Full Disclosure 1/2
By Lacy


I've been jittery all day. This evening I have an exclusive
interview with Bristol Wallace, the woman who made Sylvester Stallone
cry on national television. So, excuse me, if I'm a little bit
freaked out about it.

For the millionth time today, I ask myself what I possibly could have
been thinking when I decided to do the interview. CJ promises me
that I'll be just fine and that she'll be in the room the whole
time. I have to wonder why CJ needs to be in the room during the
interview if everything will go as smoothly as she claims.

It's all about subtext.

Just last night, when I was having an attack of the I-don't-wannas,
Josh put his arms around me and said the everything would go
swimmingly. He told me that every possibility was covered. Josh
informed me that he and CJ would be watching my back and that if I
handled myself with Bristol Wallace as well as I did with the Press
Corps than nothing could go wrong.

But the whole time he was pretending to wear his 'Josh Lyman air of
confidence', I could feel his tension. He's worried for me. Worried
that I'm not going to be able to handle the prime time interview
queen.

It's not that I'm worried about myself, you see. I'm worried that
something I say or do in front of the cameras could make him ashamed
of me. I couldn't bear it for Josh to be ashamed of me.

I'm not educated. Not in the traditional sense, anyway. I've
retained an enormous amount of knowledge working for Josh Lyman, but
not only that, I'm well read. I read a lot. I devour books that can
teach me something new. This is, of course, what I do to make up for
my embarrassing lack of a college degree.

Josh has never made me feel...less, because of this. In fact, if
anything, I believe that Josh has enormous respect for me, because I
have not allowed my lack of degree to stunt my intellectual growth.
The problem is that Bristol Wallace isn't Josh.

Bristol Wallace has a Masters degree in Journalism from New York
University. When she was first starting out, she paid her dues at
NBC and climbed the ranks faster than any woman in the history of the
network. She moved quickly up the ladder simply because she was
ambitious and incredibly talented. She's interviewed movie stars,
foreign dignitaries, and more than a few celebrity recluses.

You're probably wondering how I know all this.

I have this information because at this moment I'm looking at a
series of articles published about her. I've questioned CJ about
her. I even interrogated Josh. Who did, by the way, tell me about
the conversation he had with her on Tuesday night. Yes, he told me
everything. Even the part about how Bristol's been trying to get him
into bed ever since the Inaugural Ball.

Anyway, I'm the assistant to the Deputy White House Chief of Staff,
Joshua Lyman. And if working for Josh Lyman has taught me one thing,
it's that you never go into a meeting without knowing exactly who
your opponent is. Know thine enemy. It's a favorite saying of Josh's

That's why I'm sitting here, at my desk, surrounded by file folders
containing every scrap of information I could locate on Bristol
Wallace.

"Donna?" I raise my head to find CJ standing next to my desk. I
have to raise my head a little bit more.

"Hey, CJ." I've decided to stand since looking up at CJ Cregg can
give a person a crick in the neck.

"Wallace's crew is here," she says. "They're going to be setting up
in the Mural Room."

"The Mural Room? Again?"

"It's warm, it's comfortable, and it affords us a great deal more
privacy than any of the conference rooms."

"I'll never be able to walk in that room again without feeling like
people are supposed to be hurling questions at me," I say.

"I'm going to be with you the whole time," she reminds me. I guess I
have a pathetically nervous expression on my face.

"I know, CJ," I respond.

"Anyway, they're going to need about an hour to set up and then I'll
come get you. How's that?"

"That's fine."

"Where's Josh, by the way?"

"He had a meeting on the Hill that's run a little late."
.
"Well, is he going to be back in time?"

"I don't know. Does it matter? Because to tell the truth, CJ, if he
missed the whole thing...."

"You think having him there will make you more nervous?"

"Extremely."

"Try not to worry, Donna. This is going to be a walk in the park."

"Sure," I mutter as she walks away.

I was right about Josh's meeting on the Hill running late. When CJ
returns to collect me an hour later, Josh still has not returned. As
CJ walks beside me to the Mural Room, she offers me last minute
advice that I can't hear anyway, because I'm too busy wishing Josh
was here.

I just wish I could see him one more time before the interview. I
wish I could feel his arms around me and his voice telling me the I
was going to be great. The butterflies in my belly threaten to steal
my breath.

"Donna!" I see Bristol Wallace approaching me as we round the corner
to the Mural Room. She speaks my name as though we've been friends
for a lifetime, which only makes me wonder just how much information
she's got on me.

"Ms. Wallace," I say, holding out my hand. She accepts it with a
firm grip.

"Oh, please," she purrs," call me Bristol."

"Bristol," I echo.

CJ and Bristol usher me in to the Mural Room which has been
completely altered for the purposes of the interview. The sofa on
the left has been moved aside to make room for the heavy standing key-
and-fill lights that are positioned directly behind the leather chair
I'm assuming is designated for Ms. Bristol Wallace, Prime Time Queen.

I am suddenly swamped by technicians and production assistants. One
places a tiny body microphone on the lapel of my navy blue suit
jacket. Another presses a powder puff to my face and explains that
this will keep my skin from shining on television. I know this
already. Who do they think I work for?

"You'll be sitting here, Donna," Bristol explains, pointing to the
sofa swathed in bright lights. "We're running a bit behind
schedule," she tells me, "so we'll have to get started as soon as
possible. My producer and I are going to be up all night editing as
it is."

The sofa I'm to sit on has an end table beside it which supports a
tall glass of water and a small box of tissues. This does not bode
well.

