Trying to Throw my Arms Around the World

Chapter 2 of 'Come and Go'

CHAPTER TWO

Sunday, 1 May 2011

I met Stella on the first of May at RED. Charlie wanted to introduce me to his new boyfriend, Daniel. When I arrived it was just the three of us, but in usual Hong Kong fashion, as the night progressed, we were joined by friends and friends of friends. Stella was Daniel’s colleague and she had just been on a gruesome date. I was more than pleasantly surprised when she referred to her date as “she.” She bought beers for everyone, including herself. It had been quite busy and we’d been standing all night. When I spotted a table freeing up, I immediately claimed it, and Stella sat down next to me, our fingers twirling sweating bottles around.

“I love this place,” she said. “It’s my favourite bar in Hong Kong.”

“Yeah. At least there’s a breeze here.”

Through a well-practised Q&A of the standard questions I discovered she was from Florida, worked at Goldman Sachs, lived on The Peak and had been in Hong Kong for four and a half years with no immediate plans of leaving.

“So what do you make of Charlie and Daniel?” I asked.

“Charlie’s very handsome and Daniel’s filthy rich. They should make a good pair.”

“Is that why your date was so awful? She wasn’t pretty or rich enough?”

“Neither actually.” Stella laughed. “Did I offend you just now?”

“I’ve been here long enough not to be so easily offended anymore. But, well, Charlie is my friend.”

“And Daniel is mine.”

“Where did you meet her?”

“Who?”

“Your date.”

“Why do you want to know?”

“I’m just curious. Lesbians seem so hard to find in this city.”

“I met her on the internet.”

“Really?”

“Why so surprised?”

“You don’t really strike me as the type to look for love on a dating website.”

“As you just said, good women are hard to find in Hong Kong.” She looked me straight in the eyes. “Where do you get yours?”

“I don’t. That’s the problem.”

“Maybe tonight’s your lucky night.”

Stella seduced me in five minutes. I was defenceless against her cool charm, her Miami wit, her effortless elegance and the way her tan skin contrasted with the light beige blouse she wore. Later, we shared a cab to her apartment on The Peak. The ride uphill was silent. I glanced at her from the corner of my eye. She stared out of the window as the cab flung itself up the steep streets. I felt slightly intimidated by this woman, this stranger I met mere hours ago. She had the waistline of a sixteen year old, but the small wrinkles creasing around her eyes when she smiled betrayed her real age. I wanted to spur our driver on to go faster, but he was already racing at an insane speed. At the same time, I wanted to stay in the car forever and live in perpetual anticipation.

“You were quiet in the cab. You’re not having second thoughts, are you?” Stella asked in the elevator.

“What? Oh no. No no no,” I stammered.

Once inside, without asking, she poured us both a glass of scotch. I don’t drink scotch, but I didn’t say anything. I walked to the window to enjoy the amazing view she had over the city. Towers full of light spreading out below me, puncturing the sky. It was nothing compared to the inside of her apartment. The living room was the size of my entire flat, which, by Hong Kong standards, wasn’t even that small. The walls were filled with expensive-looking modern paintings, and every possible surface, from cabinets to floor corners, was covered with funky statues, oddly-shaped vases and peculiar shiny objects. This place was obviously meant for showing off, and, at least with me, it worked. I nearly had to sip from the scotch to hide my bewilderment.

I faced the window again and in the reflection I saw her approach. She had kicked off her heels upon entering, and I could barely hear her footsteps, even though I must have been in one of the most quiet spots in the city. She put her glass on the window sill in front of me and lay her hands on my shoulders, gently stroking them. Without shoes, she was maybe one inch taller than me, but it felt like at least ten. Her hands travelled from my shoulders to my neck, where she touched my naked skin for the first time. I still had my back to her when she unbuttoned my shirt, the window mirroring our movements. Her hands slowly escorted my shirt off my upper body. I tried to turn around, but she wouldn’t let me, not yet. Her red nails trailed over my skin, downward, where she unzipped my jeans. I felt her lips on my back while her right hand made its way into my pants. That was when I fell in love with Stella Morales, and she hadn’t even kissed me yet.