Married life looked nothing like i imagined.
I thought it would be slower. Softer.
Maybe mornings wrapped in sheets and afternoon walks with tangled fingers.
But instead, it was 5AM call times, iced coffee at midnight, and text messages like:
S: I'm flying to Osaka. I miss you already.
Me: Don't forget your vitamins. And no skipping meals.
S: You sound like a wife.
Me: I am your wife.
The world didn't pause for us.
Not even for a second.
I went back to set two weeks after the wedding, same director, same glare of lights, same cast who kept calling me "Miss Gutierrez" like it was an inside joke.
My ring stayed hidden most days, tucked under costume jewelry or removed completely when the cameras rolled.
But i never forgot it was there.
Neither did he.
Sebastian stayed with SOLSTICE.
Even after the wedding. Even after the vows. Even after i told him, just once, that i'd understand if he wanted to slow down.
"I don't want to slow down," he said, gently brushing my hair off my face. "I just want to go through all of this with you now."
And he did.
Comebacks.
Tours.
Award shows.
The fandoms never stopped loving him.
The group never missed a beat and somehow in between all the chaos we made it work.
We learned to live in the in-betweens.
On most days, we weren't even in the same country.
I'd wake up in Quezon City with a half-packed suitcase by the door, and he'd be watching the sunrise from a Tokyo hotel room.
Sometimes we FaceTimed with scripts in our laps or shared meals over glitchy Wi-Fi.
Sometimes we didn't speak for three days.
But on the nights we did when our schedules aligned like rare stars it felt like magic.
Even if it was just lying beside each other, in silence, eating takeout on the floor of our condo or me falling asleep with my legs tangled in his while he silently rehearsed lyrics beside me.
We didn't need big gestures anymore.
Just time and honesty and the quiet promise that no matter how separate our worlds looked they always ended in the same place: with us.
There were rumors, of course.
Someone saw us holding hands in BGC.
A staff member leaked a blurry photo from a private dinner.
A fan claimed they spotted Sebastian kissing someone outside a condo in Makati.
The comments rolled in like waves:
"Are they really married?"
"Why keep it a secret?"
"She's holding him back."
"He deserves someone who understands the idol life."
But i never answered them.
And neither did he.
Because what we had didn't belong to the public.
It belonged to the mornings no one saw.
The patience.
The choosing.
The mundane magic of real love.
Last week, I had a scene where my character cried in the rain.
It was one of those long, exhausting shoot days.
I was cold, drenched, and the emotion just wouldn't land right.
After the fifth take, I walked off set and curled up in my dressing room, defeated.
And that's when my phone buzzed.
Sebastian: Turn around.
I froze.
Opened the door.
There he was.
Hair still slightly damp from the plane. Hoodie. Mask. Tired eyes. But him.
"I heard you forgot how to cry on camera," he said, smiling.
I fell into his arms without a word.
Just for a second.
Just enough.
Because sometimes love isn't about dramatic declarations or grand reunions.
Sometimes love is just… showing up.
Even when you're tired.
Especially when you're tired.
And then there were the quiet victories.
A sold-out concert for SOLSTICE in Singapore.
A Best Actress award i didn't expect.
A night we fell asleep in a car between tapings, fingers intertwined like muscle memory.
Sometimes we'd walk past each other in public, pretending not to know.
But once in the middle of a crowded escalator at the airport , Sebastian brushed my hand with his just enough to say:
"I see you."
And i didn't need anything else.
They say marriage changes you.
It didn't change me.
Not really.
I'm still Margaux Serene Imperial.
I still walk into rooms like i own them.
I still say the wrong things sometimes.
Still have bad days.
Still overthink every photo uploaded online.
But now… I come home to someone who sees all of it and stays.
Even when it's messy.
Even when i'm quiet.
Even when we barely see each other for ten days straight.
We're not a love story people dream of.
We're not glamorous.
We're not perfect.
We're real.
And if i had to choose between the fairytale and this?
I'd choose this.
Every time.