Dirty Switch

London...
Joo Taehyun swallowed a bitter smile.

He had never even applied to a university in London. There had been some people earlier who brought up the topic of studying abroad, but still... even then, London hadn’t come up, had it?
Even in this situation, Seo Baekhan was, as always, well-mannered. Rather than outright criticizing him with something like “I don’t have a single grain of affection for you,” he kindly chose this roundabout way to confirm his indifference.
"…Yes."

So what could he do?
Seo Baekhan had always been someone Joo Taehyun could never beat. And now, at this moment, he’d gone and done something he absolutely shouldn’t have, so all that was left was to accept it and back down.
The only thing left for him was a final farewell, and even though he knew that, cowardly Joo Taehyun hesitated several times. Even so, Seo Baekhan waited. It wasn’t really kindness—more like a procedure of compensation. A form of restitution for the bright red mark he’d left on Taehyun’s wrist earlier due to his lapse in emotional control.

"Then… Happy New Year, hyung."
"You too. Study hard."
Then Seo Baekhan lightly ruffled Joo Taehyun’s hair. Just gently enough not to ruin the style a professional had carefully arranged—neither too informal nor too stiff, not too awkward either.

It was a light and playful gesture that felt like a formal apology for rejecting a confession.
But the sight of him turning his back on Taehyun was merciless.
Joo Taehyun stood rooted in place for a while, blankly staring at the back of Seo Baekhan’s head as it turned into a distant dot.

If he knew Taehyun was still staring like this, he’d probably think it was creepy. He wasn’t even into men to begin with—what if he looked back and saw him? That would be a disaster. Even with those worries, he couldn’t take his eyes off him.
Fortunately, Seo Baekhan didn’t look back even once.
Joo Taehyun rubbed his dry face and tapped on his phone screen. He booked a plane ticket to the U.S., even if it required a layover, and sent a message to the family group chat.

He was leaving for Washington today.
***
Eighteen, nineteen, and twenty.

Joo Taehyun had blurry memories of that time.
All he did was study like his life depended on it. Even when he was still in Korea, he had been a diligent student, but after going abroad, he threw himself into his studies like someone haunted.
So much so that people frowned, asking if he was reinforcing stereotypes about Asians. So much so that there were rumors he couldn’t really be the heir to that famous Korean conglomerate—just someone with the same name, considering how obsessively he chased scholarships.
He didn’t care what people said about him. Joo Taehyun needed something to immerse himself in. Even now, the moment he had a little space, Seo Baekhan would come to mind, and the night of the year-end party would replay in his head. So he couldn’t allow himself any leeway. He had to keep pushing forward without rest.

And maybe then… maybe he’d be okay.
He was only twenty. There was no way he’d suffer from Seo Baekhan for the rest of his life.
"…It’ll get better, I’ll forget eventually."

Not long after that day, he deleted Seo Baekhan’s contact information.
He hadn’t even been drinking, and yet he had let his mouth run wild, swept up in the mood. He could no longer trust himself.
Who knew what other embarrassing things he might do on impulse? It was a preemptive measure to prevent another disaster.

He knew blocking was the most foolproof method, but that wasn’t possible. For one, he was still a member of Haechi. He’d submitted a request to remain minimally active as a student abroad, but still.
It felt wasteful now to give up his full membership in Haechi. At least he still had that much sense left.
And someday—if Seo Baekhan got married or something—he would need to at least send a congratulatory message.

That had nothing to do with personal feelings. It was something Joo Taehyun, as the youngest of DH Group, was obligated to do for the household of Assemblyman Seo Hongkyu.
…That was the excuse he gave himself. So he didn’t block him. He just erased the name.
But it was pointless. The truth was, Joo Taehyun had Seo Baekhan’s number memorized. Both the one he used in Korea and the one he used in the U.S.

"Hey, Juju. I heard Seo Baekhan really cares about you?"
Maybe because he had just been thinking about Seo Baekhan’s contact info, but the sudden mention of his name made Joo Taehyun flinch without realizing it.
"You’re seriously one weird bastard. Sometimes you seem like a badly coded A.I."

It was Cheon Seungpil, grandson of the Yunra Foundation, who attended the same school.
"Completely emotionless face, but then his behavior’s all jittery."
"Where’s Seungah?"

"She went to the store."
Cheon Seungpil and Cheon Seungah were fraternal twins. Though their foundation wasn’t massive, it was solid and well-managed. Since they had come to study abroad in roughly the same area and at the same time as Joo Taehyun, they ended up exchanging greetings now and then.
Cheon Seungah had graduated high school early and entered university on an accelerated track, not unlike Taehyun. But Seungpil had been bouncing around various small language schools in the area without much dedication. Last he’d heard, if Seungpil didn’t pass the next program, his student visa might get revoked. That was three months ago. And yet he was still casually hanging around the East Coast, so clearly, he must’ve bribed one of the schools.

