When Marissa opened the door one afternoon, she expected to see her husband Hayden—but something was off. Though the man standing there looked identical to him, his voice, mannerisms, and even how he greeted their cat were all wrong. As fear crept in, Marissa realized this wasn’t Hayden at all. Thinking quickly, she tricked the imposter into the basement and locked the door before calling the real Hayden.

The truth unraveled quickly. The man was Grant—Hayden’s identical twin, separated at birth due to a hospital error and raised in the foster system. After meeting Hayden by chance at a bar, Grant became obsessed with the life he never had. His intrusion was unsettling, but it came from a place of deep loneliness and desperation.

Though Marissa was shaken, Hayden couldn’t ignore the connection. He chose not to press charges and eventually helped Grant find work. Marissa, still processing everything, agreed to a dinner where Grant sat at their table, quiet but grateful. It was awkward, strained—but strangely human.

In time, Grant faded into the background, starting a life of his own. And while Marissa still kept her guard up, she knew one thing for certain: Hayden was her husband, and love—real love—could never be faked. Not to her. Not to Waffles the cat. Not anymore.