Bela Padilla has confirmed her breakup with tech CEO Martin Tan, saying they have decided to move forward separately after several months together.
The actress shared the news on September 27, describing it as a “quick life update."
Before revealing their breakup, Bela looked back on how people had welcomed her relationship and celebrated whenever she found love.
“I feel extremely lucky that every time love finds me, you all seem genuinely happy for me. Maybe it’s because I share what I can, and you’ve somehow come to know me as your friend who falls in love, gets heartbroken, and who you sometimes want to hug, scold, or grab a beer and cry with. 😂 Or maybe it’s because my movies have made us all believe in love a little bit again ❤️”
The actress accompanied her message with a photo and video of moments she shared with Martin, including one of them holding hands while walking and another showing them spending time together as they looked at an art piece.
“Martin and I have been dating for the past few months, and this was the first relationship where I was truly swept off my feet. ❤️ We share the same love for films, food markets, our work, and, most of all, genuinely being together,” she said.
The actress explained that she initially chose to keep the relationship private because it was the one where she felt "most like and unlike" herself.
She added: “I’m writing this because we all enjoyed the videos of us in the legazpi market. We all saw a new couple, a bit shy and awkward. But what you never got a glimpse of is us having the best and also hardest days for a couple of months now.”
While Bela did not go into detail about what led to their breakup, she said she ultimately made the decision for both of them to take separate paths.
“I’m deciding for both of us to move forward separately to save whatever we can of ourselves and how we see each other❤️,” she expressed. “I think sometimes, loving someone also means knowing when to let go, before you lose the good things you saw in each other. ❤️”
Bela also had nothing but kind words for Martin as she closed this chapter of their relationship.
“Martin is one of the most fun, smartest, and definitely most charming people I’ve ever met. I will always be grateful for what we shared, and I genuinely wish him nothing but the best. ❤️”
She then thanked those who had supported their relationship from afar while respecting their privacy whenever they were spotted together.
"PS: I know I never really posted or shared anything, but if I could immortalize one night here on my account, it would be this lovely, ordinary one,” she ended.
Following Bela’s announcement, several netizens sent messages of support, expressing their hopes that both she and Martin would find happiness as they begin their separate journeys.
“Ang sakit nung thought na kailangan mo ng bumitaw para ma-save mo yung natitirang dahilan kung bakit mo siya minahal.. Hayyyy! Sending hugs, Bela! mahal ka na namin palagi! 🤗🫶🏻,” one wrote.
“The love ended, but not the beauty it left behind. Some stories are meant to end softly, like sunsets—beautiful, even as they disappear. Hugs, Belaaaaa!” another added.
Bela and Martin first surprised netizens in early September when they confirmed that they were in a relationship. At the time, they said that they had met through a mutual friend andshared some of the things they appreciated about each other.
READ: Bela Padilla and Martin Tan confirm relationship, reveal how they met
Martin also revealed then that they had already been together for eight months.