"Anyway, is it true or not?"
"I’m not a robot, I’m a person."
"What are you on about? I heard Seo Baekhan really cares about you. I’ve never once heard of that guy giving a damn about anyone, so I was legit shocked."

Ah…
While he was trying so hard to forget, to erase, to feel nothing—his name ambushed him like an ambush, and he couldn’t even process what was said...
What? Seo Baekhan cares about someone? It was such utter nonsense it wasn’t even worth a response.

So that’s why he’d been running around Manhattan like it was his backyard. He must’ve gone to New York and picked up some useless gossip from the Korean-American kids.
"You know the Crown Prince started a scholarship foundation, right?"
As usual, Taehyun tried to let Seungpil’s words go in one ear and out the other, but then the guy suddenly started talking about royalty. Taehyun darted his eyes around, quickly scanning to make sure no other Koreans were nearby. It wasn’t like badmouthing royalty in their absence was some huge deal, but Seungpil didn’t know when to draw the line, so it was better to shut him up. Especially since Taehyun occasionally ended up in pictures or videos.

"They invited all kinds of people to the launch event. Seungah went too. But apparently, the son of Pungjeon Industries was there."
"Pungjeon Industries? Never heard of it."
"What was it… they developed some kind of blood sugar self-monitoring sensor or something, and suddenly got famous. Anyway, the son apparently trashed you at the event. Said something like, ‘He’s an Alpha but disgusting,’ or whatever."

"And? That’s the end of it?"
"End of it?! Some punk you don’t even know dissed you to your face, and you’re just okay with that?"
"I mean, there must’ve been some kind of context to the conversation, right?"

"Uh… I’m not sure about that part. Anyway! The point is, that guy’s dad was invited by the Crown Prince."
Joo Taehyun, who hadn’t been able to grasp why his and Seo Baekhan’s names were being brought up, finally started piecing things together after hearing the Crown Prince's invitation.
"So... what, the VIP gave them orders to stir up the dominant-gender types?"

It wasn’t exactly a wild guess. Stuff like ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) this happened all the time.
Then Seungpil leaned in toward Joo Taehyun, whispering like he was about to reveal some huge secret.
"Yeah, maybe. But get this—Seo Baekhan apparently just lost it and completely humiliated the Pungjeon kid."

"That’s…"
"Come on, everyone knows Seo Baekhan and the Crown Prince don’t get along. But he’s not the kind of guy who takes sides in public like that."
"…"

"So he told everyone not to mess with Joo Taehyun, that he cherishes you like his own younger brother, made a huge fuss, apparently? …Huh? What’s with that look? You didn’t know? I heard this happened a while ago."
Joo Taehyun didn’t know how to respond, so he just went back to staring at his thesis.
"I’m saying! If you were close with Seo Baekhan, you should’ve told me! I want a Stanford recommendation letter. Or even just for Pyongyang University… can’t you ask him for a single letter? Please?"

"…"
"Ugh, shit. This bastard, always with the same blank face—I can never tell what you’re thinking."
"Maybe you’re just too simple-minded?"

"You little—!"
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to tell him—Joo Taehyun simply didn’t know anything.
Seo Baekhan stood up for me? Said he cherishes me like a real younger brother? And this happened a while ago?

There was probably a reason for Seo Baekhan’s behavior. He’d ask his siblings about it later, but his guess for now was that Seo Baekhan had just wanted to ruin the Crown Prince’s scholarship launch event.
‘Joo Taehyun of DH’ was probably still an effective and useful card for him. Whatever the reason, if Seo Baekhan used him to his advantage, he had no complaints. It’s just that…
Joo Taehyun blamed the unreadable academic paper for letting his thoughts drift back to Seo Baekhan again.

A lot of time had passed already.
They didn’t even exchange polite messages anymore. That empty greeting at the year-end party, saying “Let’s meet when you come to Korea,” with no sincerity whatsoever, had been the last thing.
And yet, when he heard Seo Baekhan’s name, when he thought of him—why did it still feel like a cold wind had torn through his chest?

He was out of sight now, so shouldn’t he be out of mind too?
He hadn’t lived that long, but in a way, he’d spent his whole life in unrequited love—yet Joo Taehyun still couldn’t make sense of this wretched emotion.
It was a feeling he had grown entirely on his own, without Seo Baekhan’s permission—so why couldn’t he cut it off at will?

***
─ …So it turns out Pungjeon Industries was in cahoots with the Crown Prince like that.