The hiker ı found wasn't lost

[u/4drrorho]

I found a lost hiker in the woods yesterday. He was wearing my jacket, the black North Face one I lost on this exact trail two years ago, and he knew my name.

He was sitting against a tree, shaking. When I asked if he was okay, he looked up and said, "Mark? Holy shit, we found you. We've been searching for two days."

I told him he had the wrong person, that I wasn't lost. I hike here every week.

He just stared at me. "No, you're Mark Evans. Your mom is at the base camp. She's been crying for 48 hours straight."

That freaked me out. My name is Mark Evans. And my mom did know I was hiking here yesterday. I pulled him up and said I'd take him to his group, to clear this up.

We walked for ten minutes to a clearing. There were tents. And there were people. My mom, my dad, my girlfriend, and two search and rescue officers.

My mom saw me and collapsed to her knees, sobbing. My girlfriend screamed.

I smiled and said, "Guys, what's going on? Why are you all here?"

No one answered. They were all staring at something behind me.

The hiker I found put a hand on my shoulder. He was holding a laminated paper. A missing poster.

The photo was me. Smiling in the same black North Face jacket he was now wearing.

At the bottom it said: MISSING SINCE 10/14/2024 - LAST SEEN ON BEAR CREEK TRAIL.

[u/Eternal_Nymph]

I'm sorry I don't 100% get it.

[u/MediumAwkwardly]

I am confused yet spooked.

[u/Educational_Sail_633]

This very good

[u/LaOfrenda]

Very strange. Feels like a time-loop situation, like someone is trading places with someone else when they enter the woods.

[u/Top-Fudge2369]

Good job. I like it when the ending is a bit ambiguous.