As first impressions went, Yoo Youngjae was making a pretty terrible one. Shortly after Youngjae and Jaebum had entered BAP’s living room, he emerged from the depths of the apartment, forced himself between them, and physically steered Jaebum to the left side of BAP’s couch. He then sat down uncomfortably close to him--effectively eliminating the possibility that anyone else could sit next to him--crossed his arms, and began glowering at the other Youngjae.

Choi Youngjae had heard that Yoo Youngjae could be pretty vindictive if properly provoked, but this seemed a little extreme for...whatever it was he could have been mad about. After all, he was in the same group as Jaebum. Heck, he shared a room with Jaebum. He should have expected that they’d be close.

Daehyun emerged shortly after Youngjae. After taking in the scene, he shot Choi Youngjae a sympathetic look and sat down on the couch next to Yoo Youngjae, leaving enough space between them that no one else could fit on the couch. Finally, Himchan and Zelo emerged. Zelo immediately sat next to Jongup, who was now cross-legged on the floor in front of the TV. Himchan, on the other hand, gestured for Choi Youngjae to sit in an armchair--conveniently located just to the right of the couch--before walking pointedly into the kitchen. Youngjae sighed and walked over to it, sinking into it as Himchan returned carrying one of the kitchen chairs. He placed it near the doorway and sat down.

“So,” he said, “How was everyone’s morning?”

“Pretty ing terrible,” Yoo Youngjae muttered.

Himchan rolled his eyes. “Thanks for coming.” This time he addressed Jaebum specifically. “Is everything going to be alright with your manager?”

“Ah, yeah. Jinyoung’s covering for us. Besides,” Jaebum glanced from one Youngjae to the other. “This is more important.”

Himchan nodded. “Well, if you need any help dealing with him, let us know. We’ll do what we can.”

Jaebum gave a weak smile. “Thanks.”

The group lapsed into silence.

“So, um, what...happened?” Choi Youngjae asked tentatively. Yoo Youngjae started some sort of retort, but he hurriedly cut him off. “I know, I know. We switched bodies. I...I figured that one out. But....how? Why?”

“And how do we switch you guys back?” Daehyun added.

Silence again. Eventually, Jongup spoke up. “Well, in anime-”

“If your solution has anything to do with kissing or I will murder you with a fork,” Yoo Youngjae interjected. Jaebum looked just as shocked as Choi Youngjae felt hearing his own voice say something so cold.

Jongup, however, wasn't swayed. “What? No,” he said. “It’s only kissing if it was a kiss that caused the swap. You were nowhere near each other last night.” When no one said anything else, he continued. “What I was going to say is that in anime there’s usually some sort of trigger that starts these things. Like a wish or something.”

“A wish? Who would wish for this?” Yoo Youngjae scoffed. He looked around. “Why’s everyone looking at me?”

“You do seem like the most likely candidate, Jae,” Daehyun said.

“What? Why am I more likely than he is?”

“You are really close with Jaebum-shi. Won’t coming off hiatus mean you won’t get to spend as much time with him?” Zelo asked.

“Well, yeah but-” Youngjae ran a hand through his hair. “Look, if I wanted to be in Got7, I would have stayed at JYP! I left for a reason!”

“TS hasn’t exactly been good to you either,” Himchan pointed out.

“That doesn’t mean I want to go back! Guys, I love Jaebum-” Choi Youngjae’s eyes widened. Had he heard that right? Yoo Youngjae paused and glanced at him, face unreadable. He sighed before continuing. “He’s my best friend. But I’m not just going to…”

He kept talking, but Youngjae wasn’t listening. He had known Jaebum and the other Youngjae were close--how could he not with the way Jaebum talked about him--but he’d always taken comfort in the knowledge that they were just friends. It meant he still stood a chance. That is, if Jaebum was even into guys--Youngjae could never really tell. But the certainty in Yoo Youngjae’s voice as he declared his love, as though it was the most natural thing in the world, the pause afterward, heck, even the way he’d been acting possessive of Jaebum since the moment they met...could he really be sure it wasn’t more serious?

“Youngjae-ah?” Daehyun reached across the couch and shook his arm, pulling him out of his thoughts. He looked around the room, realizing that all eyes were now on him. He smiled sheepishly.

“Sorry, I spaced out for a bit there.”

Daehyun smiled back at him. “Don’t worry about it.” His face went solemn. “But can you think of any reason you might have wanted to...I dunno...get away from Got7 for a while?”

“Um…” Youngjae bit his lip. “I don’t think so. I mean, yesterday was pretty normal. I don’t remember feeling upset or anything. Definitely not enough to want to leave Got7.”

“No burning desire to join BAP?” Himchan asked.

“Not really, no.” Youngjae’s eyes went wide. “I-I mean, it’s not that I don’t like you guys! You’ve been really nice to me and I’m really grateful; I just...don’t really know you that well. And I definitely didn’t before today and….”

“Hey,” Jaebum leaned forward on the couch, meeting Youngjae’s eyes from across the room. “ It’s okay. You don’t have to explain yourself,” he reassured him.

“Really?” Jaebum nodded, and Youngjae beamed.

The change in the room was immediate. Jaebum looked a little bit less shocked than earlier, but that didn't change the fact that he was now openly staring as though Youngjae had grown a second head. He could feel the other Youngjae glowering at him even without looking, but seeing the glare on his own face felt unsettling. There was something about the way he held his face that was just...off somehow. The rest of BAP handled it better. Jongup and Zelo were both practically unreadable. Himchan and Daehyun tensed--Youngjae could feel them on either side of him--but they both relaxed just as quickly, Daehyun smiling back at him in a way that Youngjae was beginning to suspect was slightly less than genuine.

“Is it really that weird for this guy to smile?”

Himchan and Daehyun both burst out laughing and Youngjae blushed as he realized he'd said that out loud.

“Yeah, he's just constantly scowling,” Zelo joked.

“No, he smiles,” Jaebum assured him, “Just...usually a lot less openly.”

Yoo Youngjae scoffed. “Well excuse me for not being an open book.”

“It's not a bad thing, Jae,” Daehyun said, “Just different.”

Youngjae rolled his eyes. “Whatever.” But the corners of his mouth were upturned slightly now. It seemed like his mood had improved at least. He took a drink of his coffee, the cup making an awful noise as the last of its contents was drained. “So what now?”

“This can’t just be random, right?” Daehyun asked, “Someone’s got to know something about this.”

Himchan agreed. “ I know a girl who’s training to be a shaman, I’ll ask if she knows about anything like this. It wouldn’t hurt to poke around the library, too. In the meantime,” he sighed, “We should probably assume this is going to last a while.”

The two Youngjaes exchanged a glance. A weight settled in Choi Youngjae’s stomach as he realized what Himchan was implying.

“Meaning?” Yoo Youngjae asked, tentatively.

“Meaning,” Choi Youngjae said, resigned, “You need to learn Hard Carry.”