Love, always
Aubrey Miles and Troy Montero
If there’s one simple but beautiful lesson that Aubrey Miles and Troy Montero learned in their 19 years of being each other’s rock and inspiration, it is this: a wedding will not change anything about their relationship. “Our feelings for each other will always be the same.”
Text by Nherz Almo
Photos courtesy of The Wedding Library PH
Some couples wait for a magical sign to determine whether or not they are really meant for each other. But for celebrity couple Aubrey Miles and Troy Montero, it took someone special to make them believe that they are meant for each other.
Aubrey said it was actually the meeting of Troy and her firstborn, Maurie, that made her think that the model-turned-actor could be her partner in life.
“Na-feel ko na siya na talaga noong pinakilala ko sa kanya ’yung eldest son ko. Parang na-feel ko na magiging okay siya na father in the future and sobrang ni-respect niya yung family ko. So, ’yun ’yung moment na parang sabi ko, ‘I think I’ll give it a shot na,'” Aubrey said in an exclusive interview with GMANetwork.com, after their photo shoot for The Wedding Library PH’s Bridal Fair 2023 at the Nouveau Resort in Camiguin last August.
The celebrity couple, who have been together for 19 years, admitted that they have encountered several people who have criticized their relationship and thought that they would not end up together. But Aubrey and Troy proved them wrong by finally tying the knot in civil rites in Mandaluyong City in June 2022.
“Obviously, we’re working well because after 19 years we’re still together,” said Troy of their relationship. “You know, what’s fun about Aubrey and I together, we always keep things fresh and lively, whether it has to do with our family or it’s just us alone, we always give time. You know, we love doing things together as a family and also just the two of us. We also like to give ourselves a chance to escape and have our couple time.”
From an outsider’s point of view, their relationship may look easy-going and laidback. Aubrey was quick to say that theirs had gone through many different stages, through the good and bad.
“With 19 years of being together, tinatanong nila, ‘What’s the secret?’ Alam mo, iba-iba talaga. May stages from one to three, from three to six… ’yung stages ng relationship, it’s always different. We give advice, we give stories differently kasi iba talaga ’yung level, you’ll be a different person every four years, every eight years, every ten years. So, iba-iba ’yung kinukwento namin. Kasi, now we’re 19, we can say, 'oh my God, you need patience.'
“Of course, love is important, you gotta have love, parang hindi na siya negotiable, e. You really gotta have love in there, di ba? Parang feeling ko, love has so many ingredients din na you gotta have. For me, kapag nasa love ka, kailangan you have to support your family and this… For me, you really have to know your feelings. Don’t look at the future na, ‘Kailangan may future ako sa taong ‘to.’ You always have to look at the present and you have to fix that. Ganun kami. Grabe, ang dami naming pinagdaanan na story talaga.”
Although they’re very different now compared to who they were years ago, the changes that happened in their relationship definitely made them stronger.
Troy said, “We definitely were different when we first met each other. Different people, different relationships. I think that’s what’s important, we were able to grow and to challenge each other. That’s what’s important because, of course, you still love each other. It’s definitely deeper now than when we first started.”
Another big adventure
When Aubrey and Troy got married, some people wondered why it took them about two decades before saying their “I dos.”
While the couple have not yet officially exchanged vows, Aubrey and Troy have already started their beautiful family. They might have been talking about marriage before, but they were not particularly planning it until, guess what, their son Maurie (again) made them think about making their union official.
Aubrey excitedly recalled, “My eldest son, who’s already 21, nagla-lunch yata tayo, parang sabi ko, ‘Oh my friend is getting married.’ He was like, ‘When are you guys getting married? You’re always attending weddings.’ Sabi ko, ‘Wow, ha, relax.’"
Troy added, “It was a spoon clank moment, you know. Parang, ‘When are you, guys, getting married?’ Clank! We’ve never heard him bring it up before. So, parang, ‘Oh my gosh, they’re old enough to realize or to think that way. When it came up, we’re kind of like a little shocked.”
Aubrey thought Troy was just waiting for her to become ready to enter the next stage of their relationship.
