After decades of misrepresentation and prejudice, the LGBTQ+ community is now finding its strength to fight for equality. However, in the Philippines, there are still plenty of negative stereotypes associated with the LGBTQ+ community.
Despite the unsupportive environment towards LGBTQ+ people, they still deserve healthy representation. That’s why the story of this Filipino-Chinese couple, Bridge Lee (24) and Vince Go (23), is worth telling because it can provide a positive influence and shows why LGBTQ+ people deserve to be loved, respected, and accepted.
Their story will surely make your hearts flutter, help you believe in love again, and learn why love knows no gender.
From Seatmates To Lovers
Like Heartstopper’s Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring, Bridge and Vince were seatmates. It all started when Bridge said a simple “Hi” to Vince, and it turned out that the word would lead to a genuine and loving relationship.
Bridge wanted to get closer to Vince when he asked who his crush was and answered: “Why should I tell you? We’re not even friends.” This challenged Bridge to grow closer to Vince. And despite their contrasting personalities, Bridge as an ambivert leaning extrovert and Vince as an Introvert, they collaborated on school projects, ate lunch together, and became inseparable.
Their love story started when Vince came out to his friends, and initially, Bridge was shocked but happy for him. Bridge also started to develop feelings for Vince, which confused him a lot as he only liked girls before.
Confessing Their Feelings
Bridge’s confusion would come to clarity after three signs. The first sign was when they had a group project about making a coffee table scrapbook. It’s normal for people to follow trends (black, white, or neutral aesthetic), but Vince wanted to stay true to himself by using different colors, which Bridge thought was innovative. The second sign was when Vince developed a crush on a guy who is the complete opposite of who Bridge was as a bubbly person, which made Bridge jealous.
And the final sign was when Bridge planned to give yellow gummy bears to a girl but ended up being friends with her instead. In a turn of events, Vince requested for the remaining gummy bears, and Bridge asked: what’s your favorite color of gummy bears Vince, then answered: “I like all gummy bears. I don’t discriminate.“ Bridge thought Vince had a beautiful mind, which made him like Vince even more.
After months of leaving things unsaid, Vince, who also had a crush on Bridge, finally found the courage to ask him: “Do you want to kiss me?” on a Friday afternoon after school. Bridge was suddenly confused about his sexuality but still said yes because of his feelings towards Vince.
The weekend passed, and they kissed again on a typical Monday, which led to the two boys becoming boyfriends and eventually inspiring multiple people about how same-sex couples can be genuine.
Breaking Stereotypes And Embracing Their True Selves
Entering into a relationship also means coming to terms with their true selves. With the lack of representation, Bridge had a hard time understanding his sexuality. However, despite the lack of LGBT personalities in the media, Bridge stayed true to himself and learned to not listen to negative stereotypes.
“Bisexuality does not mean liking everyone and thirsting over anyone that comes your way, nor does it mean that you have to like both genders 50/50, and it definitely has nothing to do with your self-expression,” shared Bridge Lee.
Bridge shows that someone’s sexuality does not define their whole personality. They are also humans with complexity, stories, and backgrounds to tell. Luckily, Bridge has a supportive family, which helps him embrace his true self.
“My parents are fortunately very understanding even though they are both Chinese. They come from a different time when jokes were a little more controversial and there was less information about our community, so I am very happy that they love me and support Vince and I. They follow us on Tiktok.”
Contrary to expectation, Vince found a safe space in the online world, where he found inspiring stories that helped him embrace his sexuality.
“On the internet however, which was full of BLs and coming out stories, I had found a little comfort and help in figuring out my feelings. Around the time I had come to terms with it, I told a handful of my friends (including Bridge) about my sexuality, and I told my parents about it later on.”
Fortunately, Vince has a supportive family that helps him to become more comfortable with himself.
“I’m aware that I’m privileged to live in a supportive household, but not everyone has a good environment fit for coming out or learning about themselves. Young people look to social media for support or inspiration, like I did. It is important that there not only be good representation, and normalization of LGBTQ+ stories, but also that there are safe spaces online that make the youth feel accepted and valid. “
Despite growing up in a Filipino-Chinese community, Bridge and Vince, have found an accepting environment that made them stronger and more confident.
A Silver Lining For The LGBTQ+ Community
The Philippines is yet to approve the SOGIE bill and same-sex marriage, but there’s still a silver lining that the LGBTQ+ community can hold onto for their future. People like Bridge Lee and Vince Go are LGBTQ+ role models that everyone can take inspiration from. They are a beacon of hope as they show a beautiful story for the whole community.
“All LGBTQ+ stories are unique. Not everyone has the same experiences, and our words are based on our experiences with our own circumstances,” Bridge tells how every LGBTQ+ person can also experience genuine love in their timelines, unique circumstances, and destiny.
As the community continues to fight for their rights, Vince heartily hopes for a more inclusive country where everyone can express their sexual expressions without shame and fear.
“Out of all the changes about the public perception regarding the LGBTQ+ community that I would love to see, I would most love that one day, being LGBTQ+ is so normalized that asking somebody’s sexual preference and gender identity would feel like asking for their favorite color,” Vince shared.
Their love story is worth sharing as it provides a positive representation. Perhaps, a young LGBTQ+ person is wondering whether he/she /they would find love or maybe someone needs inspiration to embrace their true sexuality. Bridge and Vince are here to prove it’s possible and everyone deserves to live a life full of love and respect.
“But knowing that we are now looked up to by many audiences of different backgrounds and SOGIE, we want to show what it’s like to be an LGBTQ+ couple like us in the Philippines, shedding light on some LGBTQ+ topics, documenting our never-ending story, and taking our viewers with us along the way. We want to be the representation that Bridge never had,” a message for their followers.
For more inspiring Filipino-Chinese stories Like Bridge and Vince, you can follow us through our ChinoyTV social media accounts, including Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
