Andy is Trying - Chapter 19

ANDY IS TRYING

Chapter 19: Andy is being Followed

This chapter is about three very different interviews.

The one that was watched by millions.

The one that never actually was.

And the one that turned out to be grossly inappropriate.

*

Following the headline and article from the Daily Philly News, I was living my life as if it was somebody else’s.

Maybe some of you reading this will be able to relate.

What happened was so surreal that my brain could not process I was actually the one in the middle of the scandal.

I knew that I was on the damn front page’s picture, sucking a dick.

I knew that I had been fucked by David Crown.

I knew that my boyfriend had recognized me and stormed away from the apartment.

But my new reality was so different from the one I had just before, - mindlessly living my life with Darius -, that I could barely register that this turn of event was my actual life.

The dissociation had one benefit.

Since I did not know who I was anymore, I could follow the motions and see what they would bring me without any sort of expectation.

I was numb.

More chaos was to come? Whatever, my world had already been flipped upside down.

For a week, I worked with Rebecca’s team (or at the very least, the ones who had not left the sinking boat), and with Rebecca herself towards her big nationwide interview.

It was Thompson who had closed the deal and had negotiated a “tell it all” segment for a big network.

Multiple national broadcasters were interested and Thompson had picked a journalist in return of the insurance that Rebecca could discuss the questions beforehand and that she would be portrayed as a hurt but strong woman.

The cheating story had quickly become viral online and David’s face was everywhere.

Or, at the very least, my algorithm was making me feel that way.

It was not only his face by the way, people had found his old college pictures as captain of the rowing team and they were having a lot of fun with those.

Beauty privilege was once again working in David’s favor.

If David had been an old decrepit obese guy banging someone in his office, the Internet would have hated him.

But because he was so damn hot, instead of mocking him, people were thirsting over his hairy chest or large bubble butt.

“Which form do I have to sign up to get banged by Crown myself?”

“Okay, cheating on your wife isn’t right, but when you look like this, it’d be a shame not to share your gift with the world! David Crown is performing a public service here.”

“Just with one picture, I can tell that he fucks good and hard.”

Some posts were even more explicit.

“Sit on my face, Daddy, smother me until I’m about to die!”

“I’d let David Crown break my ass and choke me with his big fat cock any day of the week.”

“Crown can take me raw and hard. I’m his little obedient bitch!”

“Waking up this morning with the desire to be in a scandalous sex affair with a hung politician and being fucked hard against a bay window… What about you, guys?”

This last comment was posted with an edit of the pictures which had gone the most viral.

One where David was smiling in his office; one from his rowing days where he was bulging prominently; one that we had used for his official campaign; one that I already knew very well from David’s swimming event against breast cancer; and obviously, the one featured on the cover of the Daily Philly News.

I should have told the man who had written that last message that the fucking was very nice but what came afterwards, not so good.

I got scared sometimes, or rather, I was scared all the time, as I read messages from people asking for anyone to hack the Daily Philly News and have access to the rest of the pictures.

There were so much more.

The newspaper itself could post additional exclusive photographs to benefit from the viral moment.

And honestly, it was surprising that no one had still made the link between the ginger guy on the picture and the only member of David’s staff who was a ginger.

I could sense that my time was about to come…

The time when I would be the one trending on social media, the one with the old pictures being exposed, the one with the life being discussed and judged.

I cringed at the thought.

*Don’t worry for stuff which have not happened yet, Andy!*

I coached myself.

*Everything’s fine, nobody knows it’s you, they only talk about David because he’s a public figure and he’s hot as fuck.*

Apparently, the scandal had not reached my family either.

They did not care much about politics or about gay sex so I hoped it would never reach their algorithm.

I was living in the constant fear of being recognized in the streets or found out.

Sometimes, I even felt like I was being followed.

Was this guy looking at me strangely?

Had not this woman been walking behind me for a little too long?

Was there someone in the lobby of my building?

Not even talking about Adrian Park, the journalist at the origin of the story who had been harassing me with his emails and even tried to call me about ten times before I blocked his number.

I ended up responding to one of his emails.

“I won’t be giving any interview and no amount of money will make me change my mind.”

I thought that this was clear enough.

Thank Goodness, he had stopped trying after that.

