SOLUTION CHAPTER 29- SOLUTION . +25 BONUS LARRY My personal assistant burst into my office without knocking . " Why don't you grab yourself a cup of coffee and sit on my chair instead since you've gotten so comfortable ? " I remarked . " I'm sorry about barging into your office , " he apologized . " But there's something going on and I have to show it to you right now . " He brought out his iPad and showed me a video that was circulating . It was a video of me , Brandy and Maya at the mall . It was the CCTV Footage of Brandy and Maya and there was also another video where Brandy falsely accused Maya . My eyes widened . My chest tightened and suddenly the air in the room felt non existent . It suddenly felt hard to breathe . I was having a panic attack . " Sir ! Sir ! " My assistant- Jack - Yelled . " W - Water , " I whispered , clutching to my chest . There was a jug of water not far and he poured me a glass and handed it to me . I gulped everything down in one go while trying to catch my breath . " Are you okay , Sir ? " Jack asked . I nodded , still breathing heavily . I thought of the consequences this might hold and knew that this was bad . There was no way I could convince everyone otherwise . " What's the comment section like ? " He handed it to me . It read thus : Omg ! I feel bad for Maya . She's going through a lot . Brandy is a gold digger . She stole Larry from Maya . Isn't that enough ? Why try to ruin her reputation ? Larry is such an asshole . I'm glad Maya dumped his ass . God , this was not looking good . I needed to think of a solution and I needed to do it fast before things escalated . " Maybe you should take a seat and try to catch your breath first , " Jack advised . I followed and went to my chair . I sat down , threw my head backwards and closed my eyes . I wanted to relax my head because there's a lot going through it at the moment . I knew Maya was mad but I would never have expected that she would stoop this low . Getting the video out for the public to see . How pathetic was that ? I slowly opened my eyes , and turned to look at Jack who had a worrisome look on his face . " Why are you acting like I'm dying or something ? " " It's just ... " He paused . " Your reaction was a bit scary and I started feeling guilty and wished I didn't show that video to you instead . " I laughed a little . " And what would that do ? How would that solve the situation on ground if you decide to keep things from me instead ? " Jack said nothing after I asked him that . He just looked at me , then looked at the floor . I could tell something was still bothering him . He kept shifting on his feet like he was nervous or scared to talk . 1/2 SOLUTION +25 BONUS I cleared my throat and asked , " What about the board ? Have the board of directors seen this ? " Jack scratched the back of his neck and shook his head slowly . " Not yet , " he replied . " But it's already everywhere . It's spreading really fast . Like wildfire . So ... they're gonna see it any minute I closed my eyes again and let out a deep sigh . This was getting worse by the second . I felt my whole body grow palms were already sweaty and my shirt was sticking to my back . Everything was just ... too much . cold . My " Take it down , " I said with my voice low . " The video . Find a way to take it down from every site . Call someone . Do something Pay someone if you have to . " Jack shook his head . " Sir ... I don't think we can stop it now . " " What do you mean ? " I snapped , raising my voice . " I said take it down ! " " I already tried , " he explained quickly , raising both hands like he was trying to calm me down . " But it's too late . The damage is already done . People have already downloaded it . They're reposting it everywhere . Even blogs have picked it up . Some gossip pages already made headlines out of it . And the comments keep getting worse . " I rubbed my forehead , trying to stop the headache that was already forming . " So you're telling me there's nothing we can do ? " Jack looked at me with a serious face . " Not to erase the video . That ship has sailed . But maybe ... maybe you can do damage / control . You know , try to fix this another way before it gets bigger than this . " I didn't respond right away . I just sat there , staring at the floor and breathing slowly . My mind was going crazy . Thoughts flying everywhere . What would the board think ? What would the investors say ? What about the company's image ? This was not just about Brandy and Maya anymore - this was about me . My reputation . Jack came closer and placed the iPad on my desk . " I think you should say something . Release a statement or something . If you stay quiet , people will think it's true . That you were part of it . That you let it happen . " I didn't want to admit it , but he was right . " But what do I even say ? " I asked , looking up at him . " If I say too much , I'll sound guilty . If I say too little , they'll say I don't care . I'm stuck , Jack . " He nodded slowly . " Then maybe say something honest . Like an apology . Something calm . Something to show that you care and that you didn't mean for any of this to happen . " I scoffed lightly . " An apology ? Do you know how that will look ? That's like accepting I was involved . " " But you were there , sir , " Jack said , gently , " Even if you didn't plan it , you didn't stop it either . And people saw that . " I didn't know what to say . I leaned forward , placed both elbows on the desk , and buried my face in my hands . This was too much . But damn , this felt like a nightmare that wouldn't end . " I'll try to draft something , " Jack said quietly after a while . " Just a simple public message . If you don't like it , you don't have to post it . But I think you need to say something . Otherwise , this could get ugly . " I nodded slowly , not even looking up . " Fine . Do that . Just ... try not to make it worse than it already is . " He nodded and stepped out of the office , leaving me alone . I sat there for a long time , just staring at the iPad screen that still showed the video paused on Maya's face . She looked so hurt in the video . And maybe ... maybe this was all really my fault . BIG SALE : 3500 BONUS FREE FOR YOU ! X