It's the 31st of August. The Buwan ng Wika Culminating Activity is going to begin. Everyone was on edge from the pressure. The event was going to commence at the school's gymnasium.
"All right everyone. The past 2 weeks have been grueling to you all. But remember, no matter what happens, win or lose, what matters is that you've tried your best, okay? I am proud of you all for not giving up." Mr. Flores assured his students.
They were in the classroom. The girls were putting on their makeup and styling their hair. The boys were changing into their costumes, feeling cold as their bare chests were only covered by a single satin vest. Oliver and Claire were ready. They wore their satin dresses like a true marriage in motion. They both looked beautiful.
"Damn, Claire. You look beautiful!" Caden praised her.
"I know right. I'm always beautiful." She jokingly answered, flipping her hair at the boy. The two laughed at the interaction. It wasn't everyday that a male would compliment a female platonically.
"Aren't you going to say anything about me?" The two friends heard from behind. It was Oliver, and he was looking at Caden.
"Yeah, yeah. I admit, you do look handsome in my costume." Caden spoke while rolling his eyes.
Oliver laughed. His smile was beautiful, accentuated by the little moustache that had overgrown. His dimples were so prominent due to the makeup he was given. He hugged his best friend at the remark as thanks and walked towards his seat.
"He's awfully huggy towards you, isn't he?" Claire told Caden.
"Is there a problem with that?" the boy replied.
"Not really. But he's not like that with the other boys. Even before you came into this class, he wasn't like that with Theo and Jake. Did you feed him something?" Claire joked.
"What are you saying?" Caden said with his eyebrows slanting down. He then tugged on the girl's sleeve.
Claire just smiled at him and turned away. She went to the other girls and helped them with their costumes.
Caden sat for a moment, thinking about what the revelation his best friend just told him. Come to think of it, he has never seen Oliver hug their other friends. It was always a high-five with them, but not with Caden. Is it because of gratitude, from when he carried him home to his bed? Or the money he lost at that lunchtime? He thought. But his mind flashed back to the first time they met. Back in March, he hugged Caden too, and he wasn't supposed to be grateful for anything that time. The boy's thoughts traveled every curl in his brain, he had to hold his temples from the weight.
"Okay class. It's time to go to the gymnasium. Are you all ready?" Mr. Flores asked the students.
They all lined up, with the prince and princess in front, followed by the parasol-holder. Behind them were the four boys with the poles. Everyone else followed behind. They went up the stairs with faces blue of anxiety.
The venue was beautiful. All the students wore costumes reminiscent of the Philippines' rich history. Men and women clad in Barong Tagalogs and Baro't Sayas filled the room. Some boys wore the traditional Katipunero costume, which consisted of a white shirt, red pants, a neckerchief, and a straw hat. The bolder of the students wore a Bahag, which is an indigenous dress of the tribes in the Philippines. It consisted of a single strap of fabric wrapped around a man's groin, similar to the loincloths that sumo wrestlers wear. It draped along the front of the body, and it came in beautiful patterns of weave.
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Those Damn Dimples (BL)
RomanceA lot of Caden's later years were spent with the absence of his father, a man whom he had always wanted to feel by his side. He longed for his father, to feel safe in his arms when he's in peril. The man was always abroad, working. Caden had conside...