Exactly seven days after the release of the article, Cody, Laurie and I were gathered at home to watch Rebecca’s interview from our couch.

It had been pre-recorded in the afternoon but Rebecca had only sent her a text to tell her that the interview had gone “okay”.

She had been very busy after the recording of the show, meeting with important people in New-York.

Thompson and Philips were with her, as well as David who had also made the trip.

I get that this was weird for most people, but David and Rebecca were still working side by side.

Given her reaction when she had caught us, I was not that surprised though.

The Crowns had a fucked-up and baffling relationship so I expected anything and everything from them.

As for me?

Well, I just had to wait and see how things would turn out, biting my nails, my eyes glued to the television’s screen.

“Don’t stress yourself out so much, you’ll give yourself an ulcer. This is gonna be fine.” Laurie told me right before the interview started.

“Sure… But how do you define a good outcome here?”

She did not know how to answer that.

Cody patted my shoulders.

“Your boss is bat-shit crazy, guys. Let’s just get the popcorn, we’re gonna be entertained.”

He was not wrong.

Rebecca was crazy but she was also damn good!

During that interview, she even was extraordinary if I do say so myself.

Everything she said sounded right, sincere, and making us want to support her.

I mean, maybe it was just me because I had always admired her but I had rarely ever been that impressed with a politician.

Laurie and I literally gasped a few times when she delivered great punchlines.

The first question of the female journalist was about Rebecca’s reaction when she found out about the story in the press.

“What were you feeling? Was it shock? Surprise? Anger?”

I remember her reaction very well but Rebecca did not talk about the time she had found me doggy-style in her husband’s office.

“Anger? I suppose that was part of it. I was angry at the press for using a sordid story to sell paper. I was angry at whoever had sent those private pictures to this worthless tabloid. More importantly, I’ve been angry on behalf of the people of Pennsylvania, angry for those who deserve better than those cheap disgusting politician tricks. The citizens of this country deserve that we talk about the issues, about their futures, not about who is sleeping with who.”

“You did not mention your husband in that list… Weren’t you angry at him?”

Rebecca put on her best thinking face.

As if she had not been rehearsing that answer for days.

I was there for part of her training with Thompson, it was pretty wild to see how she was putting everything into practice now.

"You know, Ms. Sparks, there's one thing I've never condoned, and that's politicians using their personal lives as propaganda. David and I have always refrained from using our family for any kind of political gain. Just the thought of it is disgusting to me. The idea that others would use the personal lives of their opponents to drag them through the mud is even more unbearable."

"Still, I imagine that getting betrayed by your husband this way must..."

"I'm sorry, but I have to stop you right there. David and I have a son, and for that reason alone and for many more, we will always be on the same team. You won't hear me say a bad word about my husband. Ever. No matter the circumstances."

"Ms. Crown, I notice that you're wearing your wedding ring today."

Rebecca smiled.

For some reason, the pain in my stomach intensified at that point.

"I am."

"What does that mean? Should we understand that you have forgiven him."

"I'm a Christian woman and I don't like to play around with the word forgiveness. Besides, I've been married in front of God, for better or worse."

There was a long moment of pause. Something else that she had rehearsed.

She sighed. 

“I've never talked about my personal life and I don't intend to start now. I'm not a reality television contestant; I don't have to keep people informed about the state of my marriage. What I have to do, as the Republican candidate for a very important position in our country, governor of Pennsylvania, is to find solutions to help their lives."

It was brilliant how she had described herself as the Republican nominee.

Not once had she mentioned Broadhall's name, even though she had targeted him by hinting that someone “despisable” was behind the leak.

But now, the minds of millions of people watching, - who had no idea who Rebecca was until a few days before -, had been planted with the seed that she was the official candidate for governor.

"I'm confused, Mrs. Crown, wasn't your husband the candidate? We've all seen the billboards, the posters, the campaign."

"It turns out that after the despicable low blow from our opponents, and for the sake of our family and our son, David has made the difficult but courageous decision to withdraw from the race. I respect his choice fully. The violation of his intimacy is very serious and should be treated as such. That being said, I, personally, am not withdrawing. I'm not quitting. I care too much about Pennsylvanians; I have a lot of fight left in me.”

“But what does Mr. Crown think about you running, essentially, in his place?”

