Best Friend X Swap

He must not have expected to be touched so suddenly—he didn’t even react when the hand that had been pressing his forehead poked him in the cheek.
It was meant as a small way to make up, yet it didn’t seem to help. Just when Seo-eul was sinking back into thought, the lips that had been tightly shut curved faintly upward. Seeing that, he dropped every bit of his worry.
If you’re going to act sulky, at least commit to it.
Giving up your pout at the first touch was just foolish.
When Seo-eul couldn’t suppress his laugh and began to chuckle, Sa-heon’s mouth pulled up too. No matter how much they bickered, they never lasted more than a few minutes—something that made both of them laugh even more.
“Can you drive now?”
“Yes.”
“Then hurry, let’s go. It’s first-come, first-served.”
“Should I floor it?”
“The cameras are rolling, you know?”
Speed cameras might be fooled, but not the ones installed inside the car. Seo-eul pointed to the camera lens fixed firmly to the mount and running steadily; Sa-heon gave a half-hearted nod and shifted gears.
A voice announced that it would take about an hour to reach their entered destination. The car started moving.
They had thought about stopping by a café, but Sa-heon flatly refused and drove without a single break, pushing the car to the legal speed limit. The crew’s car following behind had the hard time instead.
Maybe I should’ve just driven. Watching the scenery pass, Seo-eul glanced sideways at the driver’s seat. The thought that he had made the guy who’d already had a rough morning drive on top of that pricked his conscience. Since both of them were listed under the car insurance anyway, he suggested pulling over for a switch, but the answer was only, “Put on some music.”
Realizing he had no intention of changing, Seo-eul murmured quietly,
“Then let’s eat something good later.”
After picking and playing a song, neither spoke again.
It felt wrong to stay silent during a broadcast, but overdoing it would look worse, so he kept his mouth shut. Leaning comfortably against the seat, he soon felt drowsiness creep in—a leftover from last night’s lack of sleep.
Falling asleep in the passenger seat would be the worst look, so he blinked rapidly to stay awake—until a soft laugh brushed his ear.
“You can sleep if you want.”
That voice, low and lulling like a lullaby, made his head almost tip over before he straightened it again. He’d nearly dozed off. Startled, Seo-eul stiffened and lightly tapped his own cheek. It was supposed to wake him up, but a large hand immediately caught his wrist and pulled it down. When had he even noticed?
And people call this guy indifferent. What are they thinking?
Seo-eul knew all about the rumors and gossip swirling around Sa-heon. Knowing that, he somehow felt indignant on his behalf. Even though the man himself didn’t seem to care one bit.
While Seo-eul fumed quietly, Sa-heon’s car came to a stop in front of a neat two-story house.
Their home for the next two weeks—Friendly House.
***
Even with his mind steeled, the moment they arrived, nerves kicked in. Dragging a large suitcase in one hand, Seo-eul stepped through the front door, his expression stiff. He tried to act natural, but tension showed even from behind, making Sa-heon chuckle as he followed.
Taking his shoes off carefully, Seo-eul stepped inside.
“Excuse us.”
…No answer.
Both had expected their partner pair to have arrived first, and their faces turned puzzled.

Maybe he spoke too quietly.
He tried again, raising his voice a little.
“…Is anyone here?”
He waited a few more seconds, but the house remained completely silent.
Confused, Seo-eul set his suitcase upright and began looking around. Even after going up to the second floor, there wasn’t a single sign of a person—only countless cameras everywhere. He came back down to the living room.
Sa-heon was already sitting right in the middle of the sofa, not even pretending to look around.
“At this point, you look more like the homeowner.”
“Seems like no one’s here.”
Maybe the others hadn’t finished their swap missions yet?
Seo-eul tilted his head in confusion and sat across from him. At that exact moment, both of their phones went off loudly at once.
Startled again, Seo-eul hurried to check his screen. It was going to take a while before he got used to this.
chat
(NEW!) Congratu★lations!! RewardConfirmationRequired ☞☞Click Now to Claim
It still looked just like spam.
