There was only one way to get rid of Jane. It was sickening enough that there was another figure on the planet who shared the same features with her. Every time she stepped out of her room when they were younger, her mother consistently had to ask who she was.
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“Jane or Mary?” And Jane always came first.
Jane, the 5”7 blonde haired with sea blue eyes and rose pink lips. The one who had a sweet smile for everyone and an answer to every question asked in class. Even when people knew there were two of them, they preferred to call them both “Jane”. It was difficult to have someone approach her and say “Mary” first. Jane was who they all cared about.
To them, there were 2 Janes and no Mary.
But all that was going to come to an end after graduation.
To Mary, she was the most pretty of the twins irrespective of the fact that they were the spitting image of one another. Their mother could only tell them apart by their character. If she decided to smile and say “Good morning Mom” in a sing-song voice as soon as she walked down the stairs, her mother would immediately think she was Jane.
She sucked her stomach in the low-cut emerald green dress she had on and smiled.
Indeed, there was only one way to turn everyone's attention from Jane to herself, and she was going to do it after graduation.
She took the dress off and tucked it away in between her underwear, then went downstairs.
Jane was already downstairs, saying grace for breakfast.
“Amen” her parents chorused.
“Mary! Good morning” Jane said in her sing-song voice. “Come and have a seat, Mom has prepared your favorite for breakfast” Mary sneered at her and took the place beside her father. Jane always sat next to their mother.
There was something fishy going on. Their mother never prepared their favorite dishes except it was their birthday or she wanted them to do something inconvenient for her. Mary could see that there was also a big roast chicken at the center of the table. That was Jane's favorite.
“So Mary, how do you like the pancakes?” Her mother, Amelia, asked. She was beaming with smiles. Mary sneered at her too.
“They're good. I guess”
“You know your mom makes the best pancakes” her father chuckled beside her. She sighed wearily. If they had something to say, she preferred they said it already instead of upsetting her with their niceties.
“So girls, an opportunity has come up at the infamous New York City. A scholarship to study nursing immediately after your graduation! Just what you wanted, right?” Jane squealed excitedly and threw her arms around her mother while Mary's fork clattered to her plate.
Amelia detangled herself from Jane's embrace and turned to the other twin.
“What's wrong Mary?”
“I don't want to go to nursing school. I've never wanted to be a nurse”
“But you're good at science. Everyone knows that” Jane protested
“No, everyone thinks that because of you. I'm not you, Jane. I don't want to be you.” Then she turned to her mother, “I always wanted to be a model, to own a fashion brand, and I told you so….”
“Mary, this is a scholarship. It's an opportunity of a lifetime” her father began,
“I don't care! Who gave you consent to apply for a scholarship on my behalf?” She rose from the table now, her perfect olive skin turning red with anger. “I do not want to be a nurse just because Jane wants to be one. I AM MARY, NOT JANE!”
“Mary, everyone knows who you are” Jane was up now, her own olive skin turning a light shade of pink. “You're the twin who never listens, thinking she can navigate the world all by herself. If you could, God would never give you parents. Mom has made the best choice for us, we should be grateful instead of throwing tantrums”
Amelia turned to her husband helplessly. When the girls began like this, there was no stopping them.
“Oh, you talk to me about God now, but I talk to you about you. Why do you have to be so selfish? There are 2 of us. Not just you, why do you always want to overshadow my existence with your good-for-nothing pretentious lifestyle…”
“Mary!...” Amelia cut in but the other twin wasn't done.
“After graduation, I'm leaving. I was going to do it secretly but since we're having this conversation, it would be best to let all of you know. I'm going to show myself to the world instead of suffocating under Jane's identity. And DO NOT ever try to find me”
Turning to Jane, she said, “As for you, keep out of my business until then and once I leave, keep out of my life”
Mary picked her backpack up and walked out, she didn't even turn around when for the first time, her neighbor said “Good morning Mary” instead of “Good morning Jane”.
