C50 Hidden Truths

He sat on the edge of the bed and buried his face in both hands. "What exactly happened..." The more he thought about it, the stranger everything became.

Before meeting the team managers, he wasn't drunk. He had only accepted one glass from a waiter. After that... His body became unbearably hot. His vision blurred. His heartbeat accelerated. Even breathing became difficult.

He could still remember forcing himself into the elevator before everything turned black. "...That wasn't alcohol." His eyes widened. "It couldn't have been..." He immediately took out his phone. His fingers hesitated before finally opening the group chat. "Guys... I think something happened to me yesterday. I need your help investigating something."

The message was read almost instantly. Alicia "Investigate what?" A few seconds later... i asked "What's wrong, brother?" Chris swallowed. "Let's meet in Mike's room."

Only a few minutes later, Alicia arrived. She knocked lightly before entering. I was already waiting. Chris, however, had not arrived yet. The room suddenly became unusually quiet. I sat on one side of the sofa while Alicia quietly sat opposite him. Neither of us spoke. After yesterday's mistaken confession, even looking at each other felt awkward.

Alicia secretly glanced at me. I looked distracted. She smiled faintly. "So... Brother..." I looked up. "Did you finally send that message to the original owner?" I froze. I forced an awkward smile. "...No." "No?" "I'm... not sure it's a good idea anymore." Alicia blinked. "What do you mean?"

I almost confessed everything. I wanted to say that I wasn’t sure of my message anymore since she saw it and did not reply, probably Laura would not respond as well. Instead, I simply shook his head. "Maybe another time." Alicia nodded gently. "Alright."

Although she smiled, her heart wasn't calm. She still couldn't forget yesterday. The accidental confession... His kindness... His protective nature... Every time she convinced herself he was simply her sworn brother, another strange feeling quietly appeared. She hated herself for even thinking that way. "...What's wrong with me?" Before either of them could continue thinking...

Knock. Chris entered. Both of them immediately noticed something. He looked exhausted. Dark circles surrounded his eyes. His face was pale. He looked like someone who hadn't rested at all. I frowned. "Brother... you've been acting strangely all day." "What happened?"

Chris stood silently for several seconds. Then he spoke. "...Yesterday..." "I nearly died." Silence. Alicia blinked. "...What?" I stared at him. "Weren't you sleeping?" Chris slowly sat down. His hands trembled slightly as he picked up a bottle of water. After drinking several mouthfuls, he finally began.

"Yesterday... before the managers left..." "I wasn't drunk." Both Alicia and I nodded. They remembered that clearly. "The waiter handed us fresh drinks." "We all took one." "I only took two sips not one ."

Chris lowered his eyes. "Less than two minutes later..." "My entire body became unbearably hot." "I couldn't think." "I couldn't breathe properly." "I felt dizzy." "I was sweating." "I thought I was having a heart attack." I slowly leaned forward. Chris continued. "I forced myself into the elevator because I wanted to reach my room." "When I reached my floor..." "I couldn't even stand." "I remember swiping my room card..." "...and then everything went black."

The room became silent. Even the air felt heavier. Alicia slowly asked, "So..." "You think someone tampered with your drink?" Chris nodded. "I'm not certain." "But something wasn't right." My expression became serious. "Then let's find out."

I immediately carried my laptop onto the desk. His fingers began dancing across the keyboard. Lines of code rapidly filled the screen. Chris stared in amazement. "You can actually access their system?" I smiled. "Only if their security is careless." Several windows appeared. Loading... Connecting... Hotel Security Archive. Access Granted.

Chris's eyes widened. "...That fast?" I shrugged. "They forgot to close one very important vulnerability." Soon... The security footage appeared. I fast-forwarded through hours of recordings. Then... "There." Everyone leaned closer.

The footage showed the banquet hall. Their team managers were chatting happily. The three of them stood nearby. A waiter approached carrying several glasses. I paused the footage. "Look carefully." They watched. The waiter handed each of them a drink. Nothing seemed unusual.