Unlocking the phone, he tapped the push message. A pop-up identical to before appeared—another glaring red confirmation window.
★★ Congratulations! ★★
~First-come Event Closed~
☞ 10 Coins Awarded Instantly ☜
Congratulations on arriving first!
The Friendly Market is now open—check it out >>NOW<“Looks like we really did get here first.”
“Yeah.”
Sa-heon was staring at the same pop-up on his own screen.
Frowning slightly, Seo-eul studied his display again. The garish interface still made him wary, but curiosity won. He tapped the confirm button.
The page switched over immediately.
[FRIENDLY MARKET]
[Open Period: 05.17_05.30]
-Friendship Coins can only be earned through events and partner exchanges.
-Purchased items will be delivered to your partner on the final day.
-Only one item may be purchased—choose carefully.
-Do not disclose the product list to anyone.
They’d already heard the guide during the pre-shoot meeting. Nothing much had changed since the previous season.
The last clause was the key point: no talking about the product list, nor about what kind of gift you planned to buy. You could give vague hints if you wanted, but whether those were believed was up to your partner.
Sure, some teams joined forces and shared good items—but just as many sabotaged each other for laughs.
If it were just some casual friendship, maybe it wouldn’t matter. But his partner was his real best friend.
Caring deeply went hand in hand with wanting to mess with each other.
The memory of that ridiculous “character socks” episode flashed through Seo-eul’s mind, making him uneasy. He could still picture Sa-heon smugly presenting a ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) toddler’s baseball cap back then.
Sa-heon—who loved to act innocent while being absolutely sincere about teasing him.
There was no guarantee he wouldn’t start giggling over a new “NEW!” tag this time too.
What was funny to the audience wasn’t always easy to live through. Feeling suddenly anxious, Seo-eul sighed and scrolled down the screen.
First, he needed to check the exchange list—then he’d think.
[AVAILABLE ITEMS]
Asibel X La121 18th-Anniversary Loafers <100 Coins>
Tom X S. Q Limited Belt <80 Coins>
·
·
Bottled-Water Voucher <5 Coins>
Squid-Peanut Snack <3 Coins>
Wish Coupon <1 Coin>
“……!”
He’d only meant to skim lightly through the list, but his eyes widened like saucers.
Asibel X La121, the 18th-anniversary collab!
He had searched everywhere and given up—those loafers were impossible to find.
His heart started pounding fast. Shoe collecting was Sa-heon’s one and only hobby, and this was one of the rare models he’d coveted.
They had first seen it together during Fashion Week footage—a passerby wore them, but no one knew the brand. It took ages of digging just to find the product name, but that was where the problem began.
There were no listings.
It was a limited edition released years ago, but even so, the total absence of resale was strange.
Only scattered brag posts appeared now and then. Looking deeper, Seo-eul had learned it was because of the collaborator brand—one notorious for its obsessive cult-like collectors. The collaboration year itself apparently held special meaning for them.
And the rarer something is, the harder it is to find.
If it had gone mainstream, at least there would have been a re-release or resale—but no.
He had even asked staff and actors from the drama he was filming at the time, only to hear, “That model existed?” and nothing more. Eventually, he had given up.
And now here it was!
He wanted to share the news immediately, but the market rules forbade revealing the product list.
It wasn’t even his own gift, yet his tongue tingled with the effort of keeping quiet. He was so thrilled he barely noticed the price tag of 100 coins.
“What’s up?”
Catching Seo-eul’s reaction, Sa-heon looked puzzled. Wasn’t he seeing the same screen? There was no way to know why he’d suddenly look that delighted. Nor could he guess that from now on, his entire fate would revolve around those loafers.
Just as he tilted his head, the previously silent front door burst into noise.
Could it be—
Their eyes met with the same realization.
“Hey, don’t push me—!”
The door lock beeped open, and two men tumbled noisily inside.