Mistaken Identity

"Mom?" Sophia yelled as she trudged up the stairs, swinging her backpack off her shoulder as she did so. 

"Have you seen Olivia?"

Their mother could not hear her. She was upstairs cleaning their room. It was possible to hear the mechanical purr of the vacuum cleaner from below. Sophia pushed open the door and stomped into the room. 

"Mom, have you seen Olivia?" 

"No. Didn't she go to school today? " "Nope," Sophia replied automatically. "I thought you said she had already left for school before I'd gotten up from bed."I didn't spot her in class either. " 

"Are you sure? She left for school at 7 a.m. Did you ask your friends? " Mama was looking worried. 

"Yeah." 

Their mother left the room frantically without any more words. Downstairs, Sophia could hear her calling somebody. Sophia's heart was heavy with guilt. 

Olivia and Sophia were identical twins. Sophia came out a minute earlier. But Olivia stood, crawled, and walked ahead of Sophia. And she constantly reminded her twin of that fact. They spent their first twelve years living in a rented two-room flat at Greenview Apartments. The family had only moved into this house two years ago. Their home was a mile away from their new high school, Bayside High School. They ride the public bus to school. Every morning they walk to the bus stop down the road to catch the bus. Sometimes, two other girls who lived a few blocks away joined them. Otherwise, they went together.

But last night, they had a heated argument before going to bed. Olivia had sworn never again to talk to her twin. Sophia had also done the same. Today, while Sophia had been sleeping a little longer, Olivia had already dressed and left for school. Each morning, it was Olivia who woke Sophia up. Today, she quietly left her room without waking her. Half an hour later, after Olivia had left for school, Sophia woke up angry and cursed her sister. She was late, but luckily she reached the school right on time. However, she did not see Olivia in class throughout the day. Her twin had probably bunked class today and was lying at home. 

Her mom was calling her dad about Olivia's disappearance downstairs. She was crying over the phone. Her dad was probably trying to calm her mom. Fear and guilt gripped Sophia to the ground; she couldn't move an inch. In her mind, Sophia blamed herself for not inquiring about her twin's absence at school. She was experiencing horrible thoughts.

 After what felt like an eternity, her dad returned home. During that time, mom talked to all the teachers and Olivia's friends at school. But no one could give a clue about Sophia's whereabouts. Her mother could not keep her senses now. She was crying uncontrollably, fearing the worst. 

It was evening. They had tried every means to locate Olivia but to no avail. A police detective had come an hour earlier and was now questioning Sophia. The detective had already looked into the shared room of Olivia and Sophia. They considered this a case of kidnapping. Sophia was scared for her sister but kept her emotions under control. Soon after, the detective and his team left with promises of help. 

Her mother refused to eat anything at dinner. Sophia and her father were eating quietly when they heard the bell. It was almost eleven, long past dinner time. Who could ring the bell so late at night? Mom hastily rushed to open the door. Sophia could hear the click of the lock. Suddenly, their mother cried out loud. Sophia's face went white with terror. Dad, too, was frightened by the unexpected. Both of them rushed towards the door. Mom was sitting, huddled over someone. It was Olivia! Unconsciously, she lay on the porch. Their parents supported and carried her to the living room, where they laid her on the sofa. As far as could be seen, Olivia was unhurt. She appeared to be sleeping. Mom splashed some water on her face. She tried to open her eyes but was dizzy. Dad said, "She probably had been given sleeping pills. Let her get some sleep then. I'll call the detective in the morning." Sophie could not hold back her tears. She hugged and kissed her sleeping twin. Then, out of nowhere, a note fell off Olivia's hand. There was something written on it. Sophia picked it up and unfolded it.

The note read, 'Sorry, picked up the wrong twin'.