It Started with a Joke

It started on a day like any other. "Hey Vance! When will you be coming back to the Philippines?"

"Hey! Hey! No questions like that in front of his girl alright? Let's just enjoy this despidida party of his!"

Marcy... the murmurs of the despidida party didn't seem to take hold on Harvey. She was Vance's girlfriend. A very striking female. Especially in his eyes.

"Hey Harv! Don't sulk, I'll be back soon!" says Vance, his bestfriend. "I know that this is the first time you've ever seen Marcy, you busy bloke, but I want you to watch over her while I'm gone ok?"

"Sure thing Vannie-boy." Harvey smiled. He was the only one who knew about Vance's plans. He told everyone that he will be in the US for three years or so, but the truth was, the project that he was in was only going to be for a year and he will surprise Marcy with his return so that he could marry her.

It was a grand plan as they both planned it out. He will be the one to orchestrate the whole affair while he was in the states.

Harvey and Vance became friends a few years back when nothing went right for the both of them. Harvey was a college dropout, a frat member and bum. Vance stopped studying for financial reasons and was a part-timer for all sorts of odd jobs.

Certain circumstances led to their meeting. Harvey's gang had cornered Vance and was threatening to kill him if he didn't give them any money. He had just received his paycheck and was holding on to it and didn't let go. Kicks and punches rained down on him but he never let go. Harvey, at that time, was a newbie in the fraternity and he only got in because of his fighting skills.

He felt sorry for the guy and helped him up after telling the gang to scramble.

"Sorry buddy, we don't usually do this. Go on, you're free."

"Hey... why'd you stop them?"

Harvey took off his frat jacket and handed it to him.

"Here, wear it so that these blokes won't touch you."

"Hey, I asked you a question."

"I felt sorry for you. That's all."

Vance looked at him straight in the eye and held out his hand.

"Vance."

Harvey received it.

"Harvey."

It was the start of an awkward friendship.

"Hey." Harvey got startled by a hand on his back.

"You gonna drink that or you're still hell-bent on seeing the future?"

The shot glass caught him by surprise. Vance was holding it in front of him. "Cheers buddy-boy!" It's my day today so don't goof off in one of your moments, okay?" "Heh, sure thing Van."

Whisky. It was a foul stench overpowering his nose, searing his esophagus with the cold heat only this drink could provide. Everything seems to be directly proportional to the weight of an occasion where drinks are involved. Normal get togethers would normally serve beer or some mixed drinks but for events like despidida's the alcohol content of what is being served seems to go up a few notches.

Not used to hard drinking matches like this, he was already asking what drink will they serve to wash off the whisky. Vance simply smiled and said: "Scotch."

Thinking back, Harvey remembered the second time they met.

It was late afternoon. The rain was seeping in to his clothes as he walked back home. Bloodied but victorious. He requested to quit his fraternity even though their policy was to pit him against 5 members for five minutes. Every minute will re-cycle the participants to keep them fresh. It was held in a dark area somewhere behind their frat HQ.

The fraternity he was in mainly stayed and protected their area, but after a sudden change in leadership, it was mandated that they should extort or bully passersbys to gain more income. He was happy before it happened as gang wars were held for pride rather than the current 'your stomach determines it' law.

He got away with it and only suffered a few bruises and wounds here and there. He sat down on a gutter, far away from the HQ to wipe his wounds clean. Looking up, the rain was a blessing. A familiar face appeared as he looked up and an umbrella suddenly covered his skies.

"I couldn't help but feel sorry for you." Vance told him then. He only smiled and stood up to shake the hand helping him up.

They hung out at his place to tend to his wounds and they became the best of friends for some reason. The other good friends they have right now just came along eventually. They helped each other out to get where they were right now.

Vance was positioned in the middle of Marcy and Harvey in his going away party and they all talked and laughed and talked about the good old days as was the custom between old friends. Harvey laughed and participated but kept to himself most of the time.

Marcy noticed this and joked.

"Is it true that you used to be a man-whore?" This caught Harvey off-guard, as only him and Vance knew about this. Ever since Marcy came to Vance's life, the time that they spent hanging out was considerably cut short. For a friend to talk about a friend's secret, they must be really close. After all, he was planning to marry her soon.

"I still am, but do try to keep it a secret." It was the alcohol talking now, but after all; a joke deserves another.

Marcy laughed at the impish smile that escaped from Harvey's lips. "Van always talks so fondly about you. I'm glad I finally get to meet 'Mr. Boytoy'."

"Dammit, he still calls me that?" he reached out to his friend, passing Marcy, brushing past her breasts. Marcy felt it, but paid no mind.

"Hey, Vanny-Boy, what have you been telling Marcy over here?"

