I stretched my arms and yawned. I was never a morning person but the tours would always start at seven in the morning. I haven’t even had a proper sleep yet since my shift ended at one am, my flight was at three and I still needed to take the van from Puerto Princesa to El Nido. As much as my body wasn’t prepared to start a tour, I find it a waste if I’d just spend my day sleeping in the inn. I only had two days. I might as well make the best out of it.

The soft breeze of the wind, the calm blue of the sea, and the gradient of the sky – everything was so calming in this place. My lips tugged into a small smile as I inhaled the rare breath of fresh air. This is something new for someone who had been living for so long in Manila. I took my phone out and snapped a panoramic view, planning to send it to my mother as soon as I get an internet connection. But as I shot the picture, my attention shifted to a figure.

She was wearing a pink tank top and black cycling shorts. Her skin glowed with the sun’s rays and her hair swayed with the wind. It would have been easy to strike a conversation since I could already find a similarity between the two of us with just one glance. The silly I would have approached her by now but then, I just found myself staring. She seemed to be in serenity with nature.

At that moment, beautiful was an understatement to describe her.

“Sir, the boat’s ready. Let’s go.”

The trance that I was in was put into a halt as one of the guides tapped my shoulder. I nodded at him and smiled. He smiled back and asked, “Sir, your things… do you want me to bring it for you so that it wouldn’t get wet?”

My eyes then travelled to the boat and I realized that we still need to walk a very few meters in water before getting in.

“No, it is okay,” I replied. “I can handle this.”

“Okay, Sir,” he clapped before pointing to the boat, as if signalling me to proceed. For a while, my eyes travelled with the guide and I saw him approach the girl. My eyebrows rose up as I wonder if she’d be in the same boat with me.

I was right.

She gave her belongings to the guide before standing up and dusting away the sand. She then started carefully walking towards the water, and I just found myself following. I then saw other people racing their way towards the boat, and that is when it struck me that they were racing for the best place of the tour, in front. It would be easier to take pictures and go back and forth with that spot. I could have raced with them and I swear, I got good chances of winning, but a part of me worried about this girl.

So instead of rushing my way forward, I just carefully trailed behind her. Waves crashed on our bodies. My mind was thinking of the possibilities that she would stumble so I made sure that I was near her while maintaining a decent distance. Not long after, we were already by the boat. The guide helped her climb while I struggled to keep my things from being wet. Soon, my bag was taken away from me and another guide stretched his hand. I gladly took the help.

“Thanks,” I muttered as I have successfully boarded.

“No problem, Sir!” the guide enthusiastically replied.

I scanned the small boat. It wasn’t crowded but still, I was left with no choice but to sit across the girl that had been piquing my interest. I faked an awkward cough as I walked towards my place. I tried to feign innocence and act as if I was not curious, but every now and then, my eyes would automatically gaze back at her. It seems that she could feel my stares for she just kept her eyes on the waves of the sea.

“Good morning Ma’am/Sir! Welcome to El Nido, Palawan! Today, we are going for Tour A! I am Kuya Rodel and together with Kuya Emman, Kuya Luis and Kuya Angel, I’d be your guide for today. If you have any questions or if you need any help, just ask any of us. Thank you!”

The people in the boat clapped and I found myself clapping with them, entertained by the high energy that our guide has. Glancing back at the girl, I saw her lips curve into a smile as she clapped along. Then, I heard the guide whisper, “Naku. May dalawang foreigner tayo dito. Sana di maubos English ko. [We have two foreigners here. I just wish that I would not run out of English.]”

The crowd burst into laughter and so did I.

“Okay lang yan, manong. Guwapo’t maganda naman oh! [That’s okay! They’re both pretty and handsome.]”

“Oo nga ma’am eh. Artistahin yung dalawa! Baka sikat ‘tong mga ‘to sa bansa nila! [I think so too. They actually look like TV personalities! Maybe they’re famous in their country!]

I can’t hide my smile but she on the other hand, had confusion written on her face as people in the boat threw glances at both of us while laughing and smiling. Looking at that clueless expression of hers made me give up.  I sighed, and finally took the courage to speak.

“They’re laughing about his fluency in English and they were also talking about how beautiful you are,” I blurted out in Korean but then bit my lip because it sounded like I was making a move on her.

Oh well. Maybe I was.

“You can understand them?” she asked politely with all the formalities in our language.

“Hmmm,” I hummed and nodded, satisfied that I was not ignored. “I am a tourist of the place, but not of the country. I’ve been living in the Philippines for years.”

“Do they know that you can understand them?” she asked again.

“I don’t think so,” I shrugged. I smiled yet again as I added, “It’s actually fun hearing them talk about me, convinced that they only understood among themselves.”

She gave a mere nod with a simple smile and everything turned awkward again.

With no one to talk to once more, I found the ride to the first destination longer than I expected. But it was worth the wait. I took off the vest as I walk around the beach of Seven Commandos. The sand beneath my feet could probably be finer and more natural than the one I’ve experience in Boracay. I slowly walk towards the water and let the waves wash my toes. The sea in front of me had become my favourite shade of blue. It was early January so the heat was not a