My twin brother Matthew and I were born December 27, 1995 at Michael Reese Hospital around 6 p.m.

Ever since then, my life has not been the same compared to the average single born child. My twin and I can read each others minds, we feel each others pain, and we even have super-natural twin powers… Okay, I’m obviously joking, but for some reason this is some people’s instant thought process when they give me that quizzical look and ask “Wait, are you and Matt like, twins?”

I don’t consider myself a super-natural person, and to be honest, I don’t know where in the world these myths about twins came from. I don’t even know if any of them are true for some twins but they definitely don’t apply to my twin and I. We’re really just brothers that happened to be born on the same day, but for some reason people think we can communicate telepathically and finish each others sentences. These misconceptions from people have always amused me, as well as other things like when I’m asked whether or not my brother and I are fraternal or identical. For those who don’t know, identical twins are when two separate babies are formed with identical DNA so they end up looking almost exactly the same. Fraternal twins do not share the exact same DNA, so therefore they look different.

Since we are fraternal, it is scientifically proven that my brother and I do not look exactly the same, yet I still get people exclaiming “Oh my God! You guys look EXACTLY the same!” and “I thought you were your brother.” To be honest, I don’t see it and I don’t think I ever will. To me, it seems like some people want to believe we really look that much alike because they assume we’re that classic stereotypical set of identical wonder twins. At the end of the day, it’s all fine with me because I love being a twin; it’s what makes me unique and makes my life just a little more interesting.

This is the first in a new series that features twins around Niles West. Be sure to check the NWN every Tuesday to stay updated with “Twin Tuesdays.”