And so we have come to the last part of the Larawan series, where, in my attempts to trace back our footsteps, I have gathered my strength to return to the places that serve as milestones of my long and fruitful journey with JC.
Twelve images. Twelve places. Twelve months. Sino ang mag-aakala na sa nilayo-layo ng aming nilakbay, nandito pa rin kami at hindi napapagod.
The first four pictures tell the story of our beginnings, while the previous four became the crests of our union. For the final set, the photos whisper in hushed tones the sublimity of our relationship. For love cannot stand alone by going out and seeing places.
It is the simple things that let your bond take roots.
JC sometimes complain about our "uwian" arrangement. It is because he always leave the cab first. Kunsabagay, we always come from Makati and his place being nearer, it is natural for me to drop him off the cab before I do.
What he didn't know is that there is a reason for it. I often choose the hang-out spots closer to his place so that I could see to it that he leaves the cab right in front of his house. Siyempre, when the hang-out spot is nearer to my place, he insists on the opposite. Para nga naman equal kami.
Ang hindi niya alam, meron akong counter proposal. Instead of him travelling to his house - alone, at night - I see to it that he sleeps over. I'd rather have him by my side than let him off the streets.
There was this one time I got so drunk that I had to take a detour to my partner's place to take a leak. Akala ko na hanggang sala lang ako makakaabot knowing the security risks once he get caught bringing a stranger inside the house. To my surprise, he allowed me to make weewee at his toilet for me to see his room. I was even able to lie in his bed, kaso sa sobrang hilo, I had to get up. Besides I couldn't stay long.
I wouldn't talk much about the great things that happen when he stays over my place. Besides, we all know what happens when two men share a single bed. But to see him leave after staying in for the night is a different story. For all my tough and independent posturing, at the end of the day, I am left hating the feeling of finding myself suddenly and abruptly disconnected.
I have already written scores of narratives about this patch of greens behind the towering monoliths of Ayala. The park was once our tagpuan, The open space had also become my tambayan while waiting for Baabaa to call it a night when he was still working in one of the office towers there.
But this is not what made Salcedo Park special. Sure there was the friendly cat I carried in my arms, and the cute kid who waved at me while serenely sitting on a bench. It was the kind act, the unprecedented gesture from JC that made this place something worth remembering.
It was past one in the morning and the partner wasn't done yet with work. The happy camper in me was willing to wait, kahit na pinapapak na ako ng lamok sa tabi ng puno. Nabusog naman ako sa food na bigay niya sa akin earlier that night. A short conversation with mahal and then an idea was conceived. He asked me to meet him at the lobby.
He would let me stay in his office.
He introduced me to the guard on duty as his cousin. I in turn played the act. While he was busy resolving the problems with his codes, I was there seated beside him playing Angry Birds on his iPhone. Soon we realized it was already past 2.
Baabaa was able to accomplish his tasks that morning, while I went home happy to see that the partner is slowly acknowledging my presence. Just a few months before, I asked him to accompany me at work just for him to see my office. He returned the idea with a dreaded stare.
It was raining when I went back to the same spot a week before this entry was published. Gone are the cats who made the park their home. Gone also are the kids and their attendants who often held picnics at past midnight. What welcomed me was an empty park and a heavy heart knowing the place is bound to dwell in my memory.
- to be concluded -
 |
| Paco, Manila |
JC sometimes complain about our "uwian" arrangement. It is because he always leave the cab first. Kunsabagay, we always come from Makati and his place being nearer, it is natural for me to drop him off the cab before I do.
What he didn't know is that there is a reason for it. I often choose the hang-out spots closer to his place so that I could see to it that he leaves the cab right in front of his house. Siyempre, when the hang-out spot is nearer to my place, he insists on the opposite. Para nga naman equal kami.
Ang hindi niya alam, meron akong counter proposal. Instead of him travelling to his house - alone, at night - I see to it that he sleeps over. I'd rather have him by my side than let him off the streets.
 |
| Jomanian Homeworld |
There was this one time I got so drunk that I had to take a detour to my partner's place to take a leak. Akala ko na hanggang sala lang ako makakaabot knowing the security risks once he get caught bringing a stranger inside the house. To my surprise, he allowed me to make weewee at his toilet for me to see his room. I was even able to lie in his bed, kaso sa sobrang hilo, I had to get up. Besides I couldn't stay long.
I wouldn't talk much about the great things that happen when he stays over my place. Besides, we all know what happens when two men share a single bed. But to see him leave after staying in for the night is a different story. For all my tough and independent posturing, at the end of the day, I am left hating the feeling of finding myself suddenly and abruptly disconnected.
 |
| Salcedo Park, Makati |
I have already written scores of narratives about this patch of greens behind the towering monoliths of Ayala. The park was once our tagpuan, The open space had also become my tambayan while waiting for Baabaa to call it a night when he was still working in one of the office towers there.
But this is not what made Salcedo Park special. Sure there was the friendly cat I carried in my arms, and the cute kid who waved at me while serenely sitting on a bench. It was the kind act, the unprecedented gesture from JC that made this place something worth remembering.
It was past one in the morning and the partner wasn't done yet with work. The happy camper in me was willing to wait, kahit na pinapapak na ako ng lamok sa tabi ng puno. Nabusog naman ako sa food na bigay niya sa akin earlier that night. A short conversation with mahal and then an idea was conceived. He asked me to meet him at the lobby.
He would let me stay in his office.
He introduced me to the guard on duty as his cousin. I in turn played the act. While he was busy resolving the problems with his codes, I was there seated beside him playing Angry Birds on his iPhone. Soon we realized it was already past 2.
Baabaa was able to accomplish his tasks that morning, while I went home happy to see that the partner is slowly acknowledging my presence. Just a few months before, I asked him to accompany me at work just for him to see my office. He returned the idea with a dreaded stare.
It was raining when I went back to the same spot a week before this entry was published. Gone are the cats who made the park their home. Gone also are the kids and their attendants who often held picnics at past midnight. What welcomed me was an empty park and a heavy heart knowing the place is bound to dwell in my memory.
- to be concluded -