“Haven’t you read his public statement? I think his words are very clear.”

“He says that he’s fully endorsing you and that you would make an excellent Governor.”

Rebecca smiled again.

“His words, not mine.”

“He’s actually here with you today. Some might find this a bit odd given the circumstances.”

“As I said before, we’re very much working as a team.”

Frankly, I had myself no idea where their relationship was at.

Could they really stay married after that?

Clearly, the Crowns were capable of anything.

Once the matter of the affair in itself had been dealt with, the interview started tackling some of the issues, starting with the LGBT rights.

Here again, Rebecca impressed me.

“You really want to know how I feel about these debates on gay people’s rights?”

“I actually do, Ms. Crown.”

“Bullshit. That’s the word that comes to mind.”

The journalist was shocked, or to be more accurate, she played the shocked reaction very well.

“Sorry, Madam?”

"From the beginning, this issue has been used by both parties to avoid talking about what really affects people's lives. I have to admit, that's a pretty smart strategy when you don't have a plan for the people. It's much easier to say you're for or against gay marriage than to actually take a stand on the economy, inflation, or immigration.”

“Yet, your stand on gay marriage isn’t that clear. Should we unmarry gay people? Should we go back on adoptions?”

“Let's be very straight-forward here, in my campaign, I'm only going to talk about things that can concretely improve the lives of our citizens, I'm not going to let myself be distracted from the real issues and if the journalists are not happy with that, I frankly do not care.”

Barbara Sparks was shook on her chair.

It seemed more sincere there as she was directly attacked.

All in all, it was a masterclass.

Sure, most of the headlines the next day were still about the cheated wife and whether she would stay with her husband while he was fucking men on the side, but when you took the time to read the papers in full, Rebecca Crown was now presented as a candidate for the Governor seat.

She was the opponent of Alicia Jan.

Journalists were not bothering themselves with checking the facts and mentioning that the party might refuse to go with a primary, or with referring in any way to Charles Broadhall.

The mas was simply not relevant in the context of the scandal.

For the mainstream and national media, Rebecca Crown already was a candidate.

That was probably her biggest stroke of genius. 

Broadhall must have been fuming and that was making, above all else, Rebecca happy.

It was still a huge bet and nothing was done yet, but the Pennsylvania convention was only twelve days away and the conservative nominee was definitely not as clear as before.

Now, Rebecca only had to convince a few important members of the party to turn their back on their candidate.

It was tough because she was brand-new on the scene and nobody wanted to be directly associated with the scandal but she had arguments.

Her main one? The old Broadhall was a rat, snitching to a liberal tabloid and putting the entire party in jeopardy.

It was time to end his reign.

Charles Broadhall was holding the party but, lucky for us, he had also made many enemies over the years.

In the midst of this race against the clock, my job was to analyze in real time the impact of Rebecca’s interventions.

It was a mind-fuck to be both the one at the origin of the chaos and the one analyzing its impact with hard data but what can I say? I was good at this.

Not knowing what to do with myself, I drowned myself in work even more than before.

To say the truth, I felt like I owed it to Rebecca.

It is probably messed-up but I had brought a shit storm into her life and if she needed me to give herself a fighting chance, I would do everything that I could to help.

Besides, just like everything in life, what felt surreal at first quickly became the new normal.

The talk about David Crown’s affair slowly died down, replaced by another scandal, and I was slowly returning to my senses.

The only thing which was still hurting was Darius.

I had to give him some space, and the day following Rebecca’s interview, Cody confirmed that they were back to talking to each other.

It was a progress.

That was reassuring.

As a side note, my libido was finally back.

The shock had been so great that I had not sported a hard-on in a week. Crazy, right?

But that morning, I woke up with a firm morning wood, another proof that I was getting myself together.

I went to work and stayed all day there. I did not even get out to grab lunch.

There were so many things to do and I was going way above my mission of polling potential voters.

Laurie had also become much more than Rebecca’s assistant. That was cool for her as she seemed to love her new tasks.

Anyway, it was another evening when I left the office after 10 p.m… I was back to my pathetic single life.

Probably still lost in my thoughts on the data, I bumped into someone and we almost smashed each other’s glasses in the lobby.

“Oh, sorry!” The man hastily said.

“No, that’s my fault... I… Are you okay?”

