“It’s quite crowded here, isn’t it?” Xeza commented as she tried to worm her way through hordes of people.

“It is… but I see an open spot up ahead,” Zexa replied. She was leading the way and she held onto her sister’s hand quite tightly.

The twin sisters had decided to go and visit the midsummer festival for some fun but they didn’t expect THIS many people to be there. The two kept bumping into people and they were continuously getting bumped into as well. Not to mention the mess of discarded cups spread around on the ground. At the very least, the festival itself had been pretty fun up until now. There were a few attractions here and there and there were some game stands. There was even a transformation stage show. People could enlist to enter a sort of competition where you had to answer trivia questions. Get a question wrong and you are slowly transformed into something. It was quite funny to watch a big, burly warrior slowly turn into a cute little kitten.

When they finally got to a spot that was considerably less crowded, Xeza let out a sigh of relief. “Maybe we should have brought our butlers…” she muttered.

“Xeza… we wanted to become more independent,” Zexa argued, folding her arms.

“I know… but I much prefer it when people go out of the way for us,” Xeza whined.

Zexa sighed. “Me too,” she admitted.

Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of loud cheering coming from nearby. Turning around, Xeza could see that there was quite a large crowd standing around what looked to be a filled sack hanging from some kind of contraption? Her confusion was cleared up when a man came to stand before it and punched the sack as hard as he could. After that, the contraption worked its magic and the number 15 appeared above it. Again, there was loud cheering from the crowd.

“How barbaric…” Zexa commented next to Xeza.

“Such brutes,” Xeza nodded. She was about to turn around again when something caught her eye. Or rather, someone. There, from out of the crowd of people, a new person walked up to the punching bag. Xeza’s eyes widened and her mouth was agape. She looked so pretty…

The raven-haired woman was cheered on by the crowd and she looked to be making quite a spectacle of herself. When she took her spot at the punching bag, she went silent for a moment as she gathered her strength. Then, she screamed out as she gave the bag such a strong punch that Xeza thought the contraption was going to break down. Soon, the number 18 flashed in magical lights above, and the crowd simply lost it!

Xeza couldn’t believe her eyes, and she felt her heart thumping in her chest. She was so strong…

“Did… you see that too?” Zexa asked bewildered.

“Yes,” Xeza replied. Of course her twin sister would have witnessed it also and be just as lost in thoughts. After all, they were identical twins. They were always together. They always shared everything. Even their white sundresses and pearl necklaces, picked out by their mother, were identical. Identical twins. Identical thoughts. It did leave Xeza questioning things about her identity as an individual though. Questions that she was certain Zexa would have too. Questions that they never shared with each-other.

“Amazing,” Zexa mused as the girl took in compliments from the crowd.

“Ah… Zexa… we can’t,” Xeza said then.

“I… but…” Zexa stammered.

“We promised each other…” Xeza sighed.

“I know…” Zexa replied, sighing as well. It was true. Because of their nature as twins, they were inclined to share almost everything. However, after a particular incident involving a doll they both wanted, the twins had agreed to never fight over jealousy again. As such, whenever both twins wanted something, they would only get it if they could share it. Otherwise, neither would get it. This related to objects like dolls and furniture but also to friends and especially to love interests.

“Let us turn away then,” Zexa continued.

“Yes,” Xeza muttered. It was such a shame but she valued the bond with her twin sister above anything and anyone and she trusted that this was the same for Zexa. There was… comfort in knowing this. This bond of trust shared between the twins, even if it meant giving up on a cute guy or girl. Resolutely, the two turned around, away from the girl… only to accidentally bump into yet another random guy.

“What in the name of…!” the man shouted angrily. When he turned around, he looked absolutely furious! It seemed that the sisters’ bumping into him had caused him to spill his drink all over his shirt.

“Ah! Forgive us!” Zexa blurted out.

“We didn’t mean to!” Xeza added. “It was just an accident!”

“Yeah?! Well your accident has just soiled my damn shirt!” the man shouted before angrily grabbing the collars of both girls’ dresses.

“Aaaah!” “Let us go!” The twins screamed but the man was simply too strong for them both. Xeza closed her eyes in fear, preparing herself for whatever was to come…

“Hey, you!” came a sudden voice from behind them. “Let them go!”

Opening one careful eye, Xeza couldn’t really see yet who had called out but she did see that both her sister as well as the man looked equally confused.

“Says who?!” the man shouted as he threw both twins on the ground and stepped forwards.

Xeza quickly scrambled over to her sister, who was doing the same. They huddled together and looked up to see who had stepped in to save them.

“Says ME!!” It was the girl from before!

“Stay out of this, missy! This is none of your business,” the man grunted. He was about to turn around again when the girl actually grabbed HIS collar. He seemed quite surprised by the strength at which she did so.

