The day was Tuesday, July 5. The time was 2:21 p.m. PT. Twitter user @jrsandres shared a selfie of him and his girlfriend. He captioned the selfie, "the loml is truly my doppelgänger." He then hashtagged it, #crazy.
The loml is truly my doppelgänger #crazy
The couple truly have similar faces, as he proved time and time again in a succession of selfies. At that moment, @jrsandres ignited an entire event on http://www.twitter.com.
Yes, strangers were beside themselves at first.
Y’all look exactly the same guatafak https://t.co/3qb5MA3Svb
What the Lannister https://t.co/lvYmh9vqgt
There were jokes.
Bro imagine breaking up and getting in your feelings every time you look in the mirror https://t.co/3lzeZOhQlj
But then, in a turn of events not many could have foreseen, the selfie inspired a whole thread of other couples boldly sharing photos proclaiming they look alike as well.
@jrsandres yes istg , people say me and my boo look alike i don’t see it. ☹️
"Me [and] my bf look like brother n sister twins too," 20-year-old Desiree Domenici from Fresno, California, tweeted. She told BuzzFeed News her family often joked that she'd found her "long-lost brother" when she started dating her boyfriend.
@jrsandres Me my bf look like brother n sister twins too lmfaoooooo 🤣
"Even now over the years, people still think we look like brother and sister," she said, laughing.
Domenici said it's never bothered her or her boyfriend of three years, Isaiah Ceja.
"We think it’ll be funny when we have kids and argue about who the kid looks like more, because we look similar in the first place," she added.
Peter Mazzei, 21, and his girlfriend of nine months, Bella Santasieri, 19, said when they started dating, they slowly began realizing how much they resembled each other.
@jrsandres Same
When asked if the realization ever bothered or spooked them, Mazzei said no.
"We actually find it funny," he said. "[We] like to joke that at least we know our kids will turn out cute."
Some couples with babies then took it to a whole 'nother level. "We had a baby... so now we all look like siblings," @amaniec_ said, sharing photos of her new family.
@jrsandres And then we had a baby... so now we all look like siblings 😂😂
Angelica Pressley, 20, of San Antonio, told BuzzFeed News when she started working at the same place as her girlfriend, customers constantly asked if they were related. When it was revealed they were dating, "people are either super shocked or they’re super apologetic," she said.
@jrsandres 10/10 can relate. Definitely my soulmate & definitely not related.
Pressley said she and her girlfriend, Melissa, who've been in a relationship for a year, hear the comparison "all the time" from friends, family, and strangers.
"When we met each other’s families, even they were shocked by the similarities," she said.
Furthermore, she and Melissa also have very similar personalities, she noted.
"I’ll sometimes joke and say, 'Yeah, we’re definitely sisters, love you, sis,' and she’ll just roll her eyes about it, but it's because we don’t personally think we look that identical in person."
"I don’t think it’s ever been something weird for us," said Pressley.
"I love when people say we look alike, though, because the super lovey-dovey side of me definitely thinks she’s the most beautiful person I’ve ever met, so being mistaken for her I’m just like, wow, you’re so nice!"