The guy was holding his round glasses.

He was cute, about my age, and apparently on his way home from work.

“I’m fine. They’re not broken. Wait… Can you tell me if they look okay when I put them on?”

He put the glasses on his face and I confirmed that it was all right.

Actually, the stranger looked quite handsome.

“They fit you nicely.”

“Neat. And now, I can actually see you. I’m so short-sighted.”

“So am I, since I’ve been a kid.”

We smiled at each other.

“Well, have a good…” He stopped in his tracks. “Actually, do you know the area?”

“Sort of, I’ve been working here for about five months.”

“I was looking for a place to have a drink on my phone when I bumped into you.”

“Oh… Well, there are many cool places around here.”

“You could name one?”

“The Impero is an Italian bar-restaurant, it’s great, it’s right around the corner. The kitchen is certainly closed but you could have a drink.”

“I’ve never been but I’m down to try it.”

“Yes, good evening.”

“Wait…”

I turned around.

“Yes?”

“Would you be down to have that drink with me?”

Oh wow, he was hitting on me!

Who would have thought?

“I cannot go to the Impero.” I spoke.

“Why is that?”

“I… My ex… Well, the man who’s supposed to be my boyfriend works there.”

“You have a boyfriend, then.”

“It’s complicated…”

“Been there… We could go have a drink just as friends in another bar. I’m spending my days working and I could use a drink buddy. I live alone, it’s a bit sad.”

I had not gone out in days. The guy seemed nice enough.

“Okay, but just as friends. I don’t want any more complication in my life.”

“Understood. I’ll refrain from any flirtation whatsoever.”

“And I’ll do the same.”

We shook hands on that and we walked down the street to a bar which did not seem too busy.

I did not recognize it at first but then, I remembered that it was the place Darius and I had gone for our (very platonic) first date.

We sat on the stools at the bar and we each ordered a beer.

I was naïve enough to think that this was a candid meeting and that I could finally take my mind off things.

Hell, I thought that I was chatting with someone who might become a friend.

I was in for a rude awakening.

“So, what do you do in Philly?” I asked.

The guy seemed uncomfortable all of the sudden.

“Does that really matter?”

“Uh… I don’t know, maybe not, but I don’t even your name.”

He sighed.

“I’m a journalist.”

At first, I did not like that answer because I had not been a fan of journalists lately.

But then, it became much worse when I caught the way he was looking at me. I understood.

“God… You… You’re just a journalist, right? You’re not working for the Daily Philly News?”

“I’m Adrian Park.”

I am not sure what came up to me, but I grabbed my pint of beer and I threw the remaining content in his face.

“What the fuck?!” The bartender exclaimed.

Adrian held his hand in the air.

“That’s fine, sir, just a little misunderstanding.”

“Guys, this is a cool and relaxed place. We don’t allow bullshit like that in here.”

“I… I’m sorry.”  I told the bartender.

I was not talking to the journalist; I was glad that this asshole was covered with sticky beer!

“Andrew, listen…”

Of course, he already knew my name.

I stood up.

“For Christ’s sake, you were following me at work? How long had you been waited in the lobby to bump into me? What’s wrong with you?”

“I just think this story is important. You were not answering my calls.”

“You’re a psycho and I’m this close to call the police.”

“To be fair, you’re the one who’s just attacked me...”

“You have some nerves!”

“Please. I’m sorry about this trick, it wasn’t right, but I swear that I only want to talk to you. This story is my biggest paper since…”

I cut him off.

“Well, I don’t want to talk with you, so back the fuck off!”

“I’m on your side, man. I’m trying to help you out.”

I burst out laughing.

I took my things and left.

Adrian was very insistent though, not to say scary.

He followed me outside.

“Just hear me out once, and I swear, I’ll disappear from your life.”

“Good Lord, you know that’s harassment? This shit is punishable by law.”

“I just need two minutes from you.”

“Not a chance.”

“One minute!”

I rolled my eyes and I looked at him.

Physically, he was not that threatening. Still. What a jerk!

“You have it right there, one minute. I’m listening to you now.”

We were standing on the sidewalk and it started raining.

That was definitely a wet night for Adrian Park.

“Okay, thank you. First of all, I apologize for coming at you like this. I realize that this isn’t appropriate and I… I’m sorry.”

