the city of love

Maloi sat by the window, her chin propped on her hand as she gazed at the rain softly tapping on the glass. Across her, Stacey lay flat on her stomach, flipping through a travel magazine, her eyes scanning through pages, smiling each time she came across a stunning photo. They had discussed this many times—traveling and exploring. But no place called to them quite like Paris.

“The City of Love.” Stacey murmured, staring at the picture of the Eiffel Tower glowing under the night sky. “Imagine, nandito tayo. Tapos aakyat tayo sa taas ng Eiffel Tower, I would love that, lovey.”

Maloi smiled, looking at her girlfriend’s smiley face. “Sa Seine, lovey. Parang ang sarap maglakad lakad, Tapos may mga tumutugtog lang sa gilid, nakakadagdag sa relaxation.”

Stacey flipped the page, revealing a stunning view of Montmartre, its cobbled streets lined with artists and cafés. “Tapos let’s go here, lovey.” she said, grinning. “Croissants and coffee for breakfast, kasi I know you love bread.”

Maloi chuckled. “And pupunta rin tayo sa Louvre, kasi you’re an art. Mas maganda ka nga lang sa mga nandoon.”

Stacey playfully rolled her eyes, but her lips betrayed her, tugging into a soft smile.

“Ikaw gawin kong art, lovey. Sabit kita.”

The older laughed softly, “Joke lang po lovey, ang harsh mo naman sakin.”

“Puro ka biro eh, we’re talking about our future kaya.”

Maloi reached for Stacey’s hand, pulling the latter beside her, gently wrapping her inside her arms, making Stacey lay on her chest. She pressed a soft kiss on the younger’s temple.

“Lovey, hindi ako nagbibiro when I said na you’re an art, kasi you are. And kahit anong future pa yan, as long as I’m with you and we’re together, alam kong mangyayari lahat ng dreams natin. We’ll do whatever we want together, lovey.”

Maloi’s smile softened at the thought, along with the rain slowing to a drizzle. Stacey hummed, her fingers absentmindedly tracing patterns over the fabric of Maloi’s shirt.

“Lovey, what if one day, mag-break tayo?”

Maloi paused for a moment, her hand halting mid-stroke on Stacey’s back. “Why would you ask that, lovey?” she murmured.

Stacey shrugged, her cheek still pressed against Maloi’s chest. “I don’t know. Just thinking.”

Maloi exhaled, her fingers resuming their slow, soothing motion. “I— hindi ko siya iniisip, lovey.”

“Ako rin naman, lovey. Kaso nga, what if?” Stacey’s voice wavered. “What if one day we wake up and things aren’t the same?”

Maloi fell silent for a moment, choosing the right words to explain. “Then I guess we’d deal with it when it happens,” she said softly. “Pero ngayon, you’re here. I’m yours, you’re mine.” She tightened her arm around Stacey’s waist, grounding her. “And I don’t want to waste time thinking about losing you when I could be loving you instead.”

Stacey closed her eyes, listening to the steady rhythm of Maloi’s heartbeat beneath her ear. It was a sound she never wanted to forget.

“You really know what to say every time.” she whispered, a small, gentle smile drawing at her lips.

Maloi pressed a light kiss to the top of her head. “Only because it’s true.”

...

The soft chime of the cabin crew announcement signaled the start of another flight, prompting Stacey to straighten and smoothen her uniform. With the airplane doors now closed, they were about to take to the skies, bound for France.

She moved gracefully through the aisle, checking passengers’ seat belts and offering reassuring smiles. As she reached the galley, she took a deep breath, peeking out of the small window. France, she thought with a smile. A place she had always wanted to explore. A place that she had always wanted to visit with Maloi.

“Ready for takeoff?” one of her fellow flight attendants asked, nudging her playfully.

Stacey smiled, fastening her own seatbelt as the plane began to taxi. “Always.”

As she moved down the aisle, giving plane foods out, she stopped mid-way, her heartbeat raced, like she was seeing a ghost.

There, in seat 14A by the window, was Maloi.

And she wasn’t alone.

Stacey’s grip tightened on the tray she was holding as her eyes flickered to the woman sitting beside her ex lover. They were laughing softly, heads tilted close together, completely lost in their own world.

The moment Stacey saw Maloi’s fingers intertwined with someone else’s, something inside her cracked. It wasn’t the kind of pain that made itself known all at once—it was slow, creeping, wrapping around her chest like a tightening rope.

Her heart clenched, but she forced herself to keep walking, to keep smiling, to keep pretending that her entire world hadn’t just shifted beneath her feet.

It wasn’t just seeing Maloi with someone else that stung. It was everything it confirmed. That the girl she loved, the girl that used to be hers, had truly moved on.

Her hands trembled slightly as she reached the galley, gripping the counter as if it could anchor her. She blinked rapidly, willing away the sting in her eyes.

Please, not here. Not now.

Stacey had always imagined this moment differently.

They had dreamed of it so many times—going to the Eiffel Tower, morning talks about sipping coffee at a little café, admiring some arts, making memories in a place they had promised to explore together.

But now, as the plane cruised through the sky, that dream was nothing more than a ghost. A fantasy that would never become real.

"Lovey, look at my bank, nag-iipon ako para sa future nating dalawa. Pupunta tayo sa France, aakyat tayo sa Eiffel Tower."

Stacey chuckled, "Opo lovey, pupunta tayo sa kahit saan mo gusto."

Because the woman sitting on the seat 14A, wasn’t hers anymore.

"Mahal na mahal kita lovey, hinding hindi kita iiwan."

Stacey smiled, nodding at Maloi's statement of her love, "Mahal na mahal din kita lovey ko, hindi rin kita iiwan, basta sakin ka."

Maloi approached her, tiptoeing as the latter kissed her cheek, looking at her dearly. "Sayong sayo lang ako, lovey."

And worse—Maloi wasn’t going to France alone.

It was the slow realization that the future she had dreamed of no longer existed.

She calmed herself, tears threatening to fall, but the pain didn’t listen. It sat heavy in her chest, a dull ache that pulsed with every reminder of what they used to be.

Stacey forced herself to breathe, but every inhale felt sharp, like she was swallowing broken glass. She knew she couldn’t fall apart here, not while she was on duty, not while she had passengers to take care of. But knowing that didn’t make it easier.

It was the same laugh that used to belong to her. 

"Lovey, gusto ko, ikaw ang kasama ko sa lahat ng bagay. Sasamahan kita kahit saan, sasamahan kita hanggang kailan. Ikaw lang ang gusto kong makasama habambuhay, lovey." 

"Lovey, hangga't mahal mo ko, hinding hindi kita iiwan. Basta sabihin mo sakin kapag hindi mo na ko mahal." Stacey said, earning a confused look from her girlfriend.

"Kasi lalagutan na lang kita ng hininga kasi hindi ka pwedeng mapunta sa iba." she added and that made her lover laughed. 

And in that moment, the pain hit her all over again—because Maloi wasn’t just moving on. She already had.

And their dream of France?

That wasn’t theirs anymore. It was Maloi’s and someone else’s now. And Stacey had no choice but to let it go.