Twins with different skin colors are all grown up: How do they look today?

Donna Aylmer cried with joy when she learned she was expecting twin girls.

But after the delivery, she took a serious look at her newborn twin girls.

One of them, Lucy, had red hair, blue eyes and a pale, freckled complexion. The second one, Maria, had brown skin, brown eyes and dark curly hair.

How could these two girls be twins?

Everyone in the family was shocked when they saw the very different-looking fraternal twins for themselves.

The entire situation puzzled mother Donna and numerous others — but the scientific explanation is quite simple.

Donna is half Jamaican and half British, while the girls’ father is British.

Lucy and Maria are fraternal twins, meaning that two different eggs were fertilized by two different sperm.

Genetically speaking, mother Donna has genes composed of both light and darker features, resulting in one twin having pale skin and the other having darker skin.

Unfortunately, their difference in color led to bullying and a tough upbringing, especially for Lucy.

“They thought I was adopted and called me a ghost,” says Lucy.

Maria, for her part, wished she was more like Lucy during her childhood.

“I used to cry often. I had curly hair. I wanted my sister’s beautiful, red hair,” she says.

Today, the two girls are very different – both physically and in terms of their personalities.

Maria is outgoing and interested in fashion, while Lucy is more reserved and likes art.

But while the two are opposites in so many ways, they’re as close as twins can be. They’re best friends and have learned to love themselves and their differences — with pride.

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