"What up Mr. Boytoy? I tell her that we were the original lovers."

"Ahh... yes, those were the days. I bet you can't forget the way I make love to you."

"Eww! Shut up you two... you're grossing me out!"

The three laughed afterwards as the night was still young and they clearly weren't indisposed of yet.

Hours later, the other guests have gone off and left. Since the party was held at Vance's house, naturally, Harvey and Marcy were left to help clean up.

Harvey looked at Vance and smiled. They both have gone through a lot these past few years and their bond as brothers grew stronger every year. Vance went through college as a working student due to Harvey's constant nudging. Harvey went through a lot of odd jobs that consisted mostly of what he loved doing; graphic arts. It was also known to Vance, that Harvey still sells sexual services to anyone that wanted it.

Vance was out at the driveway giving his thanks to all those who went to his depidida while Marcy and Harvey were left to clean up inside.

"Hey... how did you end up as a male prostitute?" Marcy suddenly asked, while piling up a few plates on her hand.

"Shh! Not so loud... it's not something I'm really proud of you know." Harvey said as he went to the kitchen to segregate the trash. Marcy followed but went straight to the sink to wash the dishes.

"Yeah, I know, but we're the only ones here. It's just that it's my first time to actually meet someone like you and I don't know how you still live with yourself."

"It pays for the bills and the little extra things I enjoy. There's really nothing much to it."

"How did it happen?"

"It started with a joke."

"What joke?"

"I joked around in front of some females and they bought it. I had to come up with my own rates on varying services just for conversation and the next thing that happened was someone actually hired me."

"So it was just a joke to get laid?"

"Something like that. I just went overboard and sold myself. I had to act out my part through and through."

"Then what happened?" her curious eyes were looking at Harvey. Harvey was now thinking she was one of those overly romanticized innocent people that didn't know anything about the dark side of life.

"Word got around and eventually I had a whole list of regular customers. It brings you down a few notches but beggars can't be choosers."

"But you are doing well enough on your own right?"

"It's more of a hobby now more than anything. I still charge the same rates though."

"Oh... ok. I just got curious, I hope you didn't mind my prying."

"You're drunk so you're curious. It's forgivable. I answered because... well, maybe it's still the alcohol talking. Who knows?"

"Hehe you're funny." she set the remaining plates on the side to dry out and wiped her hands.

"You have to have a sense if humor. Lives like mine, you'd go crazy without it."

"It's really nice to finally meet the bestfriend." she reached out her hand.

Harvey shook it firmly.

"You better hook me up with your best friend so that we'll have a grand time."

"I'll think about it. I'll go look for Van."

With that, she walked over to where she thought Vance would be and found him on the front porch smoking.

"Hey Love! What have you been up to?" Vance reached out to embrace her as she sat down on his lap.

"Oh... just cleaning things up at the back with Harv." Marcy replied. Kissing him on the forehead. They saw Harvey smiling at them with one of those black garbage bags as he went out front.

"He's a good chump that fellow. He'll jump in to protect me if the need arises. You be nice to him while I'm gone ok?"

"Do you really have to go?"

"It's not something I can't say no to, Love. As much as I'd hate to leave you here, there are things that I need to make my future as bright as possible. I can't go back to where I came from."

"We can work things out while you're here right? Besides, who's going to stay in your house?"

"You are. I bought this house for us remember? I can have Harv check in on you from time to time. He's a good cook." Vance tried his most reassuring smile for Marcy. It didn't work and he didn't know how else to try and appease her.

"Hey Lovebirds!" Harvey called out to them.

"I have to go. Duty calls." Harvey was smiling as he was holding his cellphone.

"Ok bro, don't overdo it." Vance told him. Marcy was silent.

He walked away with his signature salute.

"Is he always like that?" she asked.

"Yup. He comes and goes just like the wind. I have never known anyone who wants freedom more than he does. That's why he never stays in a relationship for too long."

"Weird. What are the reasons he uses to break up?"

"The weirdest thing is that the girls he ends up with leave him. He is never the one to break up a relationship."

"Fascinating friend you got there."

"You'll know him better soon enough. If he ever gets around to it."

Harvey closed the gate behind him. Vance has come a long way and he has yet to achieve anything. He received an SMS asking him to come and meet someone at some convenience store in the middle of the night.

The next morning, Vance was busy trying to move his luggage onto the car. Marcy was helping him, though she was only forced to do it. She didn't really want him to go.

"Where the hell is Harv?" Vance asked. He wanted to get to the airport early because there was this one time when they closed the doors on him. They gave his seat away to one of the chance passengers because he wasn't there an hour before boarding time.

"I'm here." Harvey said, reaching over the door of the gate to open it for himself. He was going to drop him off at the airport.

