Dirty Switch

Sixteen, autumn.

Since the launch of Haechi, at least once a month—twice if he was lucky—Joo Taehyun had been able to see Seo Baekhan.
Just as he had warned, Haechi operated on a brutally tight schedule. Simply donating funds wasn’t enough to maintain full membership status. Members had to regularly participate in volunteer work or talent-sharing initiatives, submit reports akin to mini-theses, and attend general meetings without fail.
Whereas general meetings were usually just social gatherings for small talk, Haechi’s meetings were actual “business” meetings—rigid evaluations of past performance and upcoming quarterly budgets.

There were even rumors that Prince Yi Hwang read the submitted reports himself, and perhaps because it was still early in the organization’s history, even overseas students were flying back to Korea regularly to participate. No one dared complain that things were too intense.
Joo Yoonwoo had been sorted into the “donation-only” category early on, while Joo Taehyun, still relatively free as a student, dedicated himself fully to Haechi on behalf of DH Group.
And as for Seo Baekhan... he was so busy it seemed like he lived in a 48-hour day. He barely managed to sleep on flights between Korea and California, processed punishing schedules over a couple of days, and then returned overseas. Sometimes, it felt like even on the plane he gave up sleep to keep working. The rules did allow for overseas students to reduce their activity levels, but Seo Baekhan somehow managed to fulfill every single one of his duties.

Even amid such a chaotic life, he was still preparing for his thesis without missing a beat—it was nothing short of astonishing.
Taehyun had once thought that seeing someone frequently would wear down the illusion—that the rose-colored glasses would eventually fall off. But that was a naïve thought.
“Baekhan-hyung.”

“Oh, you’re here? You look taller again.”
He had always thought Baekhan was cool and admirable. But now that he had realized he liked him, the feeling had become uncontrollable. His heart simply wouldn’t stop.
And—well—perhaps it was just good news for Taehyun. Since Haechi’s founding ceremony, Seo Baekhan hadn’t brought his girlfriend to a single gathering. There had been several events where non-members could attend—volunteer outings, gallery viewings—but not once did he bring her along.

‘Noona, hey. Did you hear Baekhan-hyung broke up with his girlfriend?’
‘Eh. Why are you asking me that?’
Ever since that day when Joo Yoonwoo had given him some less-than-subtle advice, Taehyun had occasionally begun sharing his feelings openly with his sister. Just being able to show even a little sign of affection toward Seo Baekhan felt like it gave him life. It let him endure this lonely one-sided love again. Honestly, he couldn’t believe he’d managed to hold it all in for so long. He was grateful she listened at all.

‘…It’s just… you and the hyungs are the only friends I’ve got.’
‘This kid, seriously.’

When he openly asked about Baekhan’s movements like that, Joo Yoonwoo let out exasperated snorts. But she would still tell him what she knew. He had to perk up and listen closely though, since she tended to sigh in the middle of her sentences and it made him miss words.

‘Well, lately it seems like no one’s pushing him anymore, so he’s stopped the whole obvious girlfriend-swapping thing.’
‘…Really?’
‘But that doesn’t mean he’s dating a guy, so don’t get your hopes up.’
With a warning, Joo Yoonwoo lightly flicked her youngest brother on the forehead. A message not to get carried away assigning meaning to everything.

“Ow! Okay, okay, I won’t…”
‘I mean it. For all we know, he found someone he actually likes this time and he’s dating them secretly. So don’t drink the kimchi soup before it’s even served, okay? ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ Didn’t noona tell you? The more you do that, the more only you end up getting hurt.’
No one had said anything, but… honestly, Joo Taehyun had just been hoping Seo Baekhan would keep dating women. If Baekhan wasn’t going to date him, if he wasn’t going to like him, then Taehyun wished at least he wouldn’t date men. That way, he could believe it wasn’t because he was him, but because he was a man—and that would sting just a little bit less…

It was childish. So very childish, the kind of ridiculous feelings only a boy in the whirlwind of puberty and first love could have.
“Oh, right. Taehyun, do you have time after the meeting today?”
“Today? Uh… yes.”

That was a lie. His third brother had pulled major strings to invite a famous economics professor to dinner tonight. He’d even told Taehyun to sneak out of the meeting early to join them and chat a bit—the kind of talk that would teach him a lot just by being there.
“Then want to do an interview with me?”
“An interview?”

Seo Baekhan nodded. Then casually handed over a printed document he’d been holding. It looked like a storyboard for a video project, and surprisingly, it featured both of them—as if it had always been intended with Taehyun in mind.
“I made this.”
“Really?”

As Taehyun flipped through the storyboard, his head snapped up.
“Yeah. Jejungwon wanted to shoot a promo video for the Alpha-only vaccine. It won’t be a long appearance, and if it makes you uncomfortable, you can say no.”

“Uh… it’s fine, but, hyung, you know I’m kind of stiff on camera.”

This was cheating. How could he say no when Seo Baekhan had planned this himself? When both of them were drawn in like that from the very beginning?
“It’s fine. There’s a full script. I’ll do most of the talking—you just need to stand next to me and nod. What do you say?”
Seo Baekhan clearly hadn’t expected Taehyun to refuse. It was a little annoying, but in the end, it turned out just the way Baekhan wanted. There was no way Taehyun could say no.

“I’ll do it.”
“Great. Thanks.”
He’d get to be with Seo Baekhan. He’d have footage—actual footage—of them together. Some world-famous economist? Who cared. That didn’t matter.

It wasn’t even a date or anything, just a work-related request. But to Joo Taehyun, getting called on by Seo Baekhan felt like the whole axis of the universe had tilted just for him.
***
Seventeen—well, almost eighteen. Joo Taehyun could no longer put off his decision. It was time to choose a university.

He had applied mainly to schools with strong sociology departments, in line with his interests, personality, and extracurricular background. Thankfully, he’d been accepted to all of them.
Applying to George Washington University at the last minute was a bit impulsive. He wouldn’t deny that the words “politics” and “policy,” combined with the symbolic weight of Washington, had made him think of Seo Baekhan.
Still, since he planned to run a scholarship foundation in the future, majoring in public policy wasn’t a bad option. If he did study abroad, that’s probably where he’d go.

The problem was that he had also applied to domestic universities—and got into all three. One of them was none other than Pyongyang University, where Seo Baekhan had graduated.
Even setting aside his feelings for Baekhan, if he truly planned to manage a scholarship fund for secondary-gendered students, going to Pyongyang University was clearly the most strategic choice.
‘I’m not saying this just because I want to keep our youngest here in Korea, but let’s be honest—you don’t have much of a domestic network. That’ll come in handy when you start a business later. If you want to run a foundation, I think Pyongyang University would be best.’

‘Yeah. Yeonhwagung’s in Pyongyang, Jejungwon’s there too. There are a lot of research centers for gender studies. I’m casting my vote for Pyongyang. I don’t think George Washington really aligns with what you ultimately want to do. That place is more for people aiming at the White House or international organizations.’
‘Hmm. I vote for studying abroad. Maybe it’s because I saw how much our youngest struggled in middle school, but I’m worried he’ll get hurt again at a domestic university.’
‘I also think going abroad is better. If you become great, the network will come to you on its own. Just study what makes your heart happy, that’s the best.’

With the family split evenly down the middle, Taehyun found it harder than ever to decide.
“Young master, we’ve arrived.”
“Oh, right.”

Taehyun bowed in thanks to the driver and stepped out of the car.
Today was Haechi’s year-end party. And Seo Baekhan would be attending. He planned to strike up a conversation—and ask for advice about his future.