Chapter 1: The Beginning of an Eternity
Some loves are like a clear morning—the light slowly comes, making you feel warm, and promising a beautiful day. That’s the love between Adrian and Isabella. It’s not a blazing fire that suddenly bursts into flames. It’s a garden that they have slowly watered, nurtured, and nurtured for five years.
Isabella, a woman with porcelain complexion and speaking eyes, is an elementary school teacher. Her laughter is music to the ears and her kindness overflows. But behind her bright smile, there is a hidden vulnerability. She has been born with a congenital heart defect since she was a child. A heart that is beautiful but flawed, a heart that can give out at any moment. She knows her limitations, but she doesn’t let them become an obstacle to her dreams.
Adrian, on the other hand, is an architect—a quiet but strong man, who can make dreams come true not only on paper but also in real life. When he meets Isabella in a coffee shop, where he accidentally spills coffee on her book, he immediately senses something is different. What he sees in her eyes is not annoyance, but a playful understanding. That’s where it all began.
Isabella became Adrian’s refuge, and Adrian became her strength. Adrian knew the state of Isabella’s heart. At every check-up, every time she took her medicine, he was there. He was her reminder to take it easy, to not get too tired. But most of all, he was the one who made her feel that she was not a fragile crystal, but a whole person worthy of unconditional love.
“Don’t worry, one day, we will find a solution,” Adrian would always whisper as he stroked Isabella’s hair whenever she felt tired. “I will do everything to make your life normal.”
Isabella just smiled. To her, her life with Adrian was more than normal. It was perfect.
When Adrian proposed under the starry sky in Tagaytay, it was no longer a question of whether Isabella would say “yes.” It was a confirmation of a promise that had been formed in their hearts for a long time. The wedding was set a year later, enough time to prepare for the day that would be the beginning of their “forever.”
Chapter 2: The Happiest Day
The wedding day arrived. The church was filled with white flowers, family, and friends. The sunlight filtering through the stained-glass windows seemed like blessings from heaven.
Adrian stood at the altar, wearing his barong that seemed to accentuate his handsomeness. But his eyes were focused only in one direction—the large door of the church. As the “Canon in D” began to play, and the door slowly opened, it seemed as if the world had stopped spinning.
There was Isabella, in her white dress, an angel walking the earth. With each step she took toward Adrian, her heart beat faster—a rhythm of pure love and happiness. When their eyes met, there was no one else in the church. Just the two of them.
The ceremony was solemn and emotional. When it was time for their vows, everyone couldn’t help but cry.
Isabella went first. “Adrian, my love,” she began, her voice trembling. “You came into my life at a time when I thought everything had its limits for me. You showed me that a flawed heart can still love fully and fearlessly. I promise, before God and everyone here, to love you with every beat of this heart of mine, until my last breath.”
Adrian followed. He held Isabella’s hands tightly and stared deeply into her eyes. “Isabella, my life,” he said in a voice that was firm but full of emotion. “Ever since I met you, my life has taken on a new direction. You have been my plan, my masterpiece. They say your heart is weak, but to me, it is the bravest heart I have ever known. So here is my vow: I will give you everything. My strength, my dreams, my life. I will protect you. I will take care of you. And if necessary, I will sacrifice my own life to connect with yours. I love you so much, then, now, and forever.”
Those words were etched in everyone’s minds, a testament to a love that was the utmost. After the exchange of rings and a sweet kiss, the priest declared: “I now pronounce you, husband and wife!”
The church was filled with thunderous applause. As they walked out, hand in hand and with smiles reaching from ear to ear, Isabella felt a happiness she had never felt before. This was it. The beginning of their eternity.
Chapter 3: Thirty Minutes
They boarded the white bridal car decorated with flowers. The reception would be held at a garden venue only twenty minutes away from the church. Inside the car, the world seemed to be theirs alone.
“I love you so much, Mrs. De la Cruz,” Adrian whispered, as he kissed his wife’s hand.
“I love you more, Mr. De la Cruz,” Isabella replied, as she leaned her head on his shoulder. “I never thought this day would come. I feel like I could live a hundred years as long as I was with you.”
Adrian smiled, a smile tinged with some inexplicable sadness. “You’ll live a long time, my love. That’s a promise.”
Their conversation was filled with dreams—the house Adrian would build, the number of children they wanted, the places they would go. Every word was a thread weaving their future.
As they drove down a highway, a speeding truck that seemed to have lost its brakes suddenly swerved from the other lane. It all happened so fast. The last thing Isabella saw was the shock on Adrian’s face, and his quick embrace of her, as if shielding her from any danger.
A deafening sound of metal crashing. Darkness.
The next few moments were a blur of sounds and images for Isabella. The ambulance siren. The voices screaming. The pain in her chest. Her eyes searching for Adrian. She saw him unconscious, bleeding, as rescuers were trying to pull him out of the wrecked car.
“Adrian…” were the only words that came out of her mouth before she lost consciousness.
