Spectrum

Without the Veil

Note:

Dihia = Middle Brother

Shobe = Younger Sister

———

Beads of sweat dripped down my chin, a telltale of the heat that embraced Philippine's weather even on a December. The trees itself were a blessing. It made the heat a bit more tolerable because of the shades they provided, but it still can't compare to the air-conditioned hallways and waiting area that I'm used to in Ateneo.

"Dihia, do I really have to be here? You could've just left me back in Ateneo. I could just wait for you there." I asked from where I sat under a mango tree.

A feet away from me stood my brother Paul, wearing a formal black checkered blouse and black slacks, looking dashing and handsome. He turned his attention from busily texting on his phone to look at me.

"Shobe, you know I just can't leave you alone right? I'm your ride home. Besides, I'd rather have you beside me so I can keep an eye on you."

"But I'm not a child anymore! I can take care of myself." I huffed, pouting at him. Paul averts his eyes from me for a moment but focuses back on me after a few seconds, a tiny amused smile dancing on his lips.

"I know, but you can't blame us. You're the precious jewel of the family, plus you're my baby sister. I don't want anything bad to happen to you behind my watch."

"Just wait for a little longer, okay? I promise after the event, I'll treat you wherever you want." Paul said with a smile, ruffling my hair into a perfect mess.

"Stop it! Paul!" I squealed and swat his hand off, glaring at him when he withdrew and openly chuckled at me and the disarrayed state of my hair that he had done.

I openly glared at him while I combed my hair back to a more suitable and tame state, pre-Paul hand storm. Paul on the other hand went back to his busying himself with his iPhone 6, possibly texting his secret-boyfriend, Gerald, who's a UP Diliman student.

Paul never disclosed his sexuality or his boyfriend to our family, I know about Paul's case and I respect Paul for wanting to keep it a secret from our parents for as long as he can. But since I'm the only who knows, that also means that Paul drags me to events like attending boy band concerts to lessen the suspicion, and I, being close to him, could not turn down his request.

I would come to the events Paul wants to go, even if I have zero knowledge on them. It did serve as a way to strengthen our bond too as brother and sister so I didn't complain. However, this event we're attending today is something I'm not sure I want to stick around for too long.

The problem is, I can't leave, I'm not allowed to.

So, here I am, sulking, waiting for the inevitable event that my brother's been overly looking forward since December came—the famous University of the Philippines' Oblation Run.

It's an annual event held by Alpha Phi Omega, or APO for short, in the different campuses of UP. The event was first organized back in 1977 in University of the Philippines Diliman to promote a Tagalog film called 'Naked Hero', but the name of the event was drawn from the 'Oblation', a famous statue of a nude man located in every UP campus.

From what I heard from Paul, the statue symbolizes selflessly offering one's self to the country. While an honorable message, I find that the whole concept of the Oblation Run event to be outrageous.

I'm not going to lie, don't like the event itself. It's shameless and embarrassing, having men run around stark naked in public places. I find it outrageous how flocks of people from various places would still come to watch this event. But what I even find more outrageous is that I let my brother drag me into going to UP Diliman just for this event.