The Adventures of Peter Valentine

November 21

When Valentine introduced Luke Paclibar to the Ochenta y Seis girls, Lisa brazenly asked Luke to add her as a friend on Facebook.
Valentine thought it was a dick move, but he was only so happy that Luke was getting along with his friends that he didn't think much of it to say something.
In that same chat, Jennifer actually said that it was a smart idea so that Luke can have some serious advocates among Valentine's friends, just in case something bad happened to the Luke-Valentine relationship.
At that moment, Valentine felt in his gut that the girls were going to be a big factor in his relationship with Luke, so he didn't really keep them up to date when Luke inquired about Valentine's net worth, suggested some businesses including forex trading, and proposed other partnership ventures that involved considerable money.
Valentine kept an open book policy with Luke. He pleasantly remembered that full disclosure hadn't hurt his relationship with Martin before, or with many of his later friends. Since coming to America, he had always been honest about things, and he didn't believe in keeping secrets anymore.
For one, he embraced his sexuality. And being able to name and declare it publicly enabled him to meet people that naturally gravitated towards him. For example, even when it wasn't necessary, he came out to his manager at work, and it forged their unique friendship. That boss always had his back covered, and was even supportive of his marriage to Martin to the point of being their ring bearer, and legal witness, to the small private ceremony in the courthouse.
The freedom to be himself, and to pursue his own happiness, were the biggest joys that America had given to Valentine. Once he had fully accepted and loved himself, he felt that he could declare it to the world. In fact, he believed that such openness and sure-footedness had kept him happy and less anxious since he turned 35. He brought this collected and confident cosmopolitan outlook everywhere, and especially in the Philippines.
Surprisingly, his closest acquaintances and most intimate relations seemed to appreciate Valentine's open book philosophy of life; and his public persona that unfolded on social media wasn't much different. His social media friends and followers felt a kinship to his every post, and they could sense a genuineness and refreshing honestly in everything he did and posted. In so many ways, his open book policy was inspiring, but also enviable. He was well aware of what was going on, and that's why he felt so loved and accepted. And he became even more appreciative, and grateful, to the world.
Valentine encouraged Luke to ask all sorts of questions, no holds barred, believing that the Covid lockdown was the best time to get to know each other. That when the Covid clears, and safe travels were possible again, they can begin in earnest, and be more aggressive, more proactive in the physical aspect of their relationship since they should have already dealt with the other dimensions—like the spiritual, emotional, psychological, and intellectual compatibilities, during their cyber interviews and long chats.
If they could overcome the long distance problem, and stay in love in the months of the pandemic, Valentine thought that they would already have hurdled the barriers and awkwardness of traditional courtship. In his words, "This pandemic is really the time to get to know each other. This is unusual, but this is the new normal."
When they finally learned about it, Jennifer and Diosa were a little alarmed, and disappointed, to hear that Luke had inquired about Valentine's finances. They warned Valentine by suggesting that Luke could be a gold digger. And Valentine simply laughed it off by saying that Luke can only be a gold digger if there was gold to be dug.
Valentine had modesty estimated his net worth at 20 million pesos in the third quarter of 2020. He knew it wasn't big money, but it was a considerable achievement considering that he grew up a mere middle class in the Philippines.
He had no ambition to get any richer, but he wanted to deal with life in a more practical manner. He wanted a partner to help him live out the rest of his days with the little money that he had.
Valentine had long accepted that he didn't have a good business sense. Martin used to tell him that he was very idealistic, and that he lived with the romantic ideals of art and literature making him happy.
Martin wanted Valentine to cash in on his art and literary works. And Martin had started to help him do that by acting as his manager. But then, Martin also passed away so suddenly.
Through the years, but mostly in the last few months after he had decided to sell his house and come home to the Philippines for good, Valentine had shaped and refined his retirement plans with his girl friends. Generally, they had approved of his dreams and schemes. They had allowed his visions, and made him defend these against their criticisms until they were finally convinced that their man had a solid plan.
As devil's advocates, the girls were ruthless, and they secretly admired Valentine for his impregnable vision. And again, because they were privy to his plans, they felt entitled even to checking out and validating Valentine's romantic choices. 
Unknown to Valentine, Lisa and Jennifer had plotted to dig some dirt on Luke. Despite the pandemic, they had paid some people to do their dirty work in Talisay, Cebu, and it wasn't long before they learned more about Luke, about his broken home, about his mom living in with a younger boyfriend, and the truth about Mama Ben, the gay beautician with whom Luke had supposedly carried on a ten-year relationship. 
But they didn't tell him any of these until Luke went AWOL on him, and Valentine became lovesick like a teenager, inconsolable and probably a little depressed. When the girls finally confronted Valentine about what they have found out about Luke, he obviously didn't see what was coming.