I pressed play. The managers eventually left. Chris casually picked up his glass. He took several mouthfuls. Ten seconds passed. Twenty. Thirty. Then... Chris suddenly loosened his tie. His breathing became heavier. Sweat appeared on his forehead. He looked around in confusion. "...There..." Alicia whispered. Chris grabbed the edge of a nearby chair. His body staggered. He stood. Took one step. Then another.

His movements became unstable. He leaned against a wall before slowly making his way toward the elevator. Nobody noticed him. Everyone else was busy talking. The footage switched to the hallway outside the hotel rooms. Chris stumbled out of the elevator. His shirt was soaked with sweat. His breathing looked painful. He barely managed to swipe his room card.

The door unlocked. Before he could step inside, Bang! His body collapsed violently onto the floor. The sound alone made everyone flinch. I unconsciously clenched his fists. "...That fall looked painful." Nearly three minutes passed. Nobody came. Then... Another figure appeared.

A young woman wearing a cap walked quickly down the hallway. She froze upon seeing Chris lying unconscious. She knelt beside him. Tried shaking him awake. Nothing. She looked left. Then right. As if making sure nobody was watching.

Finally...She pulled one of Chris's arms and slowly dragged him into the room. The door closed. The hallway became silent once again. No one spoke. Chris stared blankly at the screen. Alicia frown "...Someone saved you..." The woman's face remained hidden beneath her cap, and the camera angle never revealed her identity.

I replayed the footage several times. Alicia finally broke the silence. "This doesn't make sense." "You were perfectly fine." "Then after drinking one glass..." "You collapsed." I nodded. "Go back." "Before the managers left." The footage rewound. Again. Again. Then I suddenly paused. "There."

The waiter. He wasn't smiling naturally. His eyes kept darting left and right. His hands looked slightly unsteady. Almost... Like someone afraid of being caught. Chris narrowed his eyes. "I didn't notice that yesterday." I zoomed in.

The resolution wasn't perfect, but it was enough to notice the nervous expression. The three exchanged worried looks. No one spoke. Then, All three phones rang simultaneously. The sudden sound made everyone jump.

I answered first. "Mike! Where are you?" Bright shouted. "We've all been waiting downstairs! The bus is leaving!" Chris answered his phone. "Mr. Chambers, everyone has assembled. We're ready to depart." Alicia answered hers. "Alicia! Your room is locked. We've been looking everywhere!"

The three of us looked at one another. Mike glanced at the clock. "...Two hours?" None of us had realized how much time had passed. "We'll be there in five minutes," Mike replied before ending the call. Chris looked disappointed. "So that's it?" "We're leaving before finding out the truth?"

I smiled confidently. "Who said we're stopping?" I inserted a flash drive into his laptop. The progress bar slowly filled. Downloading Security Archive... Chris stared. "You downloaded everything?" I nodded. "The hotel's recordings for the last twenty-four hours." "We'll continue once we're back in Scotland."

Relief finally appeared on Chris's face. Then another thought suddenly crossed his mind. He hesitated before asking, "...Mike." "If you can access the hotel's system..." "Does that mean..." "...the rooms also have cameras?" I laughed. "No." "Relax." "Guest rooms don't have surveillance cameras." "And even if they did, those systems wouldn't be accessible like this."

Chris secretly released the breath he had been holding. I noticed the reaction but said nothing. Something had clearly happened inside that room. Whatever it was... Chris wasn't ready to tell them. Not yet.

I safely removed the flash drive and slipped it into his pocket. "Ladies and gentlemen," he said, closing the laptop. "Our vacation is officially over." "But our investigation..." "...is only just beginning." With that, the three of us hurriedly collected our luggage.

I waited outside while Chris locked his room one final time. Alicia came down from another floor carrying her suitcase. The three of us exchanged determined glances.

Behind us, Paris slowly faded into memory. Ahead of us... Scotland awaited. And somewhere within the footage stored inside my pocket... The truth behind that mysterious drink was waiting to be uncovered.