Bikini-clad optical illusion blows minds: ‘It took my brain too long’

A now-viral photograph of three young women has left optical illusion enthusiasts unable to look away from their tangled limbs.

The trio is pictured partying in an inflatable pool float in the shape of a bull — but their legs don’t quite seem to add up.

This bikini-clad brainteaser has been making its way through the internet for years, confusing people on multiple platforms.

Now, a TikTok posted by @turbopopo is renewing its viral status. The clip — captioned “At first I thought she was really short” — has racked up more than 4.7 million views and 160,300 likes as of Wednesday afternoon.

Can you solve this bizarre visual challenge?

[Warning: Spoilers below.]

The girl in the middle of the photo appears to be super short compared to her gal pals, with her legs dangling mid-air. But, as always with these seek-and-find puzzlers, appearances can be deceiving.

Still can’t untangle this mess? Take one last look before scrolling down for the big reveal.

After some concentration, you can see that the woman at the end is on the back of the girl in the middle. 

The middle gal’s legs are in the back while she gives the girl on the end a piggyback ride, creating the illusion that piggyback girl’s floating legs are actually attached to the middle girl.

Of course TikTok commenters — some frustrated, some entertained — admitted to spending ample time trying to figure out this bizarre optical illusion.

A woman named Tiara Cox commented on the post, saying she’s the woman in the middle, and expressed her amazement that the illusion has made its way from Reddit to TikTok.

“Hahaha when you see yourself in a TikTok from a Reddit post three years ago. I’m the ‘short’ girl in the middle,” she commented.

“I had to STUDY this. I was so confused,” one wrote.

“It took my brain too long to figure out what was going on,” another said.

“I see it, but I’m still confused,” a user said.

“Why did that take me so long,” another quipped.

This isn’t the first photo that had viewers doing a double take. In this photo of a woman standing in profile, people couldn’t figure out if the picture they were looking at was dirty or not.