SWAP 65

Holy shit, what did I just hear?

Swallowing a curse that he couldn’t quite let out loud, Saheon’s gaze pierced through Seoul as if to pin him down. It wasn’t exactly a flash of his life passing before his eyes, but his mind entered a temporary state of panic with hundreds and thousands of scenes and thoughts streaking through his brain in an instant. Yet even in that chaos, Saheon perfectly captured the expression that flickered across Lee Seoul’s face, leaving him no choice but to scowl fiercely.

Why? Because it was utterly ridiculous, of course.

Lee Seoul was the one who had just spat out such an absurd statement, yet he looked somewhat aggrieved and resentful, as if he were the one who had been hurt.

It was a flash that lasted less than a few seconds, and he quickly wiped the expression away to pretend everything was fine, but Saheon had witnessed it clearly.

The problem was that Saheon had no way of knowing what kind of context that resentment stemmed from. He felt flabbergasted, since he was the one who was actually dying of unfairness. Just as Seo Saheon was about to grind his teeth and reflect on every nook and cranny of the last 29 years, a voice broke the tension.

“Whoa…! Tissues, tissues!”

After a brief moment of being frozen by Seoul’s unexpected bombshell, Ye Juyeol was the first to snap out of it and belatedly discovered the beer can that had fallen under the sofa. As soon as he saw the contents spilling unreservedly onto the floor, he searched for tissues like a sounding siren. Reacting reflexively, Seoul stood up and set the overturned beer can upright.

He then knelt down and hurriedly lifted the carpet laid out nearby. He pulled back the edge to keep it from getting wet, and almost simultaneously, a thick pile of tissues was dumped onto the drenched floor. It was Saheon. Having pulled out a pack of pocket tissues that had been hidden by the nacho plate, he dropped the whole thing and handled the situation quickly before Seoul could even try to do anything.

He stuffed the soggy, wet tissues into an empty popcorn bucket, brought wet wipes from the kitchen to wipe the spot a couple more times, and finished by spraying deodorizer; now, the only thing left on the floor was Seoul. Since the cleanup was finished so instantly, Saheon grabbed the waist of Seoul—who was sitting blankly still holding the carpet—and sat him back down in his spot.

Getting pissed off is one thing…

But he brushed off Seoul’s reddish knees and wiped his hands with an extra wet wipe. Watching this, Ye Juyeol and Yun Hyeok, who had been frozen in a standing position, cautiously settled back onto the sofa. Like Seoul, they felt awkward because the situation had ended before they could even move.

Exchanging a look with Yun Hyeok, Ye Juyeol brought back the previous topic to try and lighten the mood.

“Ah, haha. I didn’t mean it in that way… it was just a metaphor for how things are relatively~. Naturally, someone of your caliber, Mister… wow, it’s nonsense that your first kiss hasn’t happened yet! People who like you must be lined up for over a thousand meters, so of course…”

“Where.”

“That much… huh?”

“Where are they standing.”

However, it was a poor choice.

The expression of Ye Juyeol, who had been explaining diligently so as not to be misunderstood by Seoul, instantly became distant.

Asking where they were standing. If he were to run out right now and ask people to raise their hands, the number would easily exceed a million. Wondering if he truly didn’t know, he reflexively checked Seo Saheon, and in that moment, he was forced to hurriedly swallow his next words.

Saheon looked ready to fire a flame thrower at the spot if such a crowd actually gathered.

The atmosphere that had been softly relaxed just a few minutes ago was gone, replaced by rain clouds that were not just dark but ominous, hanging over their heads. Looking at Saheon’s terrifying face, he felt like he might catch a chill despite it being early summer.

What is wrong with that man again?

Since he had no knack for matching Saheon’s moods, which fluctuated like a seesaw, he could only gape like a goldfish. Yun Hyeok, who grasped the atmosphere more keenly than anyone else there, poked Ye Juyeol in the ribs without mercy. It was a sign asking why he was pouring oil on a fire. Regardless of whether he understood this or not, Ye Juyeol—whose eyes were already dead—avoided everyone’s gaze and muttered.

“Well, somewhere… somewhere…. Haha…”

“…”

“…”

…After that, it was a silence like a grave.

Unlike before, in an atmosphere that had become extremely awkward, only the innocent movie was racing toward its middle and final acts.

As it was a hit work, various interpretations existed for each sequence, and Ye Juyeol, who had wanted to ask Seoul for all sorts of opinions, stabbed his own thigh while shedding tears of blood. Even when he glanced back with a sliver of hope, he was forced to give up because Saheon was staring intently at Seoul with a lethal expression every single time.

Another hour passed like that, and as soon as the credits rolled, Yun Hyeok jumped up from the sofa and said while grabbing Ye Juyeol’s arm.

