he had read Seoul’s thoughts.

“You know it too. That there isn’t a single person with a sane mind among those who like me.”