Husband Changes Dramatically after Car Accident, His Family Later Learns He Is Not the Same Man – Story of the Day

When Grace’s husband, Christian, experienced an accident while on a business trip, she couldn’t go to the hospital to be with him. He called her, assuring her he would return soon. But when Christian came back, he was a completely different person, though his appearance was unchanged. Then they discovered the shocking truth.

Grace and Christian had known each other since elementary school in Madison, Wisconsin. Grace was smitten from an early age, but Christian only noticed her during their senior year. Their relationship flourished, and they married at 18, despite their parents’ concerns.

Fortunately, they had the support of their families, particularly Christian’s adoptive parents, Mr. and Mrs. Burton. The Burtons had taken Christian in when he was about seven and adopted him a few years later. Christian held them in high regard and knew little about his biological family.

Several years into their marriage, Grace became pregnant, and everyone was excited. As her due date approached, Christian needed to go on a business trip to New York. “Honey, I’m eight months pregnant. The doctor said the baby could come any day now,” Grace protested, hoping her husband could stay.

“I know, baby. But it’s a brief trip. I’ll be back in less than three days, and my company is giving me paternity leave. How great is that?” Christian reassured her. Grace thought it was a wonderful opportunity and agreed to let him go.

One day into Christian’s trip, Grace received a call from Mount Sinai Hospital. They informed her that her husband had been in an accident and requested her presence. Unable to fly due to her condition, and with Christian’s parents vacationing in Hawaii, she didn’t want to alarm them unnecessarily.

A few hours later, Christian called her himself. “Honey, I don’t know how, but I’ll be at the hospital with you soon,” she promised.

“No, Grace. You can’t come. Think of our baby. I’m okay. Everything will be fine now,” he said, his voice sounding off.

“You don’t sound okay! I need to be there!” Grace insisted. But Christian assured her that he was fine and would be discharged soon. She reluctantly agreed to wait for his return.

As promised, Christian returned a week later, appearing unscathed. “I’m so happy you’re home, honey! I love you so much!” Grace exclaimed as he settled in.

“Yes, I told you I would come back. You didn’t need to worry,” Christian replied nonchalantly. Grace was startled by his casual tone and the absence of his usual endearment, “baby.”

“Are you sure you’re alright?” she asked, puzzled.

“I’m perfectly fine, my dear wife. What’s for dinner?” Christian inquired with a smile. It didn’t seem like Christian’s usual smile, but Grace was relieved to have him back and went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

Grace hoped everything would return to normal, but a persistent feeling of unease gnawed at her. Can an accident really change someone’s personality? she wondered.

Christian seemed different in many ways. His speech, mannerisms, and even his interests had changed. His fashion sense was not the same either. When his parents returned from Hawaii, he greeted them awkwardly. Her Christian was always affectionate with his mother.

Things worsened over time. Christian became short-tempered, especially after their baby, Robbie, was born. He started going to the bar almost every night and showed little interest in their child.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Burton, but he doesn’t feel like my husband at all. He’s your son, and you must have noticed it,” Grace confided to her mother-in-law over the phone while breastfeeding.

“Well, I did sense something different when we came back from our trip. But I didn’t want to say anything. I thought it might be the accident. Now, I’m thinking maybe it’s the new baby. Perhaps he’s overwhelmed,” Mrs. Burton suggested.

Grace wasn’t convinced. Once Robbie was asleep, she decided to investigate her husband’s computer. Everything seemed normal until a message popped up on the screen: “When are you coming back? I miss you.”

Her initial thought was infidelity. But that didn’t explain the drastic change in personality. There had to be more to it. She decided to confront him. “Christian, I don’t care that it’s late. We need to talk right now,” Grace demanded.

“I want to go to sleep, woman,” he said, rubbing his face in frustration.

“‘Woman?’ You never called me that before! Who are you? You are not my Christian! You can’t be!” Grace sobbed, missing her husband. Christian looked at her intensely, and suddenly, tears streamed down his face.

“You’re right. I’m not your husband,” he whispered emotionally.

“What happened? Are you cheating on me? Do you want to leave me?” she asked through soft cries.

“No. From what little I know of Christian, he would never cheat or leave you,” he responded.

Grace froze. “What do you mean?”

“I can’t believe I thought this would work. I’m not Christian. You noticed it almost immediately….” he paused before revealing everything. “My name is Benjamin. I’m Christian’s twin brother.”

Grace was stunned. Christian had never mentioned having a twin brother, but then again, he had few memories of his childhood. Benjamin explained that he had been adopted by another family at the age of five.

Christian remained in the orphanage until the Burtons adopted him at seven. Benjamin vaguely remembered his brother and had reached out to him a few months prior. “The trip to New York wasn’t for business. We arranged to meet there,” Benjamin explained.

“But where is my husband?” Grace asked, her voice trembling.

“I think you know. The accident was more severe than he told you. I was in the passenger seat of his rental car when a truck hit us. I escaped with minor injuries, but Christian took the brunt of it,” Benjamin recounted.

“No!” Grace cried in disbelief.

“He woke up after surgery, called you, and then asked me to take care of you if anything happened. I told him he would be fine. But he had a brain bleed that night and didn’t survive,” Benjamin continued. “I couldn’t think of a better way to be there for you.”

“So, you decided to replace him? That’s insane! Who does that?” Grace shouted.

“I thought I could help you through the birth and be there for you. My adoptive parents passed away long ago, and I wanted to be part of a family again. But I couldn’t keep it up. I’m an idiot. I’m so sorry,” Benjamin apologized.

Grace had to call the Burtons and explain everything. Benjamin brought over all the paperwork concerning Christian’s death and the urn with his ashes. Christian’s parents were heartbroken. But the incident brought them closer as a family.

Benjamin moved out and found a place nearby. He asked Grace if he could still be part of Robbie’s life, but she was hesitant. “You’ve barely paid attention to Robbie since he was born. I thought you hated him,” Grace said. “And what about the person who messaged you?”

“She’s an old girlfriend. I don’t want anything to do with her. But regarding Robbie, I loved him the moment I saw him. But seeing him made me feel so guilty about deceiving you and Christian’s parents. That’s why I distanced myself,” he confessed.

Grace agreed after seeing how remorseful Benjamin was. He genuinely wanted to be part of a family again after so much loss. Over the years, she realized she had made the right choice, as Robbie grew up with the best uncle he could have.

Lessons from This Story
Trust your instincts and speak up. Grace knew from the start that Benjamin wasn’t her husband but stayed silent for months.

Never let a lie grow too big. Benjamin did the right thing by confessing before the situation got out of hand. The family might not have forgiven him if he had kept lying.

Share your thoughts on this story.