SWAP 79

“Oh? I hung the tie up together with it…”

At the sound of a staff member’s somewhat flustered voice, Seoul, who was sitting on a chair in the waiting room, naturally turned his head. Saheon, who had entered not even a minute ago, was already coming out of the dressing room, adjusting his cuffs after changing into his outfit. Saheon, who had shed his clothes at a speed that left no time for admiration, pointed inside and replied briefly.

“I’ll just go without it. It’ll be annoying because I’m going to take it off in the middle anyway.”

As he spoke, he pointedly undid two more buttons of his innermost shirt. Seoul’s lips, which had been about to say something regarding the tie, clamped shut like a clam. While wondering how to naturally turn his gaze away since it had become fixed on him, his eyes met Saheon’s head-on. With long legs, Saheon narrowed the distance in a single stride, approaching until there was only a gap of about two spans between them.

Between a charcoal-colored suit tailored a size larger for the fit, a vest with a deep neckline, and a flowing black shirt that hung open, his splendidly toned pectoral muscles were revealed.

The effect of being cooped up in the gym for several hours since early morning was apparent; even without oil or body makeup, the contours were perfect.

“…”

He was relatively used to seeing Saheon’s bare body. Since Saheon would strip his top off at the drop of a hat, Seoul’s heart wouldn’t last if he reacted to it every single time. However, it was his first time seeing this kind of exposure right before his eyes. When he had encountered it through fashion show videos or pictorial magazines, his only thought was that it looked cool, but facing the real thing, the back of his neck felt prickly for no reason.

But that was only for a moment.

He internally censored the scenes flashing through his mind, telling himself he didn’t know what he was thinking in front of someone who had come to work.

Seoul, leaning against the backrest, whipped his body to the side. He planned to strike up a conversation with a nearby stylist just to clear the air, but Seo Saheon was not one to let that happen.

Saheon was a person who wouldn’t hesitate to do things he usually only did at fashion shows, fearing Seoul might scurry out to the studio while he was in the dressing room. Fortunately, Seoul hadn’t vanished and left him behind, but Saheon wasn’t about to be pleased with Seoul not looking at him. Without hiding his twisting gaze, Saheon stretched out his arm.

“Is it bad? I went to all the trouble of dressing up, but you won’t even look at me.”

Rattle. A large hand gripped the chrome frame of the chair and turned it toward him in one go. Thanks to that, Seoul was forced to face Saheon again, making his attempt to turn away futile. Due to his hunched back, Saheon revealed the silhouette of his well-defined abs beneath his vulnerably open shirt.

Gulp. Seoul, who almost let his Adam’s apple bob involuntarily, snapped out of it with a start. Not being a pervert, he found his sudden self-consciousness embarrassing and decided he would rather speak instead. He felt it would be better to engage in conversation if things were going to develop this way.

“What are you talking about? Since when has anything about you been ‘bad’…”

“You were the one who once told me never to choose my own clothes.”

“…”

…That was hard to deny.

It was because Seoul, horrified by his best friend’s nonsensical fashion sense, had issued a “styling ban” on Saheon at some point.

He could tolerate it if it were just the two of them, but Saheon would commit acts of terrorism in official settings by pointedly picking mismatched tops and bottoms, leaving Seoul with no choice. Because of their professions, once Seoul realized this, it had already been several years since he naturally began choosing clothes for Saheon instead.

It’s strange. I don’t think it was originally this bad…

Seoul, suddenly puzzled, had expressed doubt once, but Saheon’s claim was firm. “I wore nothing but school uniforms the whole time, so where would I have had a choice? Wasn’t it enough just to distinguish between the winter and summer uniforms? You told me not to get demerit points. I followed the school rules, so I guess I looked somewhat normal.”

It was all true, so there was nothing to point out. Seoul, having accepted it in a daze, just nodded his head. Little did he know the inner thoughts of Saheon, who had suppressed a hollow laugh at that gullible response.

What do you mean, “I guess so.”

How many times did he even show up at school for him to nod at that.

Even if they counted the uniform years, it was only 6 years. Despite the number of times they met in casual clothes being overwhelmingly higher, Saheon pushed the point so blatantly that Seoul just vacantly let it slide. In truth, it was simply something Saheon did because he wanted to be handled by Seoul’s hands from one to ten, but Seoul didn’t go so far as to suspect that.

