Girl Meets Perfect Lookalike, Mom Uncovers 20-Year-Old Hospital Mistake
The cashier gave her a strange glance, saying, “I’m sorry, do I know you?” She then saw the little freckle under her lower lip. She abruptly became perplexed upon realizing she wasn’t Lacy.
The daughters joyfully displayed the girl’s photo to their mother. But they were shocked to see their mother’s expression change from delight to fear. She quickly got herself together, but it was already too late. They realized there was a severe problem.
Lacy And Mary
Lacy and Mary Claudio were frequently questioned as children about how they were sisters, but they responded by repeating precisely what they had been told for as long as they could remember. They were sisters, more specifically, twins. They didn’t resemble one another, but that wasn’t important.
They shared a white father and a half-Jamaican mother. They were both born in the same hospital ward, to the same mother, on the same day. Or so they believed.
Different But Alike
The girls were now out of their teens and did not doubt that they were sisters, even if others often speculated that they weren’t. They were confident together and didn’t care what others thought.
They were too similar in other ways and had always possessed a unique closeness for anybody to dispute their sisterly relationship genuinely. But everything was about to change when their lives took a sudden and unexpected turn.
Polarizing
They exchanged glances while crying, and their pulses were pounding. This could not be real. There has to be an error of some sort. The room fell silent as everyone came to terms with their new situation.
For Lacy and Mary, it was just an ordinary day of college courses and homework. Mary pursued a career in accountancy while Lacy studied music. Nobody anticipated this because they were each other’s yin and yang.
New People and Places
Like she always did, Mary waited for Lacy to complete her lesson so they could walk home together. They both reduced their losses by remaining at home rent-free because they had educational expenses to pay.
It was obvious to them, yet the boredom of remaining home made them want excitement and novelty. As a result, they began frequenting fresh cafés and eateries located across their city. That’s how it came about.
An Unexpected Stop
They made a choice to take a long way home and stop by a brand-new coffee shop to check it out. But Lacy had to use the restroom, so she hurried ahead of Mary on the way there.
Mary walked into the coffee shop and was surprised to see her best friend behind the counter. She was working the till. But she didn’t work there, did she?
It Wasn’t Lucy
With a grin, Lacy welcomed her and asked her what order she’d like. Do you work here? Mary asked with a chuckle. “What?! When did you start working here? Mary shouted.
The cashier’s assistant gave Mary a sidelong glance. “I’m sorry but do I know you?” Mary was suddenly overcome with concern when she noticed the tiny beauty freckle behind her lip. When she realized she wasn’t Lacy, she froze.
Looked Just Like Her
Lacy joined Mary in taking the order just after she emerged from the restroom. What are you getting? She questioned after first looking at the menu and then at Mary. Mary, who was focusing on the girl behind the register, caught her attention.
After catching the girl’s wide-eyed stare, Lacy turned to look at her. Lacy appeared to be staring in a mirror. How could this stranger, who looked precisely like her, be? To show their mother, they took a photo of themselves together. Then everything was different.
The Image
To show their mother the photo, the girls welcomed her with excitement. Her expression changed from joy to terror as they watched. Though she rapidly collected herself, it was already too late. They were aware of the problem.
But the next morning, they overheard their parents arguing. Clearly, something was wrong. What were they hiding from the girls?
A Change
After seeing the picture of Lacy and her doppelgänger, Mary was the first to recognize that their mother had changed. Before the phone rang on that tragic day, they were unable to comprehend why.
They heard their mother crying in the kitchen as they were preparing to go to college together. She was on the phone at the time. The girls heard with rising anxiety but didn’t want to interrupt just yet. However, what they were about to learn would completely upend their world.
Hospital Mistake
Their mother was talking to someone in their family’s hospital. “You did what?” she cried. “If my daughter hadn’t found her and taken the picture, I would have never known! We would have never known! How could you make such a mistake?”.
They strained to listen as they began to make sense of what was happening. They looked at each other, eyes wide, tearing. Then, for the first time in 20 years, they heard the truth.