“Wow, I really want to drink just one more can. Unfortunately, this was the last of the beer. Hyung, by any chance, where did you leave your card? We’ll run to the convenience store and buy some quickly.”

“Ah… then keep watching the next movie. I’ll go…”

“No! It’s fine. We’ll just go. My hobby happens to be touring convenience stores. If there’s a convenience store nearby, I only feel satisfied after checking out all this month’s promotional items. There’s a joy in looking at them in person.”

“Oh, right. Then you should go. I left it on the side table by the stairs.”

Seoul nodded blankly at the confession of a unique hobby he was hearing for the first time in his life. When he pointed with his fingertip to the place where he had left the card so anyone could pick it up just in case, Yun Hyeok—moving faster than ever before—grabbed the card and Ye Juyeol in both hands and disappeared out the front door in an instant.

The surprise at that lightning speed lasted only a moment. Soon, silence returned once more. Seoul, who had refused to look toward Saheon’s side for a while, lowered his curled-up feet to the floor. As he showed signs of quietly leaving his seat, Saheon asked coldly.

“Where are you going. The screening isn’t over yet.”

“…To drink water.”

“It’s on the table.”

“Ice water.”

“I’ll get it for you. Stay seated.”

Ice water, my ass. Even in the middle of summer, he only ever drinks room-temperature water. Because of that, Saheon—who had the habit of turning the dial back after drinking cold water—strode to the kitchen. When he handed over a mug filled with ice, Seoul said thanks, while keeping his gaze pinned to the floor again. Saheon wanted to ask if he had crawled here on the floor, but he held back, fearing he would sound unnecessarily confrontational.

Instead, he cooled his burning insides by crunching and chewing on his own share of ice. If it weren’t for the cameras and microphones installed everywhere, he would have already thrown a fit asking which guy or girl it was. The only reason he endured that chimney-like urge was because of Lee Seoul. He didn’t care about other people’s eyes or his image, but Seoul did.

But his patience was being tested here again.

“By the way, Seoul-ah. You’ve never even dated, so what do you mean, first kiss.”

When he asked, making his tone as rounded as possible to avoid sounding crooked, Seoul—who was just rattling the ice he wasn’t even eating—whipped his head around. His eyes, which had been a bit gloomy until the morning, were now as sharp as star candy. So what if he looked at him like that? Even so, he was just a star candy, so it was only ridiculous.

He looks like he’d be nothing but sweet if licked.

It was absurd because Saheon could clearly see Seoul getting scared and bursting into tears if he were to roll his tongue and suck him gently everywhere.

“Why. We’ve never been apart, so isn’t it obvious what our dating situations are?”

“…Do you necessarily have to be dating to do that?”

“Why would you rub lips if you’re not dating.”

“It can happen. Are you some kind of old village schoolmaster?”

“What, will you listen if I bring out a switch? Why is this kid suddenly acting so bold?”

“You only do it with a lover, then.”

Look at him. Unlike usual, he didn’t back down a single step. Saheon, sweeping his lower teeth with his tongue, fell silent for a moment. When a sudden silence settled in, Seoul also faltered. Their eyes, which had been locked as if in a staring contest, trembled slightly before blinking, blinking, and slowly plummeting downward. Like a toy doll that had suddenly run out of fuel.

“…Forget it. Why are we bickering over this. It has nothing to do with you, so stop it.”

“You’re saying things that hurt my feelings again. A friend is heading down a path of profligacy, so why wouldn’t it have anything to do with me. Seoul-ah, is that all our relationship is?”

“…”

At that reply, his plump lower bottom lip twitched as if something were welling up. He pressed his lips together as if they were about to part, but eventually let out a small sigh instead of a sound. Then his shoulders slumped, and there was that expression again. It was at the moment when Seoul, shaking his head slightly with a discouraged face, whispered, “No, I’m sorry…” that the phone on the table began to ring loudly.

He didn’t need to look to know.

It must be today’s “Best Friend or End of Friendship” mission or whatever. He let out a hollow breath at the terrible timing, but Seoul, hurriedly picking up his phone, began moving his fingers busily.

Soon after, the sound of a slot machine rang out. Saheon, raising one eyebrow with a look of “no way,” asked.

“…Don’t tell me you exchanged me again?”

“Yeah.”

“Hah. For what.”

“Pizza.”

“…”

Simultaneously with the answer, Saheon’s phone vibrated as if it had been waiting. Unable to believe the fact that he had been exchanged for such a lump of carbohydrates in this situation, he turned on the screen, and a notification had arrived as if to mock him.

[Warning]

You have been exchanged by your best friend.

Please [Make pizza yourself at the shop and deliver it] right now!

Time remaining: 05:26:18