“You just wasted ten seconds.”

“Fuck! The other thing I want to say is that I’m truly on your side. Believe it or not, but the purpose of this paper was to showcase the hypocrisy of the Republican party. I’m gay and I… I think it’s important that we show the world how the men who are treating us like shit, going after our rights, belittling us, act in their personal lives.”

“Please, cut the bullshit, that was pure trash journalism. The picture you use was a blowjob! Don’t make this into a legit fight for our rights.”

“It is, though! That’s why I insisted to my editor in chief not to reveal your name. I know what it can be like to work for someone influential, maybe to be forced to do things.”

“What?”

“I… I want you to be able to share your truth, Andrew. And if that man has in any way been abusive, you have a right to stand up for yourself, to…”

“God, no.”

“Andrew…”

“Stop! You justt don’t get it.”

“Maybe I don’t, but this is why I need your side of the story.”

“I was not abused. Period.”

“He was your boss.”

“Yes, and I fully consented! More than that, I wanted it very badly. I’m not a victim in this story; I’m just an asshole who slept with a married guy who also happened to be his boss.”

Adrian’s glasses were wet.

I could barely see his dark eyes but he seemed taken aback.

He did not know what to say anymore.

“Your minute is up.” I stated coldly.

“Just one more question.”

“No. No more question. I’m done.”

He nodded yes.

“All right. You did give me that minute. Thank you for listening to me.”

“Now, you can get out of my life. Or you can publish the damn pictures. At this stage, I really don’t care anymore. The constant threat of having my freaking ginger face released everywhere is maybe worse than the actual release.”

“I’m sorry about that.”

“About what? Torturing me?”

“This information was relevant for the public.”

“Maybe… You realize what you did though?”

“What?”

“You disqualified from the race the only man who had a chance to move the Republican party’s needle towards more acceptance and tolerance. If Broadhall is the nominee and if he gets elected, then, you can really be scared about our rights.”

“Andrew, I…”

“I’m gonna leave now, can you please confirm you’ll stop following me?”

The rain intensified.

“I can. I’ll leave you alone. I’ll make sure your name doesn’t get released either. I’m on your side.”

“Thank you for not mentioning my name.”

“I was only doing my job.”

“I don’t think that’s an excuse. I have to own up to my shit and my mistakes, maybe you should try that too. Good bye.”

*

Two days later, I was woken up by Cody bringing the Daily Philly News in my bedroom.

“I have news for you, roomie!”

I rubbed my eyes and I straightened up.

“Another article? This BS will never stop.”

Strangely, I had thought that Adrian would have kept his promise. Apparently, I had been wrong, once again.

“Yes, another article, it’s an interview actually.”

I did not understand.

Had the journalist taken the few things that I had told him and mixed it to make an “interview”?

Cody gave me the newspaper.

I was not on the front page, somebody else was.

“Crown’s secret lover. Galvin tells us all about his inappropriate affair with the former candidate.”

“Fucking hell! That guy!” I exclaimed.

“Isn’t he the man who…”

“Who was sleeping with David before I… Well, before I took his spot in the retainer I guess.”

Cody chuckled.

“He does look good though.”

“What do you want me to say? David has good taste in men.”

I could joke about it which was a great sign.

“You should read it; The interview is wild.”

“I bet…”

“No really, it goes into sexual details and all. That’s just crazy. You’re not mentioned though.”

“I suppose that’s a silver lining.”

“You know, it might be good for you. Now that people can put a face on the person who was sleeping with Crown, you should be in the clear.”

“Yeah… I really hope so.”

Cody kissed my forehead tenderly.

“I’ve told you; This whole thing will be a one of the kind anecdotes when you grow older. Nobody’s dead, this is not that big of a deal.”

I put back the newspaper as I read a surrealistic sentence.

"Yes, David is a top, but he also likes to play with his anus. One of his favorite things is anulingus... on both ends."

And they were calling that journalism!? Really, Adrian?!

“Nobody’s dead but my relationship is…” I told Cody.

“Maybe not.”

“You think I have a change to fix things up with Darius?”

I did not want to get my hopes up for nothing. I was missing him so much.

Cody shrugged his shoulders.

“Honestly, I don’t know, but if you want to, maybe you can try to win him back.”