Mix Up
Incredibly, Lacy and Mary had bumped into Lacy’s real twin at the coffee shop. It was all their mom needed to revisit her suspicions that she put to rest some 20 odd years ago.
After the girls showed their mom the picture, old familiar feelings of doubt that she tried hard to silence rushed back. She couldn’t help but get back in touch with the hospital and do some further investigation of her own.
Figuring Things Out
The girls were incredibly motivated to get to the bottom of things. Their mother felt like it was her obligation to figure out what had gone wrong. She also had her own mixed emotions about what had happened.
How could this have happened? She now not only had her own kids to try to give answers to but had to live with the fact that one of her children was left behind.
Tears
Tears welled up in her eyes. Her poor baby, had been left at the hospital and presumably taken by someone else. How could a mixup like this even be possible in this day and age? She knew it was no use even feeling bitter about it.
She had a responsibility to uncover a 20-year-old mistake that had cost her one of her children. She was motivated.
They Wouldn’t Get Away With This
Lucy’s mother knew who to throw all of her rage at. She would look to the hospital for answers. The people who had made the mixup probably weren’t even working there anymore, but that didn’t stop her.
She’d bring a fury down upon the hospital, even if it was in vain. She just wanted someone to blame for the mixup. But how would the hospital respond to such an accusation?
A Furious Call
Lucy’s mother picked up the phone and called the hospital. She held nothing back and got straight to business. The time for pleasantries was past them. She immediately demanded an explanation for everything.
The person on the other side of the phone froze up. They told her that they were a new hire and had no idea what was going on. That wasn’t good enough.
Denial
Before the assistant on the other side could say anything too incriminating, they were quickly taken off the call, and an older gentleman took over. She could tell that he was responsible for dealing with incriminating situations.
She explained the situation to the man. He didn’t seem to take her temper kindly and curtly denied everything. That made her even angrier.
Hanging Up
“If you can’t give me the answers I want, then I’ll be forced to take even more urgent action!” She shouted before hanging up. She hoped that made the man on the other side of the phone sweat. She knew exactly what to do.
She would do what she did best. She was good at making scenes, and that’s precisely what she planned on doing.
Going Down There
Lacy’s mother decided that the best course of action would be to go down there in person, where she dared them to be rude to her face. Lacy’s mother could have a stone-cold side if she was crossed, and she could make anyone back down.
Lacy had seen it a handful of times before, mostly when they were mistreated at a restaurant or a playground.
Motivation
On the way there, she was beyond motivated now. She would do anything to protect her children. She was a mother you never wanted to cross, and unfortunately for the hospital, they had done just that.
They were blissfully unaware of the fury getting closer to them with every waking minute. Until she was at their doors, ready for a fight.
Explaining
Lacy’s mother stormed in with a crazy look in her eye. They knew it was her just from that look. The man on the phone immediately stepped up to talk to her – she recognized his voice from the phone.
After she explained everything to the man but this time in person, she thought he wouldn’t dare disrespect her. But he said something that made her fly off the hinges.
“Needed Evidence”
“Sorry, Ma’am, but you need some kind of evidence to back all of this up.” This made her see red. The man took a step back as if to ready himself for any unexpected fist throws on her part. But she didn’t need to resort to physical means.
She smiled with satisfaction and pulled something out of her bag. When the man saw what it was, he knew that he couldn’t beat her at her own game.
A Photo
She reached for her bag, and the man gripped the counter behind him. She knew he was scared now, but what she pulled out would make him back down immediately. It was an ordinary photo to the man, but to Lacy’s mother, it was special.
She showed it to him, and after he examined it, he knew that he’d have to submit to her and do what she wanted.
Confirmation
When she showed them the photo of her twin daughters and then a photo of Lacy and a stranger, and pleaded with them to check the medical records for any other coinciding birth of another set of expecting twins.
She knew that she was right all along! She was just happy that they finally checked their system to find that they were in the wrong. But what would they say next?
Has Been Put Up For Adoption
They assured her that they’d do some digging and call her back. She knew they would out of fear of her coming back, so she left with a smile on her face.
She thought that they were going to give her what she wanted. But she had no idea what kind of people she was dealing with.