"I thought you'll never arrive." Vance mumbled.

"Sorry, you know how it goes."

Harvey immediately hopped on to the driver's seat. "I'm ready when you are."

After a few minutes, they all settled in the car with Vance riding shotgun.

"How are you Harv?" Marcy asked, nibbling on a pocky.

"Just dandy Marcy, how about you Vanny-Boy? Got everything you need?"

"Seems like it." Vance was still fumbling through the documents he needed to get through airport security.

From the rear-view mirror, Harvey could see a sad glint in Marcy's eyes as she just pretended to be supportive. Not wanting to dampen the mood, Harvey took out a tape from his pocket.

"I'm glad you still have an old school player in your car." he put it in the tape deck of the car stereo and it started to play.

"That's our old mix tape right?" Vance asked as he heard a familiar track.

"You got that right, bro. I'll give it to you before you go. I just wanted to listen to it before you actually went."

"Brings back the old days." Vance remarked. He was smiling as he rummaged through his paperwork.

Harvey was singing to Meatloaf's "I would do anything for love" as Vance was tapping his fingers to match the drums.

"Hey isn't this great?" Vance asked Harvey. He had just purchased his first car. It was a second hand 98' Corolla.

"You bet it is." Harvey answered while looking at the scenery from the passenger's seat.

"I'm really glad you forced me to study til I graduated. Thanks bro." Vance patted the shoulder of his friend.

"Would you believe I was joking when I said it that time?" Harvey smiled at him.

"It was?"

"Yup. But then again, all jokes are half-meant, and you know how it goes with me."

"You'll continue the joke as if it were real? Yeah I know, but still... it got me somewhere."

"Want to know another one?" Harvey smiled impishly.

"I'm scared. Ok, what?"

"Let's take this thing to the end of NLEX and drive all the way back."

"What? You joking?"

"I would do anything for Love! I would do anything for Love!" Harvey ignored him and kept singing to the chorus of the song. Vance ended up singing with him as they took the car on a road trip.

"Here we are, Pizmo beach and all the clams we could eat." Harvey blurted out as they approached the airport. He pressed on the eject button and handed it over to Vance.

Vance looked at his old rugged friend. They've been through a lot and have shared many failures and victories with each other. He didn't know how to thank him enough for being there for all those times when he needed him. Here he was now, the same as ever; a loyal friend. While he, will be leaving him again.

"I have no words." Vance told him.

"I know." Harvey said, patting him on the shoulder.

Marcy just looked at them and tried to understand how these two communicate. Vance, for most of the time, was the silent type who never gave up. Harvey was more open and loved to communicate, even though he doesn't really speak his mind. Other people would think him shady at best and all of his words were empty. Yet Vance seemed to understand every word and gesture.

Marcy had a brief and teary goodbye with Vance after that. She watched him walk away with his airport trolley, wondering if he would still be the same when they meet again after a few years.

"Trust him." Harvey said, putting out the cigarette with his feet. "He used to spend most of his free time with me, and that never changed with anyone he's been with. Except for you." He smiled his biggest smile as he saw Vance imitate his way of saying goodbye.

A wave with his back towards them.

There was silence for the remainder of the trip between Marcy and Harvey. He concentrated on just getting her home safely.

Marcy on the other hand had tears in her eyes as she looked passively out the window. This would be the first time in two years that she would be away from Vance for so long.

When they approached the driveway, Harvey gave Marcy his cellphone number and told her to call or SMS anytime she needed any help with something. Even if it is just to talk over nothing and anything. Marcy showed a small smile with the gesture. With that, Harvey handed her the keys and left, waving the same way as he did the first day she met him.

Three weeks pass.

Harvey went around his usual routine. Vance being gone never really did make him bored as he was already used to not seeing him for weeks on end. It gave him some free time for himself. He had a steady cash flow with the freelance work he was engaged in. At some nights, he still has 'customers' that partake in his services.

He was lounging around a singles bar one night when he received an SMS message. Not expecting anyone, he sees that it was Marcy. He called her up immediately.

Snobs could be heard from the other end.

"Hello? Marcy?

"Harv" Marcy paused with a hint of sadness, "Could you come over? I really need someone to talk to right now."

"Sure thing. I'll be right over." Harvey paid his bill and went straight to where Marcy was.

He approached the familiar streets and remembered how he hurriedly went to Vance's house because he needed him. Most times over small and trivial things, and sometimes when he just needed someone to talk to. This time, it was Marcy, Vance's girl.

He opened the gate and parked his car beside Vance's and went inside the front door.

He saw Marcy on the couch brooding over a wine glass. She had been drinking. What a wreck she was, he thought. Marcy stood up and embraced him.

