Excerpt from Twin Boys

The heat from the sun filled the house, so Paul decided to take his pencils and water colours and sit under the mango trees. The still air in the midday heat made Paul drowsy, but he fought against it, gripping his pencil and starting his sketch. A clear picture of what he wanted to paint, came to his mind. All the things he had seen stayed in his memory, became a part of him and his thoughts. Not even his twin brother, Jason and his superior self could demolish.

The tall grass bent in the winds; the hibiscus flowers shone bright red in the sunlight, the casuarinas swayed and whispered. The atmosphere was cool under the trees as Paul lay on his back with the pencil in his mouth, looking through the spider’s web of the trees’ leaves. Paul thought the trees were tall, slender, graceful and lovely, during the day, swinging, arching and murmuring like graceful women in photos, while at night, they take petrifying shapes as the stars and moon light the sky.

Paul shivered at the thought. One night, after dinner, Paul went for a walk with his brother, Jason, and their father. Even after many years, Paul recalled the moon rising when they left home and they were in happy spirits; he learnt to whistle. He remembered Jason’s mocking laugh.     Paul recollected the mango shadows, in Garnet Road, in the soft lights, strange and disturbing; the wind’s whispers through the trees. The whole picture was dimly lit by the moon. He clutched his father’s hand, who understood that he was scared and squeezed his hand in reassurance. However, Jason obliviously hopped and pranced along the road, whistling and showcasing his fearlessness to the ghostly shadows. As Paul pieced the memory together, his head filled with hate towards his twin brother.

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