Positivity

A Post-Valentines Blog Entry

"Bago na ang partner ni E?" Alarmed at what I saw on Facebook, I quickly dispatched an SMS to Kane.

"Same pa rin." He replied an hour later.

"Phew"

"Thank you. That was a relief."

"What made you ask pala?" My friend returned the favor by asking what piqued my interest into our friend's love life.

"Nawala na si Aito Vhin sa FB." 

"Tapos 'Married' pa rin ang status ni E with another guy." This part was rephrased for clarity. The other guy I was referring in the conversation was someone who's name and face appear different from his current beau.

I may not have taken into consideration that his partner might have aged; his girth expanded a little.

"Haha talaga? Updated ka ah!" 

I can still recall the couple's first encounter - according to the author who wrote a journal about their strange, but fateful beginning.

Found in the last chapters of his blog, E wrote of this guy he knew on Facebook. Their correspondence started with small talks that lead to outright flirting. Eventually, they both agreed to settle the score in bed. 

It was meant to be a random lay. I recall in that entry that it was a sunny afternoon when he invited the guy over. There were no talks, just hardcore kissing and fucking. When it's done, the guy was supposed to leave, and never to be seen again. 

But something extraordinary happened. E returned to the futon after wiping the cum and sweat off his skin, and started lip-locking with his guest again. He confided that seldom does he make rounds with a sex partner. With this guy, however, the act was spontaneous. E cuddled and made out some more until he fell asleep on top of his mate. It was already dark when they both woke up, but instead of sending the guy away, he invited him over for dinner. 

The first time he ever did since he started bringing hook-ups home.

His, was a typical online hook-up story between strangers. Something, that happens to everyone these days. Yet, if there is one thing that separates E's story from the common narrative, it is because of a condition everyone's terrified to have.

E is a person living with HIV. One of the few bloggers to ever reveal his status online.

While there is much to say about his journey, and how he opened my eyes to the virus, consistency dictates that I stick to the subject and tell his love story to those who will get to read this blog. All I know is that after choosing his partner - the one he was supposed to dump after the lay - the person behind the Chronicles of E cease to exist. He has become a very quiet individual driven to accomplish so much in life.

What has become of E after he retired from blogging could only be gleaned from sources other than him.

An example would be Kane's updates a few years back. He said E has struck gold and is busy running an online retail business. Our common friend also told me that he could now afford a condo unit with his new-found wealth. I also saw on FB that he is much more in touch with loved ones. When he used to blog, his entries barely mentioned ties with family.

Now, he would even share pictures of him and his mother, with heartfelt words on her birthday.

These and many others, he has accomplished in a short span of time. I will refrain from making speculations, but the constant presence of another good-looking guy in pictures, the same companion he's seen in photos taken in different timelines of his life hint to a change of perspective.

Perhaps.

I may no longer be privy to the life of E, but his story gathers much inspiration and respect that his very successful union sets the standard on how I see couples whose partner lives with the virus.

And in a time when many others are added to the statistics, and non-PLHIV pairs I have known, suddenly drop out of unions for reasons including "fall outs" and "third parties," may E's illumination, and those of others I have known - including the two bears on Twitter serve as reminder of the positivity there is to love. 

It's no wonder, when asked recently as to what true love means to me, I resoundingly answered; "it is sticking to your partner even when you learn he carries with him an immunodeficiency syndrome."