Wanderhoney.Com

Sitting at my desk at work, I put on my headphones and let Crying City’s “Lucky” play softly in my ears. I try to focus on the words I’m supposed to write, but my gaze keeps drifting to a group of colleagues deep in conversation. Even with the music on, I can still catch bits of their murmurs and soon realize they’re talking about Fazura and Fattah’s divorce.

I don’t usually follow celebrity news, but still—who would’ve thought? A couple everyone once admired is now going their separate ways. I’m not here to pick sides; no one really should. At the end of the day, only the couple knows what really happened behind closed doors.

But one thing is certain:

Relationships are hard enough when both people are equally committed to making things work. Now, imagine one person left carrying all the weight—especially if there’s betrayal involved. The hardest part, though, is when both simply stop trying.

Moments like these make me reflect on how fragile love can be.

I remember asking myself long ago,

“How does someone just stop loving their partner?”

“How can someone say ‘I love you’ to their partner and still betray them—or feel desire for someone else?”

“How can someone wake up one day and decide they don’t want their partner anymore? To let go of something they chose to carry from the very beginning?”

It’s hard for me to understand because love has always been so essential to who I am. I love to love. I love the feeling of making someone feel loved. Maybe I’m still a bit naive—or maybe I’m just too genuine for a world that isn’t always kind—but I’ve always believed that once you love someone, it should last forever—just the two of you committed against all odds.

Maybe that’s why it’s hard for me to understand how love fades for others. For me, love has always felt like something worth fighting for, even when it means risking everything.

A few days ago, I saw a video on Instagram of a couple still deeply in love after more than 7 years together. I felt a bit of envy because I’ve never had a relationship like that before. My first real relationship didn’t come until I was 28. It was long-distance and lasted almost 3 years but we eventually let go of each other because of the distance. It was a real, steady love—no bitterness, no blame. We even stayed friends, at least until he met someone new.

Then came another relationship—my first “normal” one, though it turned out to be toxic. Despite the pain, it taught me more than I could have imagined. I ended up spending 4 years being on my own, learning to rebuild myself again from scratch. Even long after we went our separate ways, I struggled to let go of that love. I had to slowly teach myself for that. Thinking back, it seems almost wild, but maybe that’s what love is to me: you don’t let go of someone you love easily, even when the world tells you to let it go.

I may not know what it’s like to have my love for someone fade while being together, but I’ve learned that love requires constant nurturing and effort. Love isn’t something you simply “have”—it’s something you keep choosing. Saying “I love you” isn’t enough on its own. Love has to be felt, lived, and shown every day in ways that your partner understands. You need to make your partner feel loved in their own love language, not yours.

That’s how you keep love alive—not just through words, but through actions that make them feel seen, valued, and cared for.

Maybe…love fades bit by bit as two people drift apart when they stop making the effort to nurture it. It doesn’t always disappear all at once; sometimes it slips away so quietly that it goes unnoticed until it’s almost gone.

In the end, love is a responsibility—a commitment to take good care of someone’s heart. Many of us sometimes forget (myself included) that holding someone’s heart is a precious trust, one that deserves care, not carelessness.

So, let’s remind each other… in a world where genuine love and loyalty can feel rare, those who guard and cherish your heart are worth appreciating deeply. Love is fragile, but when we choose to nurture it every day, it has the power to be stronger than anything else.

If you’re lucky enough to have someone who truly cherishes your heart, don’t take them for granted. Keep choosing them…every day. ❤️

Love you, Afiq.

X, Hani.