The next day, as they walked to school, the whispers grew louder, resonating in their bones. They tried to ignore it, to focus on the mundane chatter of their classmates, but the frequencies grew stronger. Ayan felt his head spin, the words around him becoming a jumble of nonsense as he tried to decode the message hidden within the sound waves. Arshan's eyes widened as he too felt the strange vibrations, his hand tightening around his backpack strap.
The moment they stepped into their classroom, the whispers stopped, leaving an eerie silence in their ears. They looked around, hoping no one had noticed their shared experience. But as their eyes met, they knew that the silence was not the end, but the beginning of something far more profound.
Days passed, and the whispers grew to an unignorable crescendo. They began to feel the vibrations in the very marrow of their bones, a symphony of frequencies that seemed to have a mind of their own. It was during one of these strange episodes that they noticed her, the new student who seemed as out of place as a peacock at a penguin convention. She was tall, with raven hair and piercing blue eyes, and she moved with a grace that was almost otherworldly. Her name was Alexa, and she claimed to be from a distant country, her accent as exotic as the whispers that had come to define their existence.
Alexa was unlike anyone they'd ever met. Her smile was warm, yet there was something in the way she held herself, something that reminded them of the cats that had always felt at home in the alleyways of Shylhet Sadar. The whispers grew stronger whenever she was near, and they couldn't help but be drawn to her, like moths to a flame.
In class, she'd often lean back in her chair, her eyes slightly glazed over, as if listening to a melody only she could hear. The twins began to suspect that she too was attuned to the mysterious frequencies that had become their constant companion. They found themselves sharing glances, exchanging knowing smiles, and gradually, the whispers grew quieter.
One day, during a particularly dreary math lecture, the whispers grew louder than ever before, resonating in a pattern that seemed almost... deliberate. Ayan and Arshan felt their heads turn in unison, drawn to the window where they spotted a feline form perched on the sill. It was the same stray cat from the alley, its eyes locked onto theirs with a knowing gaze.
The twins exchanged a look, their curiosity piqued. The whispers grew so intense that the very air around them seemed to vibrate. It was as if the world was trying to communicate with them in a language they hadn't quite mastered. The cat's tail swished back and forth, almost in time with the whispers, and then it was gone, leaving only the faint sound of its paws on the wet cobblestones outside.
As the days passed, the whispers grew more complex, intertwining with the rhythm of their lives like an invisible symphony. They'd catch Alexa watching them during lunch, her eyes slightly glazed over as if listening to the very same melody. Ayan found himself drawn to her quiet confidence, while Arshan was captivated by her stories of far-off lands and the whispers grew softer when she was near.
One day in class, the whispers grew so loud that Arshan couldn't ignore them anymore. He leaned over to Ayan, his voice a hushed secret. "Ayan," he whispered, "did you notice how Alexa looks just like you?"
Ayan blinked, his pencil hovering over his math book. "What?"
Arshan leaned closer, his eyes wide with excitement. "Alexa," he whispered again, "she looks just like you. Like... really, really like you."
Ayan put down his book, his brows furrowing in confusion. "What are you talking about? She's a new student, and yes, we're all fascinated by her, but I don't see the resemblance."
Arshan's eyes were glued to Alexa, who was laughing at something their teacher had said. "Look at her gestures, the tilt of her head, the way she moves her hand when she's lost in thought," he urged. "It's eerie."
Ayan studied her, his curiosity piqued. It was true that Alexa had a certain grace that reminded him of someone, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. "But why would she look like me?" he murmured, more to himself than to his brother.
Arshan's eyes darted around the classroom, as if the very walls might have an answer. "I don't know, but it's like she's... a mirror of us," he said, his voice low and urgent. "The whispers are trying to tell us something."
"Maybe it's just your imagination," Ayan said, trying to keep his skepticism in check. "But I'll admit, it's strange."
The twins decided to keep their observations to themselves, not wanting to be labeled the school's conspiracy theorists. Yet, the whispers grew more insistent, and the cat's appearances more frequent, as if urging them to seek answers. After school, they approached Alexa, who was leaning against the library's stone facade, a book open in her hands. She looked up as they approached, a knowing smile playing on her lips.
"You guys seem to be chasing a tail," she said, her eyes flicking to the shadows where the stray cat had been moments ago. "Or rather, it's been chasing you."
Arshan rolled his eyes. "Very funny, Alexa. But seriously, have you noticed anything... off around here?"
Alexa's smile grew mysterious. "I might have noticed a thing or two. But why don't you tell me what you've seen?"
The whispers grew louder, a cacophony of secrets that seemed to resonate in their very bones. Without warning, a vortex of light and sound opened before them, a swirling maelstrom of color that seemed to pulse with an otherworldly energy. Arshan's eyes widened in horror. "You see it too!"
But before Ayan could respond, the fight over the girl's resemblance took an unexpected turn. "What are you on about?" Ayan snapped, his voice rising above the cacophony. "You're the one acting like we've got some kind of twin bond with her!"
Arshan's cheeks flushed with anger. "Maybe you're the one with the problem, Ayan! You're always so quick to dismiss the strange!"
"Oh, like you don't love it," Ayan shot back. "You're the one who thinks every weird thing has some deep meaning."
The argument grew heated, their words echoing through the library, drowning out the whispers. The stray cat looked up from its nap, unperturbed by the human drama unfolding before it. Arshan stepped closer to Ayan, his eyes flashing with a mix of anger and excitement. "You think I'm making this up? That I want to look like some girl?"
"I'm just saying, maybe you're seeing things," Ayan retorted, his voice strained. "You're always looking for patterns, for puzzles to solve. Maybe you're just seeing what you want to see."
The argument raged on, the whispers forgotten. They didn't notice the absence of the girl they were arguing over, nor the shimmer in the corner of the room that grew brighter with every second. The stray cat, however, watched the twins with a knowing gaze, its tail twitching in time with the rising tension.
"Look, I don't know what you're talking about, but I'm not going to just jump into some random portal because a cat's acting weird!"
"But the whispers, the cat, the girl who looked like you - it's all connected, Ayan!" Arshan's voice was urgent, his eyes wide with belief.
Ayan rolled his eyes. "You're letting your imagination run wild again."
But even as the words left his mouth, the whispers grew louder, swirling around them like a tornado of unspoken secrets. The shimmer in the corner grew brighter, pulsating like a heartbeat, and the air grew thick with anticipation. Arshan took a tentative step towards it, his curiosity overwhelming his skepticism.
Without waiting for a response, Arshan reached out and touched the edge of the portal. A cool sensation washed over him, like diving into a crystal-clear lake on a scorching summer's day. The light danced on his fingertips, and for a brief moment, he felt connected to something vast and unknowable. He looked back at Ayan, his twin's face a mask of doubt, and then took a deep breath and stepped through.