Imagine

8. Multiples?

The next day was a Saturday and my plan was the same as the previous, do only what I feel like doing with no unnecessary interruptions. Breakfast was bread, scrambled eggs and a very watery cup of tea so it's safe to say my day started well enough because I liked bread and I could make my own definition of tea with from my own beverages.

After breakfast, the TV watchers cleared out the breakroom very quickly and neatly, even the so-called ever-entitled seniors participated. Any stranger that happened to walk in at that moment would they were a group of highly civilized and organized people preparing for something of high significance. I shook my head and went upstairs to the comfort of my tiny bed in a very quiet hostel where I decided to continue my selected novel for the day- purple hibiscus by Chimamanda Adichie. It had been lying around for a while in the passage and lucky for me, it was still there on one of the cupboards just waiting to be read.

Like I do with almost every book I read for the sole purpose of entertainment, I started from the back cover reading every comment and its source plus any other information typed there, then I returned to the front cover and brushed through every little thing I saw as I flipped the pages to get to the beginning: copyright, dedication, acknowledgement and even the book number. If you're thinking I'm weird, you're probably right but I just believe that every part of the book is a part of the story it contains so none should be ignored.
Anyways, I dived in and let myself create motion pictures as I absorbed every letter, word, sentence and paragraph. I went on for 3 straight hours before I had to take a break to use the bathroom then I realized it was almost time for midday prayer, I decided to extend my break till after I was done.

I was wrong to assume that the peace and quiet will continue after prayers, I mean they had nothing to do till 4pm except have lunch which I was rarely ever interested in, so there was an annoying amount of noise for a few number of girls mostly regarding the enlightening Islamic movie they had seen earlier.

'3 hours of reading and I totally forgot that I wasn't in a self designed cave made specifically for reading and relaxing' I thought to myself as I smacked myself on the forehead in exasperation.

I climbed up to my bed to try and continue my reading and tune out the noise but after reading a 3-line paragraph for the third time, I figured it was no use. I decided to go out, clear my head and probably find a quiet place to relax before I lost my sanity. As I was walking towards the second hostel, I noticed that the door hiding the stairs to the upper deck was not locked and instantly my spirits lifted. I returned to my room, retrieved my precious escape from reality and went up to deck, intentionally ignoring the curious stare Raina gave me as I left the room.

The upper deck was very wide as it covered the entire building of 8 normal sized rooms, two passages, two bathrooms and two toilets. It was hot and the surface was rough but most importantly, it was quiet. It is usually used for spreading clothes in the unusual situation where there isn't enough space on the provided washing line and for spreading beds most especially during the hot weather. I felt at peace right there and decided to take a seat next to the two huge water storex (storage tanks) to shield from the burning rays of the sun.

As I was about to continue my reading, I wondered silently to myself what it was about people that makes me literally run away from them so much, like I just did. I mean I have parents and siblings and a few friends that I certainly don't shrink away from. I probably had some baseless trust issues that stops me from getting close to unfamiliar faces. I wondered what my life would have been like if I was born a twin, you know the kinds that are super close no matter what.

I layed on the rough surface and closed my eyes to enjoy whatever my mind comes up with.

It was daytime and I was sitting in the breakroom gathering some facts for some assignment, there were three opened textbooks in front of me. I looked up from my book to find me staring back at myself and for a moment, I thought there was some kinda huge mirror in front of me, I raised my eyebrows but the face in front of me remained the same.

"What?" I said in an irritated voice.
She smiled, "we look so much alike yet we're very different". I just kept staring at her, unamused and she continued, "I like your concentration face, it's amusing". I huffed, she laughed and it felt weird hearing my laugh from someone else's lips. Then I felt something light bounce off my head, I turned around ready to bite off the first head I saw only to come face to face with a male version of me.

'Triplets, huh?' I thought to myself, 'interesting'.

"You have been doing that for 30 minutes now, would you take a break so I can at least have your attention", he whined. I smiled and returned to my book.

"How are you not even creeped out by my almost unblinking stare?" my sister inquired.

I shrugged, "it's like I'm staring at myself so it's not in any way creepy. I just tell myself I love me so much that I can't take my eyes off me", I winked at her and continued my work. They were silent for a few seconds before they both cracked up at the same time. It sounded so much like mine, I could feel the stretch of the grin on my face.

"I'm almost done guys. A few more minutes of silence and you can have my attention for whatever", I said feeling excited about a conversation I wasn't aware of.

'I certainly wished I had a twin, it would have been nice', i thought to myself as I replayed their laughter over and over in my head till I returned to reality and even then, I could still hear it in the background.

I opened my eyes to the feel of someone shaking me violently. I almost snapped until I realized the darker tone of the sky and the absence of the sun.

'Uh oh, I slept off. Right next to the storex, very close to the edge of the deck. Someone might assume I was suicidal cos I only had to roll about 2 times before I completely fell off' I groaned.

"I'm up, I'm up. Get your hands off me before I kick your eyes out of their sockets" I said as I registered who was standing next to me.

"There she is" Raina said grinning, completely unfazed by my choice of words. We both walked down the stairs with her going on about how she was starting to get worried before she realized the deck was opened, I just nodded and hummed in response not bothering to say anything.

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If you're a twin and you're here, I already love you.
Don't worry, I love all my readers...