NEWSFLASH

HOW REAL SWEETHEARTS RICO AND CLAUDINE KEEP LOVE FIRE BURNING

Manila, Feb. 28, 2002 (STAR)) by Boy Abunda - On March 4, Rico Yan and Claudine Barretto will celebrate their fourth anniversary as real sweethearts. They celebrate the fourth of each month, quietly with I would presume, wine and food and roses. Claudine says they collect corks. They obviously lead a simply yet tasteful lifestyle.

Claudine will not forget the gigantic TV set Rico gave her on one of their anniversaries. Rico beams with love and fondness when he tells the story that everytime Claudine drops by his pad (which he shares with brother Bobby Yan), she goes straight to the kitchen to see what needs to be bought. And she makes a list and does the groceries for him. They take good care of each other. While Rico is excited about Claudine’s unpredictability, Claudine feels secure because "he is just so kind and caring and he always takes care of me."

Claudine and Rico first met while filming Radio Romance, The Movie where they played introverts who got hooked to FM station Radio Romance. Although reel romance blossomed, real romance was far from their minds since both were seeing other people (Rico was dating a non-showbiz girl while Claudine was still involved with Mark Anthony Fernandez). The movie did well at the box office and a string of projects featuring both of them followed like Madrasta, Flames the Movie and Dahil Mahal Na Mahal Kita and the long-running soap opera Mula Sa Puso.

It was on the set of Dahil Mahal Na Mahal Kita that the two discovered their feelings for each other. They started dating and in time, fell in love.

Wags predicted the relationship wouldn’t last. They said angelic Rico deserved a pious, young woman and a visionary, which they said Claudine was not. She was and still is a normal decent young woman. They lived and loved quietly until people realized they deserved to be happy.

Rico and Claudine have been subjected to all sorts of rumors – from the funny to the downright ludicrous but they are hardly affected. They say that at the end of the day, it’s their love that matters, not what rumor mongers say.

"Trust is the secret of our relationship," says Rico. Claudine also says they are the little surprises that they do for each other that create magic. In fact, when Claudine celebrated her birthday recently, Rico went to her taping for Sa Dulo Ng Walang Haggan and whipped up a romantic dinner for her in the set.

The staff of the Got 2 Believe under Star Cinema can attest to how sweet the two are. Says one staffer, "Sabay sila kumain. Claudine brings Rico food and prepares his vitamins. They call each other ‘honey.’ Nakakainggit nga eh!" Got to 2 Believe will be shown in various cinemas today and it also stars Dominic Ochoa, Nikki Valdez, Carlo Muñoz, Jackie Castillejo, Maribeth Bichara and many more. The movie is directed by Olivia Lamasan, the same person behind some of the country’s biggest box office hits like Madrasta, Sana Maulit Muli, Maalala Mo Kaya and Minsan Minahal Kita. In Got 2 Believe, Claudine plays wedding coordinator Toni, a lady who believes in true love. At 25, she is considered an old maid by her married sisters, aunts and friends. Always the bride’s maid, never the bride, Toni has yet to find Mr. Right. Rico, on the other hand is Lorenz, a boy who doesn’t believe in happy endings. He is the wedding photographer who always catches Toni in her distinctly – expressive but embarrassing moments.

Claudine and Rico are image models of Particles and Molecules, respectively. Particles is a casual trendy clothes line for girls while Molecules is a sporty line of apparel for men. Rico’s wholesome image has caught the attention of the apparel’s executives who invited him to be their endorser. He is now on his second year as their image model. Meanwhile, Claudine as the Particles girls is now on her fourth year.

Particles and Molecules are available in all department stores and are reasonably priced.