Dear my charming lady @iskawrites !
I'm curious why you post pictures of white women!
I assumed you were probably writing novels with white women as the main characters!😃
I love the beauty of Nigerians that @ezemmauel shows!
In particular, the physical beauty of black women is very attractive!😄
I wonder if you have the physical beauty like the Nigerian women in the pictures!😉
Thank you, always, for your interest in my posts, @goldgrifin007. I appreciate your curiosity about the images I share, just know that I celebrate and admire the beauty of all cultures and ethnicities.
I agree that the physical beauty of black women is truly attractive, but you have to remember that beauty comes in all forms.
As for my own physical beauty, I believe beauty is unique to each individual, and it goes beyond external appearances. Plus, they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Thank you so much for your kind words, and I hope you continue to enjoy the content I share 😊😊😊😊
Dear @iskawrites !
I hope my awkward English does not offend you!😄
I am enjoy by the wonderful side of Nigeria shown by my young friends James and Emmanuel!
So, I am hoping that you will be able to show us the wonderful sides of Nigeria!😉
I hope your happy!
What a great story. Mary is at a point where they need to feel unique and different. That's her right. Two twins can share the same genes but their minds are different. Best of luck to these beautiful protagonists.
Thank you so much, Inkwell
Such a unique story. I believe Mary made the right decision although she went about it the wrong way. However, sometimes to stay calm and peaceful does not always give you your desires result. I love your story, it's really interesting, brief and well written
I'm so glad you enjoyed the story. You know, I have to agree with you - Mary's approach may not have been the textbook way to handle things, but sometimes you just have to do what feels right at the moment, even if it's a little unorthodox.
Thanks so much for the wonderful feedback.
Hmm! I can imagine Mary's struggles. It's not easy living under one's shadow especially when that other person is your twin sister. I loved the dialogue, it felt really real. I would have reacted same way if I was Mary.
True, the constant mixes up, and the pressure to measure up is often very exhausting.
Thank you so much, Zizzy
Being a twin of the same gender must not be too much fun, especially if parents dress you alike. Fortunately, I'm a middle child, so there's no confusing me :)
I like the conflict that you set up.
I would be 😤 if that happened to me. People might even do it unconsciously too.
This is a good way of providing some anticipation for the fireworks to come. It concisely builds up the action, as if taking a deep breath.
It's like she had been waiting a long time to say this, and she let pyrotechnics fly.
This is an excellent ending. It demonstrates that now that she's more assertive, it shows in the way she carries herself and people notice that. Great story!
lol, being a middle child definitely has its perks, no mix-ups there..hehehe
Thank you for your kind words.
It's so obvious how selfish Jane is from her saying that their mother had made the best decision for them. Like she would have been happy if the decision was not what she wanted.
The outburst from Mary was long overdue and they all had it coming. Nice one @iskawrites
You are right, Jane is more concerned with getting the outcome of their mum's decisions that favor her. Mary has been bottling up a lot of frustration over the years, and this was just the final straw. Thank you for reading
You're very welcome. Hopefully we'll get to read the end of the story someday.
Smiles...Hopefully 🤗
I'm fan of the way you always approach prompts. That being said, I got stuck on the way you developed the story. Nice dialogue, indeed. Just wanted to know what happened later with Mary's life.
Keep up the good work!
I could imagine Mary's struggles. It's always about Jane but then she stood for herself. She have had the last drop of it.
The drama of twins. Jane was somehow selfish and inconsiderate of the feelings of Mary. No one would it comfortable losing her identity to her sibling.
Lovely story, @iskawrites
Hello @iskawrites, my greetings.
Very good the way you approach the text I really liked it.
I imagine Jane, in the end it feels good to break up with her sister and make her own life and to be recognized at the end with the neighbor's greeting.
Very interesting how you put the story.
My greetings.
!ALIVE
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