I Found My Doppelganger Living My Life in Another City

I Found My Doppelgänger Living My Life in Another City

It started with a photo. My friend Lisa sent it while traveling for a weekend conference in another city Karachi.

Didn’t know you had a twin here 😂

The picture showed a man standing at a small bookstore counter. He was wearing a navy hoodie, slightly hunched over, laughing with someone off-frame. His side profile…

It was me.

Or someone who looked exactly like me.

But I’ve never been to Karachi.

A Face in a Foreign Crowd

I dismissed it at first. Maybe a weird coincidence. Everyone has a lookalike, right?

But something about that image kept scratching at my brain. The posture. The watch identical to mine. Even the way he tucked his left hand into his hoodie pocket just like I always do.

I tried to forget about it. But two weeks later, Lisa texted again:

Your clone’s in a coffee shop near Tariq Road. Swear to God, he even ordered your drink black Americano, no sugar.

I couldn’t shake it anymore.

I booked a weekend trip to Karachi.

The Search Begins

I arrived in the city with nothing but an address, a screenshot, and a gnawing anxiety in my chest. I visited the bookstore. The manager said, “Oh yeah, he comes every Wednesday. Great guy. Loves mystery novels.”

I felt cold all over.

Because that was me.

That was my routine. But in another city.

I left my number and asked to be called if “the guy” came in again. Then I roamed the coffee shop, the nearby park, even the underground bookstalls.

And then, on my second day… I saw him.

Face to Face

I was standing at a fruit vendor’s stall when I felt a tap on my shoulder.

Hey… uh, sorry. But have we met before?

My heart jumped into my throat.

He looked exactly like me. But his clothes were more tailored, his skin slightly tanned. His voice was the same, but his confidence off the charts.

We stared at each other like mirrors glitching in real-time.

You look just like me,” I managed to say.

No. You look like me,” he replied, eyes narrowing slightly.

The Uncanny Similarities

His name was Ayaan. Same birthday. Same height. Same scar above the eyebrow, which he said came from falling off a bicycle at age nine. Which… is exactly how I got mine.

His mother’s name was different. So was his hometown. But his life? Practically a parallel version of mine, with minor variations.

Same career field. Same college major. Same food preferences. Same dream of becoming a screenwriter though he was already working on a Netflix pitch.

He was living a better version of my life.

The Cracks Appear

We met a few more times that weekend. Something about him unsettled me. It wasn’t just the appearance it was the feeling that he already knew more than he let on.

One night, he said something that made my blood run cold.

Funny how our lives split. You stayed… comfortable. I took the risk.

I didn’t remember telling him anything about my choices.

Then I noticed his notebook.

It had my handwriting.

The Truth Unfolds

I waited until he went to the bathroom and opened it. The entries were detailed descriptions of my life—friends, memories, even thoughts I’d only journaled privately.

It wasn’t just a lookalike.

It wasn’t just coincidence.

He knew me.

When he came back and saw me holding the notebook, his expression shifted from calm to something much darker.

You're not supposed to see that.

Who Was He Really?

I demanded answers.

He smiled.

Think of me as… the version of you that took all the chances you were too scared to. Every time you said no, I said yes. Every time you hesitated, I moved forward. We’re the same coin but I landed face up.

I was speechless.

You think I found your life? No. You gave it away.

I Left the City—But Not the Questions

I left Karachi the next morning.

But I haven’t been the same since. Every time I walk past a mirror, I wonder if it's really reflecting me or him. I deleted Lisa’s photos, but that face haunts me.

I don’t know what Ayaan really is. A glitch? A ghost? A manifestation of everything I could’ve been?

But I know this: somewhere out there, someone is living your life better than you are.

And maybe, just maybe… they’re waiting for you to notice.

Kindly Subscribe My Vocal Media

Thanks Everyone