As the Elsan family sat around the dining table to enjoy their dinner, they exchanged small talk over the table.

As everyone enjoyed their meal and the relaxed atmosphere, Lesley kept pushing her food around. The scene where her twin brother kissed the unknown man kept playing in her mind. From time to time, she sneaked a glance at her brother, as he was all smiles and chatty. It was as if nothing happened.

Although they were twins, their personalities didn't match. Malak was the shyest of the two and, as children, he was always hiding behind Lesley. During kindergarten, Malak refused to leave his sister's side, or he would burst into tears. Only around the start of high school did he start to slowly gain confidence and independence.

While gnawing on her chicken, Lesley contemplated on confronting her brother or not. While she had nothing against the sex of his partner, it was still a surprise. Also, she didn't know Malak's boyfriend. He is clearly not someone from their school, and she was worried the older man was taking advantage of Malak.

“Not hungry?” The twins' mother worriedly asked as she popped Lesley's bubble.

Lesley straightened up and smiled. “It's delicious, but I think it's the stress.”

“No fever,” her mom mumbled, after placing her hand on Lesley's forehead.

“She's nervous because we have math in two days,” Malak added as Lesley forced a smile and nodded.

“That's right.”

“Study well. This is for your future. Study hard now and find a good job, so you can both have a comfortable life,” their dad said after swallowing a mouthful of food.

“Yes,” the twins answered at the same time.

After clearing up the table and helping wash and drying the dishes, the twins went upstairs to their respective rooms. As Malak studied right away, Lesley sat on the corner of a bed. For a long time, she wondered if she should confront her brother about it. Then, she concluded that it would be best to wait for him to announce it.

The next few days, although Lesley decided to forget about it, she still noticed every movement that Malak made. Now that she knew, everything was so obvious.

“Good morning,” their mother greeted as she placed a plate of eggs, bacon, and bread in front of the twins.

“Good morning,” Malak replied with a yawn. “Could I have some coffee?”

His mother sighed. “You know it's not good to drink too much coffee.”

“It's only once in a while, plus dad has it all the time,” he pouted.

“It's too late to save your dad, but you,” she patted Malak's shoulder, “Are still young.”

“I didn't sleep much yesterday…”

“Do you want a cup too, Lesley?” their mother asked as Lesley nodded.

“But with lots of milk and sugar! My brain will need it later.”

“Well, let's hope it'll be trotting at full speed and get you a perfect score,” Lilly answered as she placed two cups of coffee on the table.

“I wish it was that easy…” Lesley grumbled. “We are twins. Why is your brain more effective?”

Malak, who was gnawing on his egg toast, smiled at a text he just received from Kian. Lesley saw it and scrunched her face before stabbing on a piece of bacon.

“What?” Malak asked a minute later as their dad, Frank, walked into the kitchen.

He walked up to his wife and kissed her on the cheek. They both smiled at each other, and she handed him a plate full of food and a cup of coffee.

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“Good morning, kids.”

“Good morning,” Malak answered with a smile, as Lesley grumbled.

“You both better hurry, or you'll be late!” their mom stated, after looking at the clock.

“The exam is at nine-thirty today,” Lesley answered as she nibbled at her bread.

Malak gulped down his coffee before wiping his mouth. “I'm going first! I need to study a bit more at the library.”

“You can do it, son” Frank ruffled Malak's hair.

“Thanks, see you later!”

Lesley watched her brother run out of the kitchen and disappear to the second floor. It didn't take long for him to gather his things before walking out of the house. Lesley had a gut feeling that he wasn’t in a rush to study but to meet his lover.

Outside the house, Malak walked down the street where Kian’s car was parked. He opened the passenger’s door and climbed into the vehicle.

“Hi,” Malak greeted with a smile.

“Hi,” Kian replied also with a smile before leaning in for a kiss. “How are you?”

Blushing and panting, Malak’s eyes were a little dazed. Each time they kissed, the world seemed to stop as his senses were overwhelmed while nostalgic feelings and memories resurfaced.

“Happy,” Malak blushed before looking away.

Kian’s smile only got bigger before putting his hand on the wheel to drive them to Malak’s school. The ride there was lively as they listened to music while chatting. They both enjoyed the brief moment spent together, as it broke them away from their routine. It was a delightful change of pace.

“What about your memories?” Kian asked as the car stopped at a red light.

“It’s slowly coming back, and some are a lot clearer,” Malak answered with a frown. “Sometimes, I don’t see their faces and only hear voices. It’s strange.”

“I see,” Kian mumbled while lost in his thoughts. He was disappointed that Malak didn’t remember some faces. “I’m sure it’ll come back in time.”

“Yes.”

“Did you also think about when you want to go back?” When Malak didn’t answer, a silence loomed over them. Although music was playing in the background, the atmosphere was tense. “Not yet.”

“I’m sorry. I-I just want more time, so my memories are fully back.”

“It’s alright. I understand,” Kian answered, hiding his disappointment as he parked his car into the school’s parking lot.

“I know it’s not our home and we… We are not humans, but I just-”

Kian grabbed Malak’s hand. “Hey, it’s alright. I understand, really.”

“I’m sorry,” Malak added after a moment before leaving the car.

As Malak walked to the entrance of the building, Kian drove away. As he was on his way out of the parking lot, he felt someone staring at him. Quickly, he observed his surroundings, but with not much luck. The place was crawling with students. It wasn’t easy to find a single human in the crowd.

As Malak walked up the stairs, he spotted Enrico playing on his phone near the entrance. Malak made his way to his friends and called his name when he was close enough. Enrico put away his phone and smiled.

“You’re early,” Malak stated, rearranging his backpack on his shoulder.

“So are you,” Enrico answered as they walked into the building.

“Yeah, I wanted to study a bit more before the exam.”

“Perfect, please help me!” Enrico begged with his palms slapped together.

“Sure,” Malak answered as they reached the cafeteria.

They both put down their backpacks on the table before sitting down. With the classes over, the cafeteria wasn’t very crowded, unlike some classes where the finals were held. With a few hours in front of them, Malak carefully yet efficiently gave Enrico a condensed class of what would be in the exam. To Enrico, who was attentively listening, he sometimes got lost in the mathematical gibberish that was spilling out of Malak’s mouth.

“Wait, wait!” Enrico exclaimed. “Are you sure we attended the same class?” he added in disbelief.

“Yes?” Malak answered, unsure of what else to answer.

“I can’t believe it,” the black-haired boy sighed. “Alright, about this, could you explain it again?”

“Oh, this is a hard part,” Malak started before going once again into a ramble.

After an hour and a half, Enrico’s ears felt like they were bleeding. He couldn’t believe his friend just explained everything perfectly without even referring to the manual or his notes. Malak knew everything and could even solve the hardest questions like it was nothing.

“If you don’t get a hundred, the teacher’s scamming you.”