“This is ABSOLUTELY my business!” the girl threatened. Absolutely furious now, the man balled his fist and tried to punch the girl but she was prepared for it. First she ducked and then she just planted her knee into his stomach, causing him to buckle over forwards. As the struggle continued, a few more people came around to watch the two fight. Some were cheering while others were quite uncertain on what to do. Meanwhile, the twins were just nailed to the ground, too scared to do much of anything. That is, until at last, the girl managed to throw the guy on the ground, leaving her victorious. The cheering crowd around them grew wild and cheered for the girl, while the guy just grunted silently from the ground.

Their cheering was cut short however by the presence of two city guards. “Alright, enough!” they shouted. “You two are coming with us!”

Xeza couldn’t believe what she was hearing. This was so unjust! She quickly stood up and she noticed her twin sister following suit.

“Wait!” Zexa called out. “Don’t punish her!”

“She only protected us!” Xeza added.

“What?” one of the guards asked, confused.

“He was about to attack us when she stepped in,” Zexa explained.

“If she hadn’t done so…” Xeza said, not even wanting to think about what could have happened.

The guardsman pondered it over for a few moments. “Alright, take him away,” he ordered then.

When the guards were gone again, only then did both twins breathe out again. Xeza didn’t even realize that they were holding in their breath.

“Whew, thanks! You really saved my hide there,” the girl spoke from behind them.

The twins turned around to look her way then. “No way!” Zexa spoke.

“You saved us!” Xeza nodded.

The girl was momentarily shaken. She must not have expected them to be twins. She then just shrugged. “You were in trouble and I stepped in.”

“Just… thank you!” the twins said unison. Only now did they get a better look at her. Those cute raven-coloured hair strands, her rather muscular build, her amber eyes that actually almost matched Zexa’s eye color. Xeza couldn’t really help but admire the woman that had rescued them. Next to her, she noticed that same look of admiration on her sister’s face.

“Hey… no worries,” the girl smiled. “I’m Julia.”

“Hmmm… pretty name,” Zexa mused.

“This is Zexa!” Xeza spoke up, trying to prevent her twin from swooning out loud.

“A-ah! Yes, and this is Xeza,” Zexa added. It seemed she had caught the hint.

“Nice to meet you!” Julia grinned. “Are… you here on your own?”

“Yes we are,” Xeza nodded.

“Huh… well, wanna join me then?” Julia asked.

The twins looked at each-other for a moment then. Xeza just gave Zexa a slight frown and she touched her arm. It was very subtle, but effective. From a very early age, the twins had developed a sort of secret language with each-other only they could fully understand. This way, they could communicate with each-other in secret. They only really used it for specific things. To convey certain emotions or thoughts. For instance, this was their way of saying ‘we need to talk’.

“... Could… you give us a moment?” Zexa apogolized.

“Ah… sure?” Julia replied, tilting her head. The two then stepped away and huddled together.

“What do we do?” Xeza hissed.

“I… we can’t just do this. You and I both like her too much already…” Zexa replied.

“I know… but she did rescue us, and we’ll both be sad if we just leave after that,” Xeza argued.

“True...” Zexa sighed.

“Is everything okay?” Julia called out to them, shaking the two out of their conversation.

“A-ah, yes!” “We’re fine!” The twins called back nervously.

It was Zexa who then made the conscious decision to walk back again, with Xeza following closely. She already knew what her sister was going to say. Neither of them could really give a different answer after all. “Yes, we’d love it!” she said.

--------------------------------------------------------

The three of them went about the festival for the rest of the day. They visited rides such as the haunted mansion and the ferris wheel. They participated in various games, which usually came down to the twins cheering on Julia as she played. The latter even managed to win both twins a stuffed bear in one of the games! It was one of the best days the twins had ever had. Soon, day turned into night, and both Zexa and Xeza were starting to grow more and more worried. Xeza could tell by the look in Zexa’s eyes and she knew that Zexa could see it as well in Xeza’s own. They both really liked Julia… a whole lot. This was bad! They couldn’t BOTH get a crush on the same person, could they? As the three were just strolling through the fair, Zexa lightly tapped Xeza’s left shoulder and she made a soft grunt. Xeza knew what that meant.

“We uh… we need to go,” she stammered.

“What?” Julia asked, surprised.

“We wanted to… uh… we wanted to be back home before midnight,” Zexa lied.

“Yes! We need our beauty sleep after all,” Xeza finished. It was such a flimsy excuse but they had to think of something!

“Aww, that’s a shame,” Julia frowned. It seemed that over the course of the day, she too had actually grown quite attached to the twins themselves. “You’re gonna miss the fireworks display,” she added.

“F-fireworks…” “... Display?” The twins said in unison, giving each-other yet another lost stare.

“Yeah. Should start in about ten minutes I think,” Julia said meekly. “But… if you wanna go home, I’m not gonna stop you.”

Xeza couldn’t believe her ears. This was REALLY bad! Julia was actively trying to convince them to stay! And well… how could they refuse that? But before Xeza could even say something, Zexa had already spoken up.

“Okay… we’ll stay.”

