Have you ever seen two identical twins with completely different skin tones? The chances are you probably haven’t. While it does sometimes occur, it is extremely rare.

It is typical for two twins to have different minds or other slight differences, but skin tones? Usually not. When it does happen though, it is very striking and beautiful. If anything, it probably only strengthens the bond between the two!

This was very much the case for these two twins who hail from Gloucester, England.

The two 20-year-old sororal twins are named Lucy and Maria Aylmer, and they look nothing alike.

Maria dark skin and dark, curly hair while Lucy has the complete opposite — light skin and straight, bright red hair.

So how did this come about? It’s actually due to their parents’ heritage. Their mother Donna is half Jamaican and half white while their father Vince, is white. They also have three other siblings by the names of George, Chynna and Jordan, and they all have mixed skin tones.

The scientific explanation behind it is that Lucy and Maria are fraternal twins, which means that two different eggs were fertilized by two different sperm.

Like many twins, Lucy and Maria love each other and have a very close bond. However, unlike many twins, their extreme physical differences did bring them some hardships while they were growing up.

Maria shared that there was a time when she was jealous of Lucy’s straight hair, but Lucy felt like she was the one who got most of the bullying when the two were younger.

“[Other kids] thought I was adopted. They would call me a ghost,” Lucy shared.

And Maria said, “I used to cry often. I had curly hair. I wanted my sister’s beautiful, red hair.”

The two have grown up a lot into their own selves though, which they are more confident with now. According to the sisters, Lucy is more introverted, tends to go for more casual clothing and loves art while Maria likes to get dolled up, is very interested in fashion and is overall very outgoing.

News reports say that genetically-speaking, the chances of two twins having such strong differences like these two is one-in-a-million. Pretty low chance — unless you are Lucy and Maria, of course!

If anything, the two are proud to have different racial identities. “Maria loves telling people at college that she has a white twin — and I’m very proud of having a black twin,” Lucy shared with pride.

“If I have children one day, they may look like Lucy,” Maria says.

The difference between them is purely superficial. They both have an immense amount of respect for one another.

Despite some setbacks here and there along the way, the two have both grown into beautiful individuals who are clearly confident with themselves and their identities. Mutual respect is also crucial in a situation like this, and they are clearly not lacking any of that!

A sisterly bond is one thing… This is even more adorable!

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Source: Shareably