The Look of Love (Part 1)

The waves crashed lazily on the white sand as the chill of the morning gets pierced by the rays of the sun. I sat on my sarong which I spread on the sand and looked around. In a distance, I see a diving boat with several people preparing to leave.

One of the divers was a shirtless blond guy, who seemed too skinny for his height. As he turns in my direction I saw his face, reddened by the sun, and he looked young and boyish. As I lowered my gaze, I had my first real-life encounter with a guy with six-pack abs. Even from a distance, every line, every curve of his abdomen was perfectly sculpted.

“Tatat!” I nudged my best friend who was lying face down, enjoying the sun’s rays. “Ano?” I pointed in the direction of the boat. “Ay, panalo!” She says, finally sitting up. I’ve always enjoyed people-watching on the beach. There were a lot of interesting sights, especially here in Puerto Galera. “I hope we see him tonight at the bar.” I smiled at my friend.

There is an adage that says if by some freak of nature, a tsunami, typhoon, and a hurricane would hit Puerto Galera at the same time during summertime, 90% of the gay population in the Philippines would perish. I believe it. We found ourselves in a sea of people that night at the bars- about three fourths were male, and a few sprinklings of females. Music blared and drinks flowed as we chatted away merrily, checking people out.

The crowds parted and there he was, sitting with a Filipino guy at the bar. I nudged my friends, “Dun tayo,” I pleaded. Gracious as they were, my buddies accompanied me to the bar and we pretended to chat as we settled down on the chair, with mine next to the blond guy. He turns to look at me. “Hi!” I said. “What are you having?” gesturing to his drink. “Tequila,” he says. “My name is Yuri.”

He was quite nice, and we made small talk about diving spots in the Philippines. He was training to be in the police force in the Netherlands. Given the noise and his accent, and the fact that I was slightly tipsy already, I had quite a struggle keeping the conversation going. Luckily one of my girlfriends was familiar with European languages, so she quickly came to my rescue. His date turned his attention elsewhere while we continue chatting with him. He excused himself as he went to the restroom.

His date comes up to me and asks, “Are you going home with him?” I look him in the eye, and quite honestly said “I don’t know.” When Yuri gets back, his date says something to his ear and disappears into the crowd. “Would you like to take a walk on the beach?” I asked. “Yes.” He finishes his drink and I hold his hand as we leave together. My friends cheer as I walked away with him.

To be continued here