For the first time in very, very, long time, Mark wanted to find a hole somewhere so he could just curl up and die from the shame and embarrassment.

It wouldn’t be so bad if Jinyoung had barely beaten him, or even if it was by a slightly larger margin.

But no, of course that couldn’t be the case. Mark would love to say that he’d merely underestimated the other man, had made a simple miscalculation that led to him not quite putting in all his effort towards the task, and it was that misjudgment on his part that led to his failure.

Unfortunately, Mark couldn’t even claim this to be true because of the cameras that had followed him around all day, documenting his every move. Because the truth was, Mark had given it his all. He was never one to do something half-heartedly just because he thought success was assured.

So when Jinyoung had come back with not only double, but three times the number of survey responses Mark had, he was speechless.

Speechless, and incredibly embarrassed.

“See, I told you,” Jinyoung was smug, wearing a smile that clearly stated I knew this was gonna happen as he slung an arm around Mark’s shoulders. Mark shrugged him off with a glare, but Jinyoung just laughed.

“Hey, don’t feel too bad, I legitimately used to do this all the time for my previous business, of course I had the upper hand,” Jinyoung placated.

If it was anyone else Mark would’ve taken it to be patronizing, but Jinyoung’s smile held no trace of being mocking or insincere. And Mark, somehow, felt his irritation begin to lessen.

Besides, he had a professional image to maintain; the last thing he wanted to do was come across as a sore loser.

“How did you do it?” Mark finally asked, pushing his pride away to pose the question.

Jinyoung looked surprised, clearly expecting Mark to want to move on from the topic as quickly as possible. Pleasantly surprised, he answered, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I don’t mind being pushy.”

Mark snorted. What an understatement.

Jinyoung grinned snarkily. “Exactly. In retail– well, trying to get survey answers isn’t exactly retail but in this case, same concept– you can’t give them an opportunity to say no. I mean, if some random dude stopped me on the streets and asked politely if I’d take a survey, I’d be like hell no! I’ve got better things to do, right?”

Mark nodded, embarrassment beginning to fill him again. This really wasn’t any new information; frankly this was one of the most basic concepts. But here he was, having to relearn it in practice from this failed business-upstart.

“Of course you can’t be too rude or too pushy, because that’s going to either earn you very sketchy answers if you’re lucky, or if you’re unlucky a punch to the face. So it’s that balance. I bet you went up to each person and asked politely if they’d take the survey?”

Mark nodded again, and could already tell where this was going. God, he was an idiot.

“You gotta go up to them and ask them the first question! Usually out of confusion, they’ll just answer, and they’ll feel bad for telling you to stop once you get going. If they do get annoyed, though, then it’s time to back off.”

“I know this,” Mark finally couldn’t help but say, “I just…”

“Haven’t really used these concepts in practice?” Jinyoung filled in, laughing again. But still, it wasn’t mocking, allowing Mark to get ahold of himself and force down the defensiveness.

“Well, you’ve won this one.” Mark sighed, admitting his loss. “I’ll treat you to dinner. If anything, for a job well done,” he said somewhat grudgingly. It was also for his own pride, but he obviously didn’t say that out loud.

“Really?!” Jinyoung’s eyes widened with disbelief, and when Mark nodded, punched the air in a very nonprofessional manner. “Yes! Can we–”

He suddenly broke off, looking like he suddenly remembered something. He glanced down at his watch, then at the cameras around them.

“Um, actually…I’m sorry, but I think I’m going to have to pass today…” he said regretfully.

“Oh, that’s fine. You can take a rain check.” Mark said nonchalantly. He should be feeling relieved that Jinyoung decided to pass on his offer, but was that a tinge of disappointment? “I’ll be going through the survey results tonight to make a final decision, I’ll let the entire team know what I decide tomorrow.

“Sounds good!” Jinyoung quickly agreed. “I’ll be heading out then! See you!” With a wave and an easy smile, he turned and walked off.

Mark, too, then turned to walk to his car, his chauffer already waiting patiently. The cameras filmed him all the way until he got in, with the producers also bidding him goodbye. They shot one last parting shot of his car driving off, and then finally, the cameras were no more.

Finally in his own private space, Mark exhaled, eyes closing as he leaned his head back on the headrest. His place was still quite a ways away, and he was tired enough that he could probably get a quick doze in before he arrived home and needed to get to work again.

Just as he was starting to lose himself to the darkness, his phone rang.

Mark jerked awake, sighing as he pulled his phone out of his pocket. It seemed like this nap was not to be.

When he saw the name of the caller, however, his fatigue was replaced by interest.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Mark! On second thought, can I cash in that raincheck now?”

“What?” Mark replied, vocabulary rather limited as he tried to pull the last of his consciousness away from drowsiness.

Jinyoung’s infectious laugh sounded over the phone, and Mark could picture the way creases must have formed around his eyes.

“Wanna eat now?”

“Why did you suddenly change your mind?” Mark asked skeptically, sounding reluctant. But what Jinyoung couldn’t see was that he was already signaling his driver to pull over to await further instruction.

“I thought you’d like it better without the cameras around. Am I wrong?”

Mark was momentarily speechless again with surprise, and almost touched by Jinyoung’s perceptiveness. But that moment quickly passed, and Mark found himself more suspicious of Jinyoung’s motives.

But really, what would it hurt?
“Fine. Where are you now? I’ll come pick you up.”