When Chad invited his buddy Nolan over for dinner with his French in-laws, he figured it’d be a good way to have someone around while his wife, Camille, and her parents spoke in French. Little did he know, the night would take a turn that would flip his world upside down.
Camille and Chad met back in college when she was an exchange student from France studying International Politics. They’ve been together ever since, and Camille is about as French as you can get. Her parents still live in France but visit twice a year. Over the years, Chad had picked up a few French words, but never enough to keep up with full conversations. When her family starts chatting in French at the table, Chad always feels a little out of place.
With her parents visiting again, Chad thought having Nolan over would keep him entertained while the French talk went on. It seemed like it’d be an easy evening of dinner and work talk.
At first, everything seemed normal. They were all at the table enjoying the meal. Nolan and Chad were caught up in conversation about an audit at work while Camille and her parents were deep in French conversation. But then, out of the blue, Nolan’s face changed. He turned pale, leaned in, and whispered, “You need to go upstairs and check under your bed. Trust me.”
Chad laughed it off at first, but Nolan’s serious look made him second-guess it. Uneasy, Chad excused himself from the table and went upstairs, confused and anxious.
In the bedroom, he bent down and looked under the bed. There was a small black box. His heart raced as he opened it, unsure of what he’d find. Inside were love letters, small keepsakes, and a stack of photos of Camille with another man. One name stood out in the letters—Benoit.
Chad was frozen, his mind racing as he pieced together what he had found. Camille had been hiding an affair.
The next thing he knew, he was waking up in a hospital bed, groggy and out of it. Nolan was sitting by his side, looking worried.
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