Dishonest
Lucy’s mother couldn’t believe it though. They called back a day later and told her once again that there was no way that she could lay the blame on them.
She had never been angrier in her life. They couldn’t even give her any information on the whereabouts of the twins. They said it was “confidential”
Next Move
She had never felt more disrespected in her entire life. She knew that some companies could be like this, but she never expected a hospital to be this sneaky. She wouldn’t let them get away with this.
But before any of that, she now had to look for the two twins without their help. But their time would come soon.
Heads Rolling
This meant there was an important search the family had to do.
But before anything else could happen, there were some heads that needed to roll. While the girl’s mother had shed many tears when she found out the truth, another emotion had surfaced – one that matched her husband’s
Who Was Responsible?
It was anger – no … fury.
How could such a mistake have been made? This wasn’t like misplacing a set of house keys. This was a vital connection between two families. The hospital’s reaction was partially as you would expect – profuse apologies. But their next step wasn’t at all what the family would have imagined.
PR And Lawyers
For lack of a better term, they tried to sweep it under the rug.
Between lawyer talk and hollow PR sentiments, it was clear the facility just wanted to make it all go away. They were quick to offer a settlement – but the number was quite insulting. Then there was the staff that had been there the night of the girls’ birth.
Nobody Knew
Only one was still on staff – and the hospital said it “couldn’t find anything that proved that person was the one to blame.”
Mary and Lacy could hear their parents yelling on the phone, demanding proper justice – not a desperate gesture of capitulation. While they agreed someone needed to be held accountable, the girls were already prepared for a different journey.
Family Is Everything
The twins knew without a doubt they were sisters – after all, family wasn’t just about blood.
They had bawled in each other’s arms, reminiscing about their childhood and promising that nothing would change between them. They would do anything for each other. This included never giving up until Mary’s sister was also found.
Looking For The Other Twin
Since the hospital was already walking on razor-sharp eggshells, they immediately promised their resources to track down Mary’s twin.
It would be a hard push through some serious red tape to get the files unsealed – even under their strange situation, the state laws around the records were going to be a massive mountain to scale.
Reaching Out
But now there was another issue. The girls spoke to their mother and pleaded with her to let them contact the girl from the coffee shop. They thought it would be amazing to reconnect with lost family. Lacy’s mother was still hurting from the truth she’d just uncovered.
But did that mean things were irreparable? After everything she’d gone through and all the years that would pass, would things still work out?
Meeting Jessica
Meanwhile, as the lawyers did their thing, the girl’s family knew there was something else vital to the healing process.
They contacted Jessica and invited her to coffee. All of them wanted to get to know their long-lost daughter. They also decided to meet at the very shop where Lacy had made her discovery.
Long Catch Up
The family sat around the table, feeling nervous at first – all except Lacy, who was already smiling from ear to ear.
But after a couple of rounds of coffee, the conversation flowed easily.
They shared stories of their past. Laughed at the wonderful moments and shed a few tears when talking about the low points.
Loving Home
Thankfully, Jessica didn’t have to endure the foster homes and garbage bags instead of suitcases.
She had been placed in a loving home with parents that were just as supportive as Mary and Lacy’s. Jessica had even saved up for a trip to France – a place that Lacy was desperate to see.
Waiting Anxiously
Weeks after their coffee shop reunion, Mary was still waiting with bated breath to know the results of the lawyer’s battle.
She also wanted her heartfelt moment. She wanted to know if they loved the same places, adored the same music, and every other “twin thing.” So, every time the phone rang, her heart would pound a mile a minute.
Found!
Months passed, and the search was slow going.
But one crisp morning, the phone rang with the information they had hoped for. Mary’s twin had been found. She was living two states over … and her name was Lily.
The Long Trip There
The family piled into their car and raced to their destination as fast as the legal limit would allow.
The entire time, Mary’s stomach churned with excitement. She was finally going to get her moment. This wasn’t a family splitting. It was just one getting much bigger. She couldn’t wait to meet her new sister.
In order to protect the privacy of those depicted, some names, locations, and identifying characteristics have been changed and are products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblances to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, are entirely coincidental.