“Feeling ko, siya ’yung nagwe-wait talaga,” she said. “Feeling ko, he waited for me. Pero I felt siguro mga 10 years ago, napi-feel ko na he wanted to do something or surprise me. Pero ako lang ’yung medyo distant pa, parang ako rin ’yung nagbibigay ng motive na, ‘Huwag muna.’ But I felt na it was there na before pa, before pa ’to. Then, before pandemic, sabi ko, you know what, ’yung mga kids namin, alam nila kasi malalaki na sila. Also, we did it for our kids and for us na rin, kung ano ba ang another stage of our lives. Kasi, parang wala na kaming dapat pang i-prove sa sarili, parang ito na lang.”
True enough, Troy was just waiting for the right timing.
“Like what she said, I kinda felt something before. You know, we both grow up differently with our families and stuff like that. I always felt na I don’t wanna push her, I don’t wanna rush it. Then, those things just kind of turn into months, turns into years, but we’re still happy. Then, all of a sudden, ‘Wow, we’ve been together for a long time.’ Things are working out, so we take a chance like, I say, do we change it or do we just keep things the same?”
He admitted to ignoring the advice they would get before from other couples about marriage. But it felt different when it was their kids who were already asking them about it.
Troy answered, “People always give us advice and then, later, they break up and get whatever. I’m like, we should be giving advice here. You know, everyone’s been telling us what to do. Then, we figured out along the way that we would end up together and we would get married one day, and it’d probably just be another big adventure for us. Just like this, you know, it was according to our time and the way we wanted it to be.
“I think, once our kids mentioned na, we’re old enough, ‘Hey, when are you guys gonna get married?’ We’re like, ‘Oh!’ These are actually the only opinions that matter to us. When that happened, when we heard that, oh, maybe we should do this especially for them, to keep them happy as well.”
Aside from Maurie, Troy and Aubrey also have two other kids, namely Hunter Cody, 13, and Rocket, 3.
Nothing
Changes
A wedding is a big event among couples that ushers in major changes in their relationship. However, for Aubrey and Troy, this shouldn’t change anything about the current status of their relationship, and more importantly, of how things have been in their family. Aubrey related, “Ito nga ’yung lagi kong sinasabi sa kanya, sinasabi ko sa vow ko, ‘You know, today, we’re officially [married], but it’s always been like this. Our feelings are the same. Tomorrow, I don’t want you to wake up telling me, ‘Hey, I’m happy.’”
She then looked at Troy and said, “’Di ba, you wanna take care of me more, you love me more? No, sabi ko, the next day I want you to feel the same. You do your same routine, wake up the same, because I don’t wanna change anything.”
He agreed, “That’s why we’re here. That’s why we lasted so long.”
Aubrey chimed in, “We got married because we wanna continue the love and not to change anything. That change naman for the better will come later, ’di ba? Thank you for just being you. Paggising nga namin nag-bike lang siya. Ako naman nag-workout, nag-alaga ng bata.”
Troy likened their wedding to important events that they happily celebrate together as a couple with their kids. He said, “Siyempre, the process itself is exciting, and seeing the kids, and everyone, and each other… You know, it’s like having a birthday or a Christmas. It’s like a holiday vibe, like, there’s a new exciting thing. But our feelings for each other are the same. It shouldn’t change that. You know, we really love each other so much.”
Aubrey exclaimed, “Paggising na lang namin, ‘Ay, may ring na!’”
At present, the lovebirds are just waiting for their respective families, who are residing in the U.S., to be ready to travel to the Philippines for their church wedding.
Since we’re still in a pandemic, Aubrey and Troy would like to prioritize everyone’s safety. But when everything becomes okay and travel gets easier, the celebrity couple want to push through with their nature-inspired destination wedding.
Aubrey said, “Hopefully, the big wedding is a destination wedding. We’re planning here in the Philippines pa rin. We’re just waiting for our families when they are ready to fly. Kasi most of those who attended our civil wedding were all friends. We wanted next year, pero hindi pa rin pwede ang family namin to fly. Hopefully, in two years.”
Troy added, “We love nature. So, there’s currently two options, one is a beach wedding and the other one is kinda like in the mountains. Like Batanes, which is known for its scenery, and it’s very countryside. That’s what kind of won in the end but it didn’t push through. We’ve been to plenty of beach weddings and we love them. Who knows, it can still happen.”
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Aubrey Miles and Troy Montero: Love, always
Published :October 26, 2022 04:09 PM PHTIf there's one simple but beautiful lesson that Aubrey Miles and Troy Montero learned in their 19 years of being each other's rock and inspiration, it is this: a wedding will not change anything about their relationship. “Our feelings for each other will always be the same.”
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