Grieving Man Meets His Late Wife's Carbon Copy Days after Her Funeral – Story of the Day

Alec’s wife, Melissa, died after a terrible battle with cancer. But days after her funeral, he saw her everywhere. Everyone thought he was going crazy, and Alec started to believe it too. But one day, he visited her grave and discovered the truth.

Melissa and Alec met during their senior year of college at Georgetown University. They both fell in love with the nation’s capital and settled there after marrying. Melissa barely talked about her family back home in Utah.

She only mentioned being estranged from them, and Alec didn’t like to dwell on the past. So, he never asked more questions about them until she got sick. “Honey, I know you don’t like it, but maybe we should call some of your family,” Alec said hesitantly.

“No, Alec. They won’t come. My parents were not good people, and my one sibling…well…we haven’t seen each other in many years. Please, let me sleep,” Melissa responded.

Alec let the matter go because her illness got even worse, and sadly, she died a few days after their conversation. His family and friends were there to support him, but the pain of losing Melissa was horrible.

He took an extended leave from work and didn’t leave his house for several days. But his friend, Steve, showed up and demanded they go out.

“Come on, man. You need to go out and see people. We’ll take baby steps. Let’s go to the grocery store. No more deliveries,” Steve insisted.

Alec agreed because Steve was right. It was time to get on with his life, even if it hurt. They went to the market, and Steve started filling his cart. Alec walked around looking at people and wondering how he was going to move on with his life.

Suddenly, Alec saw a woman who looked exactly like his wife walk past the aisle and disappear into the milk section. “Melissa?” Alec said aloud. “Steve, did you see Melissa?”

“What? Where?” Steve asked, frowning at him.

“It was her. She went to the milk section. Quick, let’s go,” Alec explained. They rushed to the milk aisle, but Melissa was not there. “Where is she? Let’s go to the next section.”

“Alec, man, listen, I know this has been traumatic, but that wasn’t Melissa. Let’s keep shopping,” Steve cajoled. They finished shopping and went back home.

Eventually, Alec started feeling better and would go out on his own. However, he kept seeing a vision of Melissa everywhere he went. While driving around town he saw her walking down the street. But after he parked and tried to search for her, she was nowhere to be found. He also thought he saw her in his garden one morning.

Maybe I'm going insane, he thought, worried. Steve suggested a therapist, but he wasn’t ready for that yet. But two weeks after Melissa’s funeral, he went to the local café and saw Melissa there again. She was right there working the register.

He rushed to her. “Melissa?” he whispered.

“Excuse me? My name is Amanda. What can I get for you today?” the woman answered.

“What? You’re not Melissa?” Alec said, concerned.

“No, sir. Do you want something to drink?” Amanda continued.

“Ah, yes,” he replied. Alec ordered a few things off the menu and watched Amanda work the shop. She approached him after all the other customers left and started talking. She was just as funny as Melissa and bright.

“Would it be wrong to ask for your number, Amanda?” Alec asked after a few hours of talking to her. She agreed, and they exchanged digits. But when he called her that night, the number was blocked.

The following day, she was not working at the café. But the worst part was when he asked the male barista where Amanda was, “I’m sorry. There’s no one here by that name,” the barista answered.

“What? No, she was here yesterday. You made me my coffee, and she rang me up. We talked for a few hours over at that table,” Alec repeated desperately. But the barista said he was wrong. I AM crazy! he thought, horrified.

Confused, Alec walked around town and decided to go to Melissa’s grave. He was distraught after yesterday’s vivid encounter. He talked to his late wife by her grave.

“Oh, darling, I think the grief is killing me. I need to see a doctor. Yesterday, I thought I was talking to a woman who looked just like you. But I wasn’t. I’m so lost without you,” Alec cried. Suddenly, a woman spoke to him.

“You’re not crazy, Alec,” the voice said. He turned around, scared.

“No, I’m not going to let my brain keep tricking me like this. So if you’re a vision of my wife or that Amanda apparition, you need to disappear now!” Alec demanded and blinked. But the vision was still there.

“I’m not a vision, and I’m not Melissa. My name really is Amanda, and I can explain. I’m Melissa’s sister. She called me a few weeks ago, but I yelled at her and hung up. I discovered she died that night,” Amanda shared.

“What? You’re her estranged sister?” Alec questioned.

“I imagined she didn’t talk about me much, but I’ll explain everything if you let me,” Amanda began. “As you can tell, we’re twins. Our parents were horrible people, and we ran away from home at 15. But Melissa was the responsible one.”

“She managed to get a job and rented an apartment while I was a rebellious kid. I started dating this awful guy, and Melissa hated him. We had a huge fight about it, and she kicked me out of her apartment. I vowed to take revenge on her someday.”

“Take revenge on your sister? She was trying to protect you,” Alec countered.

“I know that. But back then, I was so messed up. But I followed her secretly on social media and resented how great her life had been. I was surprised when she told me about her sickness, but I didn’t want to talk to her,” Amanda continued.

“So, it was you all along?” Alec questioned.

“Yes. When she died, I decided to mess with you and finally get my revenge. It was me you saw at the supermarket. I also asked that barista at the café to lie to you. But you were nice and in so much pain that I couldn’t keep doing it. I’m so sorry,” she finished.

“At least, it proves I’m not going crazy,” Alec laughed humorlessly. Amanda sat down on the grass with him, looked at Melissa’s grave, and started talking.

“Melissa was the best sister in the world. She tried to bring me back home. She tried to call me for years, but I wouldn’t forgive her. I learned how hard life was without her, but I was too full of pride to go back. She was braver than me,” Amanda revealed.

They shared their memories of Melissa, and Alec forgave her for everything because he had learned the hard way that life is too short. Soon, they developed a close friendship.

Amanda did everything in her power to make up for how cruel she had been to Alec and not listening when her sister called on her deathbed. A few years down the line, she and Alec realized they were in love and got married.

Several months afterward, they welcomed their first daughter, Melissa.

What can we learn from this story?

• Life is too short. You never know what could happen to the people you love. Don’t waste your time.
• Forgiveness is divine. Alec forgave Amanda quickly despite her malicious actions, and she did everything to make up for it.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a man who told his new girlfriend that his parents were dead, but they appeared on their date.

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