Of course… Xeza couldn’t agree more but it did make her worry. She and her sister were identical after all. Xeza had always known that Zexa’s thoughts almost always lined up with her own. Did this mean that they were inevitably going to like the same person all the time as well? If it wasn’t Julia, then would another person cause this exact same conundrum between them? Naturally, Zexa looked to be going through the same mental struggle. There was comfort in knowing that she was never alone but there was also frustration. Could they do nothing independently?

“This looks like a nice spot,” Julia spoke up. It seemed that while they had been lost in thought, they had absentmindedly walked over to a nice and relatively quiet patch of grass behind one of the game stands.

The twins just nodded and proceeded to wordlessly sit down in the grass.

Julia tilted her head again. “Are… you okay?” she asked.

“Ah… of course,” Zexa spoke up.

“Why wouldn’t we be?” Xeza nodded. Of course that was another flimsy lie. What had kept them here? Why had they both decided to stick around? They could have stuck to their guns and left and yet they both insisted on staying, even knowing the risks.

“Well… alright then,” Julia said, still frowning. However, that frown soon vanished and she proceeded to sit in the grass herself… right between the twins.

Xeza looked to her sister with worry and she bit her lip as silence fell for a moment. After all, what was there to say? Neither she nor Zexa could really say or do much. They could not attach themselves to Julia, nor could they just up and leave. They were stuck, uncertain of what to do.

“I… really enjoyed myself with you two,” Julia spoke up, breaking the silence.

“... you did?” Xeza stammered.

“Yeah! I hope I haven’t been too much of a bother to you two though,” Julia grinned.

“No! Not at all!” Zexa said resolutely.

“You say that… but you don’t really look it, if I’m honest,” Julia said bluntly.

The twins looked at each-other in panic. They really had to make a decision now. Either they were going to continue lying, thereby pushing Julia away to avoid a fight between them, or…

The decision actually came to them pretty quickly. A decision they both agreed upon.

“We… like you, Julia,” Zexa started.

“A whole lot…” Xeza continued.

“But if we both like you…” Zexa sighed.

“... then… how can that possibly work?” Xeza sighed.

Julia stayed silent for a few moments more, seemingly lost in thought. “I… see,” she mused as a blush appeared on her face. “Well I… I honestly wouldn’t know who to choose between you two either myself, if I had to.”

The twins looked to her solemnly. “Because we’re identical.” Xeza said. After all, to someone else, it wouldn’t matter who they picked. They would essentially be dating the exact same person either way.

“Oh, no, that’s not it at all!” Julia chuckled, causing both twins to raise an eyebrow at her. “Sure, you look and sound identical, but I’ve definitely seen quite a few differences.”

“D-differences?” Xeza asked.

“... us?” Zexa asked.

“I mean, aside from the fact that Zexa here has amber eyes while Xeza has gray eyes. Zexa, you were afraid of bats back in the haunted mansion while Xeza, you jumped at every spider,” Julia explained.

Xeza thought back. She was indeed madly afraid of spiders, but she thought bats were pretty cute. She never realized that this was reversed for her sister…

“Xeza, you seem to like stroking soft things, like that stuffed bear. Zexa, I noticed you much prefer smooth surfaces like the pearl in your necklace,” Julia continued.

Xeza noticed that Zexa reached for her pendant then, just as Xeza placed a hand on her bear. It was true, too…

“Zexa, when you’re nervous, I noticed that you twirl your hair.”

She did indeed do this, even at this very moment!

“Xeza, when you’re nervous, you fiddle around with your clothes.”

And that was also true, as she noticed that she was doing this right now!

Zexa burst out laughing then. She too must have come to realize that these differences were indeed true!

“Zexa, your laughter is slightly higher in pitch than that of Xeza. Makes me wonder what you two would sound like in song,” Julia chuckled.

“S-song…” Xeza mused. They had never really done that before…

“Xeza… you’re faster to act. When I accidentally knocked over that glass, you caught it in time before Zexa could even begin to move! Zexa on the other hand, you’re faster to talk. I noticed you’ve been taking the lead in conversations more than your sister does,” Julia continued.

Xeza couldn’t believe this. How could they have never noticed these differences themselves. How could they have never seen that, all this time, they were… unique.

“But…” Julia finally spoke.

“But?” the twins asked in unison.

“I will give you this… you are equally cute,” Julia said, as her face turned even redder.

This actually caused the sisters to blush just as much. “No-one… has ever said this to us,” Zexa said.

“No-one has ever called us unique,” Xeza nodded.

“Well,” Julia began as she sat back a little to look both sisters in the eye. “I’m sure I can find more differences if we… continue to hang out,” she chuckled nervously.

Xeza looked to Zexa for a moment. Right before they could speak though, there was a flash of light followed by a loud bang. Then there was another. And another! The fireworks display had started. With a smile, Xeza knew what to do. She too sat back and just placed her head on Julia’s shoulder. Over on the other side, Zexa mimicked her sister’s movements. Moments later, Xeza could feel Julia’s strong arm wrapping around her waist. Could they really make something like this work? Perhaps they could, or perhaps they could not. But they both agreed… it was very much worth it to find out.