My Evil Twin

I have an evil twin.

Unfortunately, I can’t punch him in his face because he only exists in a manga. Okay, so maybe I could punch him in his face, but I’d risk a paper cut if I tried and he wouldn’t feel anything. He’d just stand there in his 2D-panel and take it on the chin without even flinching.

Still, I hate the guy because he’s based on me.

Who am I? Oh, yeah, I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Hisao Kaneko. As for my evil twin, he goes by Hibiki Kanai.

His manga is entitled Echoes of My Life, which is written by none other than my mom.

That’s the real problem. My mom is a manga artist, whose debut series has sold over twenty-five million copies. She's talented, wealthy, and an awesome cook. Under normal circumstances, she'd be the perfect mother, but there's one big problem.

My mother's series is based on my life. Everything Hibiki does is an echo of my life. Get it? Yeah, it’s not funny.

Of course, only a couple people know the truth. But it’s crystal clear to me. I give you exhibit A:

Hibiki looks exactly like me, except for two things. First, I wear glasses and he doesn’t. Second, my hair is close-cropped, but Hibiki grows his out to shoulder length. The slacker!

Clearly, my mom is ripping off my character design!

If that isn't enough proof. I’d like to point out exhibit B: my childhood friend, Setsu.

She also makes an appearance in my mother’s manga, but under the name of Seiko. Whereas Setsu doesn’t wear glasses in real life, Seiko does. The other difference. I hate to mention it, but I need to if you’re going to believe me. The other difference is Setsu is a bit flatter than Seiko in a certain “unmentionable” area.

That’s right, my mom didn't change Setsu's hairstyle, but she did add glasses and a few extra curves.

So, whenever I see the following disclaimer in my mother’s manga, I feel like hurling the book against the wall:

All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

I can't help but cry because mom is determined to make my life into a slice-of-life comedy just to stick it to my good-for-nothing dad.

You see, my mom wasn't always this way, but when my dad left her for his mistress, she snapped. For three days, she locked herself in her room and refused to eat. She wouldn't let my little sister or me into her room. It wasn't until my aunt, Isamu, arrived that she opened her door.

Isamu always did have a way with mom. She feed and talked to her and dragged her back from whatever dark place she retreated to.

A week later, mom emerged, but not the same. She announced she'd make my father regret leaving her and told us, “I'll sell more books than your father ever did.”

And so, my mom became a manga artist out of pure revenge.

That was three years ago. Her sales are currently two thousand times dad's. Mom keeps a running tally on the fridge.

A part of me wants to be happy for her, but then the next chapter of her manga comes out and I remember why I don't like my new and "improved" mom.

Thankfully, my mom decided to move closer to Tokyo before the start of high school next month, which means I'll have a fresh start. My old town was so small, everyone knew me as the mangaka's son.

Some of my classmates had even started calling me, Hibiki.

But I'm not going to let that happen at my new school. No one will ever find out who my mother is or confuse me with my evil twin.

The only downside to moving is losing my childhood friend, Setsu. She's always been there for me and if I wasn't in my current situation, I might have confessed my feelings for her. But I refuse to allow my mom to use her as anything more than a supporting character. In my mom's manga, she's the most reliable friend Hibiki has. I don't want her drawn into mom's fantasy world and suddenly become a love interest in some half-baked romance.

Being friends is good enough for me.

Sadly, I should’ve known my mom wouldn’t waste a “moving-away-from-your-childhood-friend” plot point.

She has deadlines to meet after all.