Richard Gutierrez and Sarah Lahbati, Xian Lim and Kim Chiu, and Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo are central figures of social media attention and speculations. Thanks to observant eyes, deduction power and sweeping conclusions of netizens and impeachable sources, these three couples allegedly have said goodbyes to their romantic love and decade-old relationships.

Richard Gutierrez x Sarah Lahbati

The power couple that was. Currently, this how Richard Gutierrez and Sarah Lahbati are being described. Netizens connected dots — all the signs of the two not being a couple — and how? Photos in which either the husband or wife is visibly absent; cryptic posts galore courtesy of Lahbati in her Instagram page; the non-appearance of the French-Moroccan-Filipina starlet in the ball organized by her husband’s twin and a Gutierrez family event.

Adding more fuel to speculations about their separate lives include Lahbati recently sporting a short bob. When a showbiz woman personality cuts off her crowning glory, it’s a screaming indicator that indeed the relationship boat is rocking.

As of press time, the Gutierrez alpha male is in vacation with his sons in Boracay. As per an impeachable source, Richard will move to a condominium soon. The un-couple gets separate quality time with their two boys.

As to the whys of the alleged separation, nothing public has been declared. When Richard gets the negative flak because of this doomed domestic state, spilling the beans and tea, in defense of Chard, are trouble free for the more loquacious family members.

Xian Lim x Kim Chiu

Though Kim Chiu already issued a denial during the Linlang thanksgiving press conference, that all is well with regard to the 12-year-old relation she shares with Xian Lim, the statement the actress gave was weighed and found wanting.

Lim’s four-paragraph official statement in his Instagram did not help at all to quash the perceptions and rumors that their relationship had gone kaput.

The longish aria had no crystal statement about their relationship status. What he wrote strengthened the subtext that shouted break-up realness.

The latest development to this un-coupling: Vice Ganda’s “the best manner of breaking up with someone” topic in It’s Showtime alluded to the KimXi split. Ganda’s story of a “staff” whose breakup was via a call that led to a personal meeting in a place where one of the pairs is in residence, are considered by many as pieces of the separation jigsaw puzzle.

And the lead star of the soon-to-arrive Filipino adaptation of What’s Wrong With Secretary Kim chirped a different and more loaded answer when asked about her relationship status, an evasive, “Sa amin na lang iyon” rejoinder!

Daniel Padilla x Kathryn Bernardo

The superstar couple of this generation, Daniel Padilla and Kathryn Bernardo are suspected and perceived as the current subjects of blind items.

Since Bernardo became A Very Good Girl,  the rumor about separation began and whirled like a furious top. The denial of Padilla’s mother Karla Estrada was not accepted as a truthful declaration simply because, for the first time, since KathNiel admitted their romance, Bernardo’s non-attendance in Karla’s natal day shindig was the loudest of grumbles!

Also, Kathryn unfollowed Andrea Brillantes on Instagram adding more fuel to the separation conflagration. Observers deduced that the box office star believed the scarlet woman is indeed Blythe the Brilliant. The Senior High lead star unfollowed Bernardo as well. 

As to who Padilla will unfollow first, that is the exclamation to the separation. The man of the moment employs the “silence is my best defense” tactic with an assurance addressed to KathNiel fandoms: “Mahal namin kayo, sagad!”

Breaking-up lessons

With the majority who invested time and love on these couples facing troubled times, to hope that the rough patches they have will be resolved swiftly and privately, is valid, and it is not a childish thing to hope for the best.

The learnings from all these: That all kinds of relationships can inflict pain. Even the most beautiful of roses possesses thorns.

Honesty is still the best policy in all relationships. Cryptic posts are for the lame. Longish arias make you guiltier. A simple “Yes, we are still together,” or “Yes, the relationship had ended” will more than suffice. And lastly, if you do not want the speculations and perceptions, then keep your relationship private. Do not share every bit and morsel of it on social media. 

Breakups are the messiest and no one, even stars like them, is not spared from all the drama and hurt.