MANILA, Philippines - You make the reservations for dinner, for after dinner. You purchase lingerie. You apply makeup, you shave your legs, you put on stockings. You slip into your new dress, your tallest heels. You wear your jewelry, you spritz on perfume. You wait. You check your watch, you wait some more. You pour yourself a drink and you wait. You pour yourself another drink, and another, and another. And you wait.
You shed the dress and the heels. You stop waiting. You cry.