Written by Nicholas Jimenez
Illustrated by Stellanie Abella
“'Holy crap,' I say. 'You’re me?' I point at James and then back at myself.
'Same DNA, with none of your issues,' James says with the same accent I have."
“Your cloning process is complete,” Dr. Lu says as she pulls me out of the enclosed Duplicative Resonating Imaging system. “Give us 15 minutes and you’ll be able to meet him.”
I sit up, rubbing the temples of my forehead. “What was that, eight hours? Yikes, I was out!” I say as Dr. Lu taps some buttons on the cloning machine to power it down. “Four hours actually. Everything worked out fine. I’ll be back soon with your clone.” I wait, meditating on what my double would be like.
“Hi, I’m James,” the clone says, as he walks into the office following Dr. Lu. James matches everything I look like. Brown hair, five o’clock shadow, barely any muscles. He’s even wearing the same medical gown I am.
“Holy crap,” I say. “You’re me?” I point at James and then back at myself.
“Same DNA, with none of your issues,” James says with the same accent I have.
“—Hahahaha. Oh man,” I slap my hands together. Hearing about the cloning process was one thing but experiencing having my own clone was entirely something else.
Dr. Lu spoke up, “You two were made for each other. Now you both can get dressed, then talk to reception, and you’re done. I’ll see you both for a follow up later.” There are two piles of matching clothes waiting for us. We change in front of each other, getting out of our gowns. I look over at James and even his genitals matched mine. I shook my head, clumsily putting on the clothes while James confidently put his own on.
“Happy birthday?” I say. “Get it? Because you were just, born.” James stared at me and then said, “Haha.”
I force a grin. This would take some time to get used to. “So, I guess we’re going to live together. You okay with that?” I say. “It’s not weird?”
“Roommates is not weird,” James says, “We’re practically twins.”
---
“John, listen, the reason I am recommending the experimental clone therapy is because it’s an effective way to combat depression. The easiest person to get along with is someone like yourself, and as a result, you’ll get your own clone, start a relationship with them, move in together, and start to reap the benefits over time. Doesn’t that sound good to you?” Dr. Lu said, as she adjusted her glasses, her hair in a bun. I spoke up, “Wouldn’t that just involve two depressed people? There’s no way this ends well.”
“Well, there is one exception. The depression will be removed from the clone. We can alter the DNA of the clone from its inception. Come on, what do you have to lose?”
“Alright, well move in together? Doesn’t that seem a bit too close?” I say.
“You can always opt-out. Some people actually get intimate to their clones.”
“Guh – what? Like they have sex with their clone? Isn’t that weird?”
“Is it weird to masturbate, John?”
“Come on, don’t do me like that Dr. Lu! This is different. It’s a lot to think about.”
“Look, I know, I know, it’s not orthodox, but you’ve been my patient for years, and I just think this could be a good way to get better. At least give it some time before you decide.”
---
I sit across from James at a Subway, we had both ordered the same sub and are both eating half of it each. I had been prepared by Dr. Lu, I had read the books on how it was supposed to be, but now I was living it.
“Hey look, I know this can feel forced but I’m willing to give it an honest try, if you are,” James says.
“Let’s just take it slow alright? I don’t know if you’re like a brother or what. This is weird, right?” I say.
“I mean, I feel comfortable spending time with you.”
“Yeah but I’m all, you know, messed up.” I sigh, the meatball sub in my hands, the sauce oozing out onto the wrapper.
“Look, man, slow the breaks. I’m new to this world, sure, but I think we can help each other out. I’ll be your companion, and you’ll be my mentor, it’s win-win. Sound cool?”
---
“It’s been 3 months now. How are things going?” Dr. Lu asks as she leans forward in her chair at her desk, behind her, her degrees adorn the wall of her office. James and myself are in her office sitting across from her.
“Weirdly good,” I say.
“Oh? Do tell.”
James shakes from side-to-side. “Look, we started out as roommates, then we became friends, and now. Well, you tell her.”
“Now we’re, sort of, seeing each other,” I say.
“Oh?” Dr. Lu asks. “I want all the details.” She starts to write down notes.
I explain how when we first moved in, we had separate rooms but then we started hanging out all the time. James got a job, and we started to crash in the evenings. We were able to relate on our similarities. One night when we were watching a movie, James laid his head down on mine, and we got to snuggling. It didn’t feel weird. It finally didn’t feel weird.
“John, you had a deep relationship with anxiety when we first met. How come this is different?”
“I guess the guesswork was gone. Plus, James is my rock. He got me flowers the other day. I know you can’t change my brain or my issues, but it’s nice to have someone else look out for you.”
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