Isabella woke up in a white room. The smell of antiseptic was overwhelming. There were tubes attached to her body. Beside her, her mother was crying while holding her hand. Her father was standing in a corner, bent over and as if the whole world was a burden.
“Is… is Adrian?” she asked with difficulty.
The silence that followed was more painful than any wound. The tears in her mother’s eyes provided the answer.
“No… it’s not true…” Isabella whispered as her tears fell one after another. The pain in her chest was no longer just physical. It was a collapse of her entire being. Her eternity had ended in just thirty minutes.
Chapter 4: The Secret That Will Shock Everyone
As the family mourned, a doctor entered the room. It was Dr. Manuel, Isabella’s longtime cardiologist. His face was serious and full of pity.
“There’s something you need to know,” he said in a low voice.
The doctor explained what had happened. Due to the impact of the accident and the emotional trauma, Isabella’s heart had given out. She was in a state of severe cardiogenic shock. Her heart was barely beating properly. She needed an immediate heart transplant, or she wouldn’t last long.
“But where are we going to get a heart?” Isabella’s mother asked tearfully. “The list is so long!”
Dr. Manuel took a deep breath. “This is the hard part.” He looked at them. “Adrian… he was declared brain dead upon arrival. But his vital organs, including his heart… remained functioning with the help of life support.”
A deafening silence once again enveloped the room.
The doctor continued. “Before the wedding, about a month ago, Adrian came to me. He asked about the organ donation process. He did tests secretly. His blood type, the tissue compatibility… everything. Adrian is a perfect match for Isabella.”
Isabella’s parents couldn’t believe it. Isabella, who had heard everything, seemed to be deaf.
“But that’s not all,” Dr. Manuel added, as he took out an envelope from his folder. “He left this. An advance directive and a letter for you, Isabella. It states that in the event that something unexpected were to happen to him, especially if he were declared brain dead, his unquestionable wish would be to donate his organs, especially his heart, to Isabella.”
Everyone was stunned. This was not just an accident. This was a plan. A contingency plan written with love. Adrian’s words in church echoed in Isabella’s mind: “I will give my life to join yours.”
That was not a metaphor. It was a promise. A literal vow.
The accident was a cruel fate, but Adrian’s decision was a choice. He chose to give Isabella a chance to live, even if it meant taking his own life. The reason for his death, thirty minutes after their wedding, was not the truck crash. The reason was his unconditional love.
In the midst of intense grief, the family had to make a decision. There was no other choice. They agreed.
As Isabella was being prepared for surgery, her mother opened Adrian’s letter.
Chapter 5: A Letter from a Heart
My dear Isabella, my wife,
If you are reading this, it means that something has happened that we both did not want, but something that I have been preparing for for a long time. Don’t cry, my love. Okay, cry, but then, please smile for me.
Ever since I first met you, I have known that you are the woman I want to spend my whole life with. But I also know that that “whole life” may be short for you because of your heart. And I cannot accept that. I cannot imagine a world without you. So I have come up with a way. A way to make sure that no matter what happens to me, you will continue.
Some people call this madness. Maybe it is. But for me, it is the purest way for me to show how much I love you. This heart of mine, which beats for you every second of my life, would be of more use if it continued to beat inside you. This is my gift to you—a gift of life, a gift of more tomorrows.
Don’t think of this as a sacrifice. Think of it as a transition. From now on, I will be a part of every breath you take, every laugh you make, every heartbeat you make. Every sunrise you see, I will watch with you. Every dream you fulfill, I will celebrate with you.
Live long, my love. Live fully. Travel. Laugh out loud. Love the children we will have, even if I am the only one watching over you from above. Don’t let my memory be a shadow. Let it be a light to guide you.
Remember my vow to the church. They are not just words. They are my truth. I gave you my life, and I will do so again and again.
Until we meet again. Love forever,
Your husband, Adrian
The surgery was a success. Adrian’s heart was now beating in Isabella’s chest.
Epilogue: The Life of Grace
Five years had passed.
Isabella stood in front of a mirror in a small house with a large garden—the house Adrian had designed for them. She was holding in her hand a three-year-old boy with eyes just like his father’s. She had named him “Adi.”
After the surgery, Isabella went through a long process of healing—physical, emotional, and spiritual. There were nights when she cried herself to sleep, hugging Adrian’s picture. There were days when she felt like giving up. But every time she felt the strong, rhythmic beat in her chest, she remembered Adrian’s promise. The promise to live.
She fulfilled every wish in the letter. She founded a foundation, “Adrian’s Heart,” which helps heart patients and spreads awareness about organ donation. She traveled. She taught again. And most of all, she learned to smile again—a genuine smile, a smile full of gratitude.
She placed her hand on his chest. The beat was strong, steady. It was the beat of Adrian’s love. Their story did not end in tragedy. It was transformed.
“Forever” is not measured by the number of years you’ve been together. Sometimes, it is measured by the depth of love that can be given in a short period of time. Adrian’s love did not end thirty minutes after their wedding. In fact, it truly began there—a love that continues to give life, a love that literally beats in Isabella’s heart, forever.