Romance vs. Love Story

You guys have been great, so I have another silly question.
I took on the challenge of writing a short romance story a while back, and I was pretty happy with the results and am going to polish it up a bit. But--
From what I have read, I am thinking I might not have written a romance but instead a love story with a happy ending.
So, the question is how would I know for sure? Is there a difference between a romance and a happy ending love-story? Or are they one and the same and I am just misunderstanding the ideas of what is Romance?

well, what I wrote involves two characters who already know each other (I'll call them Al and Bob) as seen through Al's eyes. It alternates between current developments between the two and tracing the history of how they know each other. As it develops, it becomes clear that Bob is going through some sort of change, but without enough information Al can only watch it happen. Finally Bob explains to Al what the problem is, which adds a new light on everything that was shared before, and Al realizes that he loves Bob, and tells him that he will stand by him through the problem. It ends with Al and Bob taking the first steps to a relationship and Bob realizing that he needs to make changes to solve his problem.
Through this description, it sounds like a romance, and it felt like one to me when I wrote it, but the more I analyze it, the more it seems to be about observing and understanding Bob's problem and eventually trying to solve it, which incidentally happens because of Al's love. While Al does have a final revelation, the main conflict, revelation, and resolution is pretty much all Bob's, with Al just coming along for the ride (so to speak). Is that still a romance?

That is interesting to hear. It is about 5000 words (give or take some final editing), and honestly, I had taken to the idea of getting it ready to submit to a sci-fi publication, as I had come to shift my thoughts on it away from being a romance.
But I had set out to write a romance, and while the love element is essential at the end, it still didn't feel like the story. So it just started me wondering.