Dirty Switch

Taehyun-ah, did you get home okay last night?

Heard Yoonwoo noona was pretty drunk, haha.
We’ll be seeing each other more often—let’s get along well!
2:01 a.m.

Joo Taehyun rubbed his eyes hard, stunned. No matter how many times he reread it, it was definitely a message from Seo Baekhan.
“Young master, are you awake? It’s time for breakfast.”
He was still sitting with the phone in his hands when the housekeeper came looking for him—surprised he wasn’t up by 8 a.m., which was unlike him. Taehyun had been reading that short message over and over.

“I’m coming!”
He nearly tripped climbing out of bed, eyes still fixed on his phone screen.
‘We’ll be seeing each other more often—let’s get along well!’

It was nothing special. Just a polite message like any other. And yet—it was the first time Baekhan had ever texted him first.
Of course, it likely wasn’t sent to him alone. It was probably just a courteous gesture from Baekhan to DH Group, not to Joo Taehyun as a person.
Still, it made him happy.

So happy that he couldn’t stop the smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
“Ah…!”
Taehyun was quietly grinning to himself when a sharp pain suddenly pierced deep inside his mouth. He winced, furrowing his brow. What was that? It was an unfamiliar, unpleasant pain.

“Since our baby’s here, let’s all eat now.”
Chairman Joo didn’t bother hiding his displeasure at the breakfast table. It seemed he had already learned about Yoonwoo’s drunk antics from the night before. Luckily, Director Yoo Younghwa had left for an early appointment, sparing the scene from further escalation.
At first, Yoonwoo had slurred slightly like a typical drunk, but she’d chatted just fine with Taehyun on the way home and fallen asleep quietly near the end. He’d thought she was okay.

‘Ugh, Taehyun, I… I…’
‘Noona? What’s wrong?’
‘Tae… blegh!’
He really thought she was fine—right up until she threw up everything she’d eaten in the back seat the moment they pulled into the garage.

He had done his best to clean up quickly and discreetly with the driver, hoping to keep their parents from finding out… but clearly, they already knew.
“…I’m sorry.”
“Hmm?”

The chairman looked up in confusion, a spoonful of dried pollack soup halfway to his mouth. Meanwhile, Yoonwoo sat pale-faced, nearly nose-deep in her bowl, still reeking of a hangover. Feeling guilty, Taehyun hung his head low—missing the frantic head-shaking from his brothers trying to signal him to stop talking.
“I wasn’t sure if you were asleep or just mad, so the driver and I tried to handle it quietly—”

“What are you talking about?”

“Uh, noona… threw up in the car…”
He was about to add that it wasn’t that bad, that she hadn’t really made a mess, that the driver said it’d be fine after a quick interior cleaning—but he didn’t get that far.
“Joo Yoonwoo, you—!”

“Wah! Dad, stop! You’re going to rupture my skull!”
Chairman Joo swung his spoon hard against her back.
“You got other girls drunk, passed out, and puking? In the car? And had your kid brother clean it up in the middle of the night? Huh?!”

“I didn’t! Cha Sojin made me drink!”
“Even with His Highness the Prince there, all you could think about was getting hammered? Bravo! Truly impressive!”
“No! Sojin’s getting married—ugh, urgh… Dad, if you don’t stop, I’m gonna throw up at the table—blegh! Stop!”

“Stop? You stop! You!”
Even as Yoonwoo dry-heaved from the blows, the chairman’s hand didn’t pause for a second.
“Dad! I’m telling the truth! I didn’t want to drink, but Sojin dragged me—ugh!”

Taehyun jumped up to stop his father, but as he did, he was suddenly struck by another wave of pain and clutched his jaw mid-step.
“Taehyun? What’s wrong?”
“Ah, no… it’s just, right here…”

Chairman Joo gave him a side glance—skeptical, suspecting that the youngest was trying to divert attention and take the fall for his sister again.
“You better not be learning bad habits from your sister—”
But when he saw Taehyun’s eyes watering from the pain, he panicked and dropped his spoon. It clattered across the table—only to hit the second eldest in the face by sheer misfortune, drawing a muffled scream.

“My poor baby! Are you crying from pain?”
“I’m not crying! Who said I’m crying? I just got startled…”
Taehyun tapped his lower jaw with his fingertips, unsure of what was happening. Even the light touch made him wince.

“Oh dear, baby…”
Lately, the youngest had become more guarded about expressing emotions. Especially at school or social gatherings, he kept a stony, cold mask, barely speaking.
Only those closest to him, who’d known him his whole life, could catch the rare flickers—like when he was holding back laughter or irritation. About the only thing he visibly reacted to anymore was… Seo Baekhan.

Outside of those moments, even his family sometimes struggled to connect with him. Though at home, he still talked and occasionally acted like a typical kid his age, he never spoke of being in pain or struggling. That’s why his family had been extra sensitive lately, sensing he might be entering a delicate phase.
So for him to cry from pain…
“Wait. Baby—do you think it’s a wisdom tooth?”

The third eldest, who’d been cleaning up some spilled soup, peeked over the table with a suggestion.

“C-Could it be?”
“What kind of pain is it? Sharp and sensitive? Or throbbing and hot?”

“I don’t know… it just hurts so bad I can’t even think straight.”
The chairman examined his youngest’s jaw and finally breathed a little easier.
“Alright. Finish breakfast first, then we’ll go to the dentist together.”

“We’re eating before going to the dentist?”
“Of course. It’s just a wisdom tooth. Nothing to be afraid of. Everyone goes through it. We’ll go to a good clinic, and it’ll be over in no time.”
His brothers chimed in with encouragement. Most agreed the anesthesia shot was the worst part.

Something everyone goes through. Over in a flash…
Just a wisdom tooth.
“I guess it’s nothing then…”

“Exactly. Our baby just has to wait patiently and get it taken out like a champ.”
Their parents were right. Yoonwoo was right.
But what Taehyun thought last night wasn’t wrong either.

No matter how his feelings might change in the future, one thing was clear—his first love, during his messy, growing teenage years… was Seo Baekhan.
Even if the pain of it fades someday, that fact won’t change.
He’d fallen for him without Baekhan’s permission. So now, maybe as long as he didn’t get caught, it was okay. Maybe once it all burned out, once it rotted away and was pulled clean—maybe then, it would be over.

So while his heart still pulled that way, he’d do his best to simply… like him.
Seo Baekhan.
After breakfast, back in his room, Joo Taehyun carefully sent a shy reply to Baekhan. Ttok-tok. His finger hovered over the screen for a long time before it finally tapped down, propelled by nervous excitement and quiet hope.

Hyung, did you get home safe?
My noona got in so much trouble, haha.
9:13 a.m.

I have to get my wisdom tooth pulled today 😔
He knew, of course, that no matter what he sent, Baekhan probably wouldn’t reply with anything special.
But that didn’t matter.

It wasn’t like he’d started liking Seo Baekhan with the hope of becoming anything to him.
Realizing that made him feel calmer than he’d been in a long while. The restless confusion he used to feel had finally quieted. Smiling to himself, Taehyun quickly bit down on his lips to hide it, then added one more message—something he didn’t truly mean.
Hyung, your girlfriend is really pretty.

9:35 a.m.
You two look good together :)
He didn’t actually want to say things like that to someone he liked. But he still wanted to keep the conversation going with Baekhan, even if it meant talking about his girlfriend. He thought—maybe if he mentioned her, he’d get some light, friendly reply back.

But Seo Baekhan didn’t respond.
He wasn’t sure exactly when the message was read, but the “read” mark only disappeared a full day later.