"Thanks for coming Harv. I didn't think you would come."

"When did you start drinking? You should have called me before you started." he was looking at the half-empty bottle of red wine on the table.

"Just awhile ago. I felt depressed and bought me a few bottles. Care to drink with me?" Marcy pointed to another bottle inside a paper bag beside her.

"Ok. So, how are you?" Harvey asked as he sat down on the couch beside her.

"Stupid question." Marcy took out an ash tray at the bottom of the table. It was empty. Vance reserved it just for him since he didn't care about Vance's house rules.

"This is your ashtray right? Vance said you're the only guy that actually smokes inside his living room. You don't like to follow his house rules?"

"Let's just call it a priviledge for being his bestest buddy in the whole wild world." Harvey smirked at her and immediately lit up. He took the glass from Marcy's hand and took it straight up.

"Get your own glass." Marcy retorted.

"The less we have to clean up after. It's ok. My germs are as good as Vance's." Harvey smiled impishly. Marcy was seeing the trend of his whenever it comes to attempts to irritate people. She couldn't care less because could she won't be able to do anything about it.

"I have been thinking... you still do what you do right?" Marcy asked.

"Yup. Why, you want to avail of my services?" Harvey joked.

Marcy fell silent. She looked at away and refilled the glass that Harvey set on the table.

"Yes. How much?"

"You serious?"

"I figured you would be a lot like Vance, so who better to do it with?" Marcy replied. Her eyes were glassy and her cheeks were red. Her tolerance for alcohol was apparent during the despidida party as she kept passing and passing after a few shots.

"I'm expensive. Are you still up for it?"

"Doesn't matter. I'll give you a deal; be at my every beck and call, I'll give you 15k."

"I can't be a slave. Twice a week for a month for 15k. I have to rest too you know."

"That's fine. Let's start now. How do we this? Any terms?" She had a face to die for, but now, she looke like a desperate girl wanting to be loved. This is his best friend's girl talking right now. Harvey didn't know what to do. She looked serious about it, but she was obviously drunk.

"Don't think of me as Vance's girl. I'm just a girl, that's all and I am in need of some service." she pouted, and took another swig.

"Downpayment. I'll need it to feel less guilty about this." he took the glass and emptied the remains of the bottle.

"Fine. I'll give it in full so you can't back out." she took the glass from him and drank it til there was no more. She took her purse and wrote him a check for 15k. She tore it out from her check book and handed it to him.

"Fine. My only rule is that you shouldn't fall in love me. That rule applies to me as well." Harvey stood up and took the other bottle of wine and popped it open. Pouring himself a glass, he looked at Marcy one more time and decided to think that this was just like any other day.

He takes the check and places it on the table.

Morning came. Streaks of light peered through the shutters of the bedroom. Marcy lay beside him, sleeping soundly. He had just serviced the girl of his best friend. He did everything she asked him to and he urged her to get her money's worth.

Want it.

Need it.

Have it like you've never had it.

These were the words he used for the girls who will be serviced for the first time. He wants them to be kinky and unrestrained. Things you would never talk about after it is over.

He remembers a conversation he had with Vance.

"What do you get out of all this? I know it's fun but, doesn't if feel demeaning?

"There are things you learn when you are in this kind of business. You learn to differentiate from different kinds of people. Those that are hiding within themselves. Those that don't know how to have fun. Those that don't know how to want what they want. I do this as a service to people who have confidence issues."

"You make it sound like some mission in life."

"You could say that. Part of my mission is to get laid as much as possible."

"You'll regret that someday I'm telling you. You might get HIV or AIDS. Or worse! You'll have a hard time getting it up when you're 40!"

"I doubt it. I know how to choose my clients. Besides, those with HIV don't usually crave for sex. The ones that crave for service are the ones that don't like to talk about it but secretly enjoy it. I'm basically just an outlet that keeps everything anonymous."

"Anyways, I'd love to get in to that business too..."

"Not very a very flattering one I tell you. Besides, you're the romantic type. I doubt you'll be able to stomach the filth that'll come your way."

"Why is that?"

"Not everyone will be beautiful. This isn't some fantasy come to life."

"Ok, I'll take your word for it."

Marcy stirs a bit and puts her arm around his chest. He brushes some stray hair off her face and stared at her. She was just wonderful last night. Who would think that a pretty girl like her had so many inhibitions about so many things. In cartoons, fighters would gauge ability and personality through fighting. Harvey gauges people through their sexual habits and he learned a lot about Marcy in just one night.

She was a sweet and considerate girl. Ambitious, but afraid to step outside from her comfort zones.

There was something distressing though; she had hints of being possessive. Making him think that getting involved with her is going to be very difficult for him in the long run.

-end