Love didn't change Gigi.

It didn't soften her voice or shrink her opinions.

It didn't make her suddenly obsessed with sunsets or cheesy captions.

It didn't turn her into someone who needed constant attention, flowers, or validation.

If anything, love - real, intentional, honest love - just gave her room to stand taller.

Caloy never asked her to tone herself down.

He never tried to fix her fire.

He just made space for it.

The relationship, if you could even call it that yet, unfolded in fragments.

Late-night food runs.

Long conversations that led to shared silence.

Touches that asked nothing but trust.

They didn't post selfies.

They didn't announce anything.

They didn't owe anyone a story.

And yet - every time Caloy reached for her hand, it felt less like possession and more like anchoring. Like someone saying, "You're allowed to be fully you, and I'm not going anywhere."

It confused her sometimes - how healthy it felt.

She'd been trained by her environment to think love was supposed to be a battlefield. A series of betrayals. An endless game of power and punishment.

But Caloy's love didn't feel like a trap.

It felt like a quiet room with the windows open.

And that scared her more than anything.

One afternoon, after a work meeting, Mia slid into Gigi's cubicle with a sly grin.

"Okay, don't panic, but someone from upper management saw your campaign reports and wants to recommend you for a regional role."

Gigi blinked. "You mean, like? in Singapore?"

"Singapore. Or Bangkok. Or anywhere they expand next. It's a big deal."

Her heart thudded.

It was a big deal. Everything she had worked for. Everything she'd fought to prove - not just to the world, but to herself.

"You don't look excited," Mia said.

"I am. I'm just? thinking."

Later that night, she told Caloy.

They were sitting on his couch, her legs draped over his lap, her fingers curled around a mug of tea.

"So, you're leaving?" he asked, voice calm. Not sad. Not accusatory.

"I didn't say that," Gigi replied. "I'm just saying? it's an option."

He nodded. "Do you want to go?"

She sighed. "Yes. And no. It's complicated."

"It doesn't have to be."

"I don't want to give up what I've worked for."

"And you shouldn't."

"But I also don't want to leave the one person who's ever made me feel like I can stay."

Caloy didn't smile. He didn't speak right away. He just looked at her like she was the whole sky.

Then finally: "I'm not asking you to choose. I'll cheer for you either way. Whether you go or stay. I love you enough to let you want everything."

Gigi swallowed hard.

"I don't want to be the woman who gives something up for a man," she whispered.

"Then don't," he said. "Be the woman who chooses."

Her eyes filled with tears. Not from pain. From permission.

Because that's what love should be.

Not a war.

Not a trade.

But a wide-open door.

That night, Gigi didn't make a decision.

But she slept soundly. For once, there was no ache in her chest from holding too much back.

She was still figuring things out.

Still healing.

Still deciding.

But this time, it wasn't fear that drove her.

It was freedom.

And that made all the difference.