I take my seat and try not to shield my eyes as a technician
repositions the lights for my height. I look over to see Bristol
Wallace standing in front of the monitor which, I assume, takes its
feed directly from one of the two cameras about five feet away from
me.

"Could we lower the intensity on the lights?" Bristol asks to no one
in particular. The lights dim slightly and I'm already a touch more
comfortable. At least, I don't feel like I'm about to be
interrogated by a homicide detective. "Catherine," she demands,
"could we put a little more blush on Donna. The lights are drowning
her out. We also might want to try a darker shade of lipstick."

Once again, I'm attacked by the powder puff, and this time a blush
brush, as well. The young makeup woman holds my chin in one hand as
she applies a burgundy shade to my lips with a lipstick brush. Then
she applies a second coat of a different shade.

"This will lighten the intensity of the color," she tells me. She
hands me a tissue from the box on the table and kindly orders me to
blot. I follow her order and she takes the used tissue from me.

Bristol checks the monitor again. "Her hair, Catherine." My hands
automatically go to my head, as I wonder what's wrong with my hair.

"Your hair's fine," Catherine assures me. "But hair has a tendency
to pick up static electricity around this much equipment." She mists
my hair with a small spray bottle, and them runs a brush through it.
I'm wearing my hear the way Josh likes it -- parted down the middle.

"Thanks, Catherine. Okay, Donna, we're almost ready to begin."
Bristol sits in the chair across from me. "Jason and Derek," she
indicates the cameramen, "will be playing with angles for a few
minutes to see what will work best in this room. Do you mind if we
just chat while we wait for them to finish?"

"That's fine," I say.

"How are you, Donna? Are you nervous?" she asks.

She wears a sharp, black designer suit with a string of pearls, and
matching pearl earrings. I notice that her hair has had no adverse
reactions to the amount of electricity in the room, because not a
single strand of her shoulder length chestnut hair is out of place.
Her cornflower blue eyes stand out against the black of her suit and
the deep brown of her hair.

"I'm a little nervous," I say.

"You have nothing to be nervous about, Donna. If you feel
uncomfortable with anything I ask, just tell me you want to stop,
okay? If you feel like you're about to get overly emotional just let
us know and we can take a break. It's that simple."

"Okay."

"Feel better?"

I nod. I'm afraid that my voice will betray the fact that I'm lying.

Jason and Derek move about the room with the cameras positioned on
their shoulders. One stands behind me and to my right as he tests
the angles for Bristol's close up. He crouches down for a moment and
then stands, nodding to Bristol.

Bristol turns to the other cameraman and waits for him to give her
the signal. They have to make sure that they don't interfere with
each others shots. I've seen this all before.

She nods at me and I know the cameras have begun rolling.

"Good evening, Donna," she says. This time her greetings are for the
camera rather than for me. "It's been a whirlwind couple of days for
you, hasn't it?"

"Yes, it has, Bristol," I respond.

"On Monday morning, you and Josh Lyman, the Deputy White House Chief
of Staff announced in a closed press conference that you were
involved in a personal relationship."

I nod.

"What makes this so interesting," she continues," is that Josh Lyman
isn't just your romantic interest he's also your boss. How long have
you and Josh Lyman been working together?"

"I came to work for Josh a few days after the New Hampshire Primary
during President Bartlet's campaign. So it's been a little over
three years."

"Was it an instant attraction, Donna?"

"I don't think I could say that, Bristol. He gave me a job when I
desperately needed one. When we first met, I think he thought I was
a little scary, but I wanted to work for the then-Governor's campaign
so badly."

"What made you decide to work for the campaign?" she asks. I feel as
though she's purposely delivering me to safe ground, at least for now.

"I saw a speech Governor Bartlet gave on television. Listening to
him speak, I knew that he was a man with ideals. A man that I could
get behind."

"Then what happened?"

"A few days later, I quit my job, got into my car, and drove to New
Hampshire to the campaign headquarters."

"Where were you living at the time?"

"Madison, Wisconsin," I respond.

"That's a long drive, Donna, especially if you didn't know what would
happen when you got there."

"Yes, it was. I think it was one of the most frightening moments in
my life. I had no idea how it was going to turn out I just knew that
I had to do something. I had to make a change in my life. I'd had a
lot of personal setbacks and I needed to find out if I could do
something that would make a difference. I think I was looking for
what we all look for at one point or another -- purpose."

Bristol smiles warmly at me and I realize that my chatty nature has
taken over. Her eyes and her smile tell me that I'm giving her what
she needs.

"Did you find what you were looking for?"

"I look back on the day and I think, 'What if I had never made the
decision to chuck it all and take a chance? What if I had never
gotten in that beaten up Toyota and left for New Hampshire?' The
idea of those 'what ifs' scares me." I pause for a moment and
consider whether or not I have answered her question. "Yes, Bristol,
I think I found what I was looking for -- and more."

"What was it like to work for Josh, in the beginning?"

"I think I was a little intimidated by his intensity," I say. "He's
so passionate about his work. I mean, he really believes in what
he's doing. At first, I knew so little about how a campaign was
run. I asked a lot of questions. I was surprised at how patient he
was about answering them."

"So, right from the beginning you got along well?"

"Once he hired me, yes. We made a good team, and he never treated me
like I was less than a partner." I bit my lower lip. I fear that I
may have said something that could lead to deeper questioning.
Questioning I'm not quite ready for yet.

TBC

****