He watched the video on the screen and realized what had happened. The whole room was quiet, his phone was buzzing with notifications; tags, messages and calls.
The headline showed: "Presidential Contestant Fornicator?"
"It's not valid. It's a setup!" His secretary screamed but Mr Wallace knew it was real.
He remembered the night very well, he remembered the girl and he remembered just how loud they were that night.
"Mr Wallace, we can still save this. Make a statement now, and deny this claim." His council advisor responded calmly.
It's a shocking new development, isn't it Theresa?.
The television spokesperson showed up on the screen...
Indeed it is John. Who could have thought that the beloved Dr Wallace would be brought down like this.. a day before the debate no doubt.
Indeed, an advantageous move towards his main opponent and the current President Gerald, who has no compromising video of him with a strange woman in a hotel.
"I can't believe he said that!" His council advisor screamed at the Television.
The anger, although deserved, was not replied. It's well known that the media outlets are in Gerald's pocket.
The whole country was losing and Mr Wallace couldn't take it anymore.
That's why he formed the People's Party. A party that would take the country back, give it to the people, let Democracy mean something again.
"Mr Wallace?" His secretary asked and put a hand to his shoulder.
Only then did Mr Wallace move and come back to the room.
He had been deep in thought since he saw the headline and the video. He had been making a plan.
It was a disastrous mistake, one that now he couldn't deny or refute without looking even more guilty.
"Sir, what do you plan to do?" His Campaign Advisor asked.
"Such a silly question Peter, what else would a man do in such a situation than to go beg his wife?"
The house was quiet. He half expected the media to flood here, hungry dogs looking for a juicy lap of chicken.
The lights were off and the door locked yet he knew she was there.
He stood at the doorway, shoulders slumped and head down. It wasn't exactly a moment of guilt, more like sorrow or just sobriety
It was something she had known about and we already had the conversation, buried it under wraps and cleaned the X off the map, then burnt the map.
Clearly the rain and wind has brought up the corpse.
He knocked. Just two words came back.
"It's unlocked."
Mr Wallace walked into the house lit dimly by the table lamp in the corner, Mrs Wallace sat there, her reading glasses on and her phone in her hand.
"Good Evening Dear." Mr Wallace tried.
"Not good. Eventful maybe, but certainly not good." She started.
Mr Wallace exhaled a breath of relief, she's talking; hence she isn't that angry.
"Imagine my surprise when I'm in the middle of getting groceries when I get a call from Janet. She was saying something about how you were cheating on me, but of course I couldn't even react or think of what she's talking about because everyone is staring at me and I'm staring at the ceiling TV and there it was. My husband, in a bad recording but very clearly he is carrying a girl into a hotel."
"It's an old video..."
"I know it's an old video you idiot!" She cut him off with a slap on the table.
Slowly she removed her reading glasses, folded it and put it in its case.
"It's an old video that has been brought back to drag us down; to drag this country down."
Mr Wallace was relieved. That's why he loved her, the firecracker in her didn't stop her from seeing the full picture.
"The debate is tomorrow, what are you going to do?" She asked.
"Debate is taken care of, Gerald has made a brilliant and yet a stupid move." Mr Wallace explained.
He could see faint hints of the confusion in the way her brows knitted together in the lamplight.
"It'll be alright baby." He said coming in for a kiss, she stood up and moved away to the bedroom.
"I do hope you know what you're doing." Mrs Wallace exhaled as she walked out.
That night Mr Wallace slept in the sitting room, with his trouser and shirt on as he scribbled down notes.
The idea that this was a fatal blow is what gave him the winning edge. Now he couldn't wait for the debate to start, because unlike any other contestants, he now knew his questions.
Mr Wallace's car rolled up to the venue for the debate and as he stepped out, the camera started flashing and clicking.
He was the star of the show, now more so than ever. He took his time as he walked into the TV station venue. A calm confident gait, one that showed he hadn't a care in the world and the reporters ate it up.
He could feel the cameras turn in unison to get him and he ignored the calls of the reporters who pestered him with questions for their blogs.
"Wallace!! Glad you could make it." A robust man came to shake and embrace him, all for show as the camera took their pictures.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world Gerald."
To anyone else looking it would seem like two competitors simply hugging, shaking and making small talk before the debate but it was far more sinister than that.
They were mentally judging each other, the first 15 minutes was to see who was ready and who could potentially break.
To Gerald's surprise, Wallace was as calm as the sea.
"It was a great shot, Gerald boy. I'll see you on the podium." Wallace said and took his leave towards the arena.
The debate started and the reporter didn't waste any time.
"Dr Wallace, thank you for joining us. Before we proceed with the policies, promises and future of this country, I believe the nation deserves an explanation. A video surfaced yesterday allegedly showing you in a compromising situation with a woman who isn't your wife. Your campaign has neither denied the authenticity of the footage nor provided a satisfactory explanation.
My question is simple: How can a man who has failed to uphold the sanctity of his own marriage convince an entire nation that he can uphold the integrity of its democracy?"
Immediately the light shone on him and he knew it was show time.
"The video that was released last night is something I'd like to dismiss as AI, photoshopped or otherwise edited imagery made in hopes to spoil or ruin my campaign. Sadly, it is without a doubt me in that video, and I did in fact escort the young lady into the hotel for the dubious reasons that I'm sure is going through your mind right now. I was young, far away from my wife and insanely stupid, although none are excuses for my actions."
From the corner of his eye, Mr Wallace could see the glee on Gerald's face.
"However, this was an old encounter, an old mistake; one that my marriage once suffered gravely from and managed to climb out of, one that I thought was done with, gone and destroyed from my life. It is only a bit suspicious that such a well kept secret is exposed just before I speak to the country and to my voters and our followers."
"You ask how I can maintain the integrity of democracy?" Mr Wallace asked, pointing at the reporter.
"Well you are wrong about one thing. I'm not the one that would be in charge of Democracy: you—the people are." He replied pointing straight at the camera screen and to the onlookers and viewers on the television.
"We this country have lived and suffered under oppressive rulers who have had greater scandals than one count of infidelity and they haven't allowed the people to vote them out, vote others in or call them out on our actions.
I will uphold the integrity of democracy simply by allowing democracy to run its course.
The public are the government. They are the rulers and the ruled. Yet they've forgotten and are now just nothing but sheep and slaves.
I promise to wake you up. I promise to make you realize just how great the people are.
I can build this country back. Not because I'm great and without fault or I'm a savior, surely the leaked video has brought doubt to that.
I can build the country back because everyone would help.
We as a democracy would make this country into whatever we want it to be.
The whole room was stunned for a full 3 seconds. Gerald's mouth was opened and the reporter was speechless.
It was a moving speech and Wallace knew he did good. He was breathless, his cheeks flushed and his head light.
But he had passed his message and he sat back down.
The debate carried on and no more questions were asked towards him.
Gerald watched from the other side of the room as Wallace shook hands with his campaign team. The cameras were still flashing, the reporters were still shouting and the crowd was still chanting his name.
For the first time that evening, Gerald wasn't smiling.
Wallace had played his hand.
And Gerald had helped him do it.
But neither man had forgotten what was at stake.
As he sat in his office, packing up to go home, he saw the message.
Congratulations, you moved them all.
Married for twenty years and his wife still held tight to the skill of saying a lot without saying anything at all.
So Mr Wallace drove home, for even after convincing a full country, it's a whole other ball game in mending bridges with your wife.
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