NEW LIFE : A SECOND CHANCE

Kylie had a twin.

A twin.

She had another "her" with her, sharing this space. Sharing her life.

That thought kept going round and round in her head. It was good that her heart was developing strongly. Otherwise, Kylie was sure that she would most likely have had a heart attack over the consecutive discoveries in the past few months.

First, she was a floating blob. Second, 'she' is going to be a boy. Finally, now, she is a twin.

Was it an identical twin? Another boy that looked exactly like her and would share the same DNA? Or would they be fraternal twins? Two boys sharing a birthday but not looking the same. Perhaps her twin wouldn't even be a boy but is a girl instead?

After discovering that she wasn't alone, Kylie was suddenly reluctant to move back to her original position. In fact, her twin appeared to feel the same way. Once they had started holding hands - in a manner of speaking, and as best as one could when both parties were encompassed in a gooey sac - one of them would always actively seek the other out.

When they weren't touching in some way, there was this intense sense of loss that made both of them feel a pang of intense sadness. A feeling of calmness and peace would envelop both of their entire being each time they held each other's hand or at least had their bodies touching each other.

Kylie wondered whether this was the famed twin connection? It also explained, to a certain degree, the sense of loneliness and sadness that she had been experiencing before.

Initially, she had put it all down to her being all alone in complete darkness after suffering an unjust death, but could it also have been due to the fact that her 'soul' knew about the twin that she had not met yet? Was it a combination of both factors?

Kylie doubted that any developing fetus would have had some sort of consciousness like she had, so the sense of desolation and loneliness wouldn't have been apparent to them. Whatever it was, the past exercise of studying and learning paled in comparison with spending time with her twin. She didn't slack off from her 'studies', but now she could study with company.

****------ ****

Another month passed, and Kylie and twin were now both 6 months old. By now, their eyelids were fully developed and they could open their eyes. As if on cue, both of them did so at the same time and they stared unblinkingly at each other. Even though the womb did not have lights fitted into it and it was still so very dark; they could somehow 'see' or sense each other. They knew that both had opened their eyes at the same time and were looking at each other. Their eyes couldn't see, but their hearts did. It was enough.

Peace. Contentment.

Kylie was so happy. With her twin, she felt an unbreakable bond and connection that filled her soul with such peace and happiness that could not be explained. The pain of what she experienced in her past life dulled and she would simply cherish the feelings that were being invoked by being with her twin. It healed her scarred heart, and Kylie would find herself smiling more often now. It didn't mean that she had forgotten and that there was no pain when she thought about her past, but she could actually face it without feeling like she would be consumed by regret, pain, and fear.

****** --------- ******* -------

At 7 months, they could finally make out the sounds that they had been hearing constantly and regularly for the past month. It turns out that Mother had been reading to them every day. Simple books, as if teaching one to read or speak. Mother would also put headphones on her stomach and the womb would be filled with classical music.

From inside the womb, it wasn't as if they could really make out the melody or the nuances of the music. It was more like a vibration that went up and down with the music. Kylie imagined that this was how the hearing impaired 'listened' to music.

It was the beat that they heard, rather than the actual music itself. It was different for Kylie, however, as she knew the music score and thus, could figure out and actually imagine the music that was being played.

Kylie remembered reading up in her previous life about some research whereby playing classical music to the unborn fetus would stimulate the brain of the fetus and encourage intelligence. Kylie figured out that Mother was trying it out and that it didn't do any harm.

Well, other than this wave of displeasure that Kylie seemed to sense being emitting from her twin. Kylie guessed that if she could see in the dark, she would have seen her twin having a frown upon her/his face.

Kylie grinned at that. To her twin, the beats were just that. Beats. Who wouldn't be bored to death from it, even though it was rather unique in its own way? Their mother's heartbeat was much more soothing to hear than the dunnn dun dunnnnn weeeeee of classical tones.

Yet, it was because of this classical music that Kylie found out yet another interesting fact. In retrospect, perhaps this discovery was the greatest thing of all.

As Beethovan's Moonlight Sonata started playing for the umpteenth time, and the usual wave of displeasure started coming out, Kylie heard distinctively in her mind, a small, tiny voice saying, "NOT AGAIN !".

Kylie stopped breathing. Well, ok. They didn't breathe yet but you get the idea. Her eyeballs went from left to right, and she turned quicker than normal as she faced her twin. Although she couldn't see it clearly, she could definitely feel her twin's sac shaking a bit. Laughing out loud at her reaction, no doubt.

"Wait, what? That's you? I can hear you? IN MY MIND?!"

Kylie could almost see the mental eye roll as her twin responded, "No. It's your imagi-naaaaation"

"Like Spongebob, huh?" Kylie said wryly.

"Huh? Who?"

"Nevermind," Kylie responded. She listened to the voice, but could not make out the gender. Not that she cared, really, but it was curious that there was no unique 'voice' in her head. When her twin spoke, it was as if Kylie just heard it in her own voice.

"Since when could you do this?" Kylie continued to ask, "Why didn't you do it earlier? Wait. HOW are you doing it? How can you speak so well? Ok wait. Does that even matter? Heck, I am also able to talk mentally to you. Is this a superpower? Or a twin power? Oh Gosh. This is all so confusing and mind-boggling."

"You really talk a lot, don't you?" her twin replied, a smirk in the voice.

"Well, I HAVE been living in silence for the past 7 months. I think this is still short," Kylie replied, snorting.

Kylie's twin giggled again.

All the why, and how-this-is-happening wasn't important anymore. Kylie enjoyed the interaction and the rest of the time in the womb wouldn't be so boring anymore.

For the remaining months, Kylie and her twin were talking almost non-stop, only stopping when Mother began reading and whenever they fell 'asleep'.

Kylie also began teaching her twin some basic school syllabus. Although her twin couldn't "see" her memories like Kylie could, it was enough for Kylie to simply tell her the basics. Her twin never questioned her, and simply learned it. Kylie did, however, told her twin that she was an old soul. Kylie regarded her twin as being the other half of her soul, and there should not be any major secrets between them.

In the final month, both of them started to move downwards. In a ready position to be born. Being upside down was a bit strange, and it had been hard initially to do so since there was the two of them. But by working together, they managed to do it with the least amount of fuss.

As the time got nearer to 'exit' time, and the contractions had begun, Kylie suddenly asked her twin, "Eh. Are you a girl or a boy?"

"You're only asking me that now??"

"Didn't seem important then," Kylie replied, shrugging her shoulders.

"So why is it important now?" asked her twin curiously.

"For the order of birth," Kylie explained, "I do not know what sort of society we're going to be born in, but generally, boys are more important as a first-born. Even though we're twins, and if you're a girl, then I should go out first since I'm a boy."

"What if I am a boy?"

"Then you go first," Kylie replied. It didn't matter to her if she was first or second, so long as the first was a boy. Her twin was her other half, so she wasn't worried at all about being sidelined.

Kylie's twin giggled, then replied, "No. You should go first and be the older brother. You're so bossy anyway."

Kylie shrugged, "HEY!!"

Kylie was going to say something more, but then she felt the water bag that protected them in the womb, broke. She felt the push and she quickly went down more while her twin moved upwards a bit.

"See you on the outside!!" Kylie managed to shout before she got stuck in the passage-way out.