It had been that way since they were young. No matter how reckless Saheon was, if he made a claim, Seoul couldn’t bring himself to be stubborn. It might be due to his innate personality, and partly due to his tendency to give in to someone he likes… but above all, the biggest reason was a belief in Saheon that was close to an imprint.

The conviction that regardless of the process or result, in the end, it would all be for him.

It was a religious emotion that sometimes made even love seem trivial. Since Saheon had also said something similar, Seoul couldn’t weigh or judge it. Of course, it probably wasn’t the same kind of “love” as his… but regardless, that much was enough. Letting out a sigh filled with such feelings, Seoul muttered softly.

“This isn’t an outfit you chose.”

“So.”

“I’m saying you look cool. So hurry up and sit down to get your makeup done. They’re waiting behind you.”

It was a staff member familiar to him because they used the same shop. Remembering that they had often come for on-site work at Seoul’s filming sets, he gave a short nod, and they smiled and greeted him back. Remembering that he felt comfortable because they weren’t very talkative, Seoul firmly pushed the Saheon standing in front of him, and Saheon reluctantly plopped down into the seat next to him.

Only then did the waiting personnel rush in from all sides. Since the on-site lighting was already mostly set up, they seemed hurried. Watching the cushions and brushes smeared with various cosmetics glide along Saheon’s skin texture from the side, Seoul felt a somewhat strange sensation. Even though it wasn’t his first or second time seeing someone get makeup done on-site.

As shadows were added naturally layer by layer, his already handsome face became bright as if an LED bulb had been attached to it.

Since his appearance was naturally superior, it was hard to tell if this was through rose-colored glasses or not, so Seoul just gave up and rested his chin on his hand.

Then, suddenly thinking he might be staring too much, it was the moment he glanced once at the nearby VJ.

“Why. Do I look worth seeing now that I’m powdered up?”

Saheon, who noticed like a ghost that the fixed gaze had vanished, asked nonchalantly. Seoul considered ignoring him, but since it was true that he was worth seeing, he backed down and nodded quietly.

“Yeah.”

“What, should I go to the shop every morning from now on then?”

“Honestly. I can’t say anything to you… right?”

Seoul, letting out a soft laugh, raised his head and asked the question playfully. The hair stylist, who was waiting to start styling immediately after the makeup was finished, replied in an awkward tone, “Pardon? Ah, ye-yes.” This young staff member was chanting prayers internally because being with Lee Seoul in addition to the already 100-times-stressful Seo Saheon was overwhelming.

Whether he noticed they were curling their toes tightly or not, Seoul asked various questions in a sweet tone. It wasn’t of great significance, but it was small talk enough to relax their stiffened fingers. Seo Saheon, watching that scene in real-time, put all his effort into suppressing the corners of his mouth that kept trying to pull upward. It was because Lee Seoul—who was more shy than anyone else yet crushed it with acting skills to pretend otherwise—was absurdly cute, and also annoying.

Why is he acting like a puppy watching someone’s reaction since earlier.

If it weren’t for the styling, Saheon wanted to firmly squish and fiddle with his cheeks.

Had it not been for the tight schedule, Seoul—who might have experienced the shameful situation of his lips popping out—was busy smiling without knowing a thing. Regardless, since the fact that he was an uninvited guest remained unchanged, his principle was that it was natural to treat everyone with this level of energy.

Not long after, knock knock, the waiting room door opened, and Geosu’s bright face peeked in. Seeing Saheon, who was nearly finished with his preparations, his eyes lit up like a lightning bolt, and he took a deep breath to suppress his excitement.

“Hyung-nim, we’ll start filming immediately.”

Even though he saw that whole sight, Saheon stood up from his seat without a word and pulled Seoul along first.

While his wrist was being caught and led out as usual, Seoul asked Geosu a question that suddenly occurred to him.

“Oh, come to think of it, what kind of commercial shoot is this?”

“…Hyung, you came here without even knowing that?”

Heo Geosu, looking fascinated that Seoul still didn’t know even after arriving at the studio, slunk closer to Seoul’s side. Then, as if conscious of something, he spoke while intentionally staying about a span away.

“It’s a perfume commercial!”

“…What?”

At the word that had drained all his energy since this morning, Seoul unintentionally flinched and stopped his steps. Even Saheon, who was walking ahead, came to a dead stop and turned around. He was feigning expressionlessness, but Seoul alone could tell clearly.

Right now, he has a look in his eyes that says he’s dying to tease me.