The truth about Gretchen and Tonyboy

Have Gretchen Barretto and Tonyboy Cojuangco broken up? Or, if they haven’t yet, is it true that there are irreparable cracks in their relationship that might lead to a split-up? Is the couple going through the so-called "seven-year itch"?

Along with the speculation that Gretchen and Tonyboy might finally – finally! – formalize their relationship by getting married, the rumor about the break-up is a persistently recurring one, spreading again before Christmas and gaining momentum up to this minute.

Now, what really is the truth – the whole truth and nothing but – about Gretchen and Tonyboy?

Yesterday afternoon, Gretchen was on the line and I asked her bluntly what the real score is and she very gladly – and willingly! – talked about the pesky rumor and many other things besides.

"I guess it started when news came out that I was seen daw in Channel 7 looking for a job late last year," said Gretchen. "Unang-una, I wasn’t in Channel 7 before Christmas or earlier last year. The last time I was there was two years ago when I guested on Dina (Bonnevie’s) show, Ms. D! Why would I look for a job when Tony is taking care of me?"

But before Christmas, according to Gretchen, she met with Eric Quizon (before he flew to the States to spend Christmas with his mom) for a possible TV special (intended for telecast on Channel 7) to mark her 32nd birthday next month.

"The three of us met – Eric, Tony and I. We were just chatting. Eric asked me, ‘Hey, what do you plan to do ba?’ I said, ‘Let’s make gulat everybody and come up with a TV special, a telesine. ‘I’ll be the star and the producer,’ I told Eric, and ‘you be the director.’ That was our plan."

Word must have gotten around until it evolved into a bigger, nastier tsismis.

"I went daw to Channel 7 secretly to visit an actor," added Gretchen, referring to Bong Revilla (topbiller of the Channel 7 sitcom Idol Ko si Kap) who was romantically linked to Gretchen before she met Tonyboy. "Diyos ko, how ridiculous! Look, I have eight bodyguards. You think I’d be foolish to do it? Kung pumunta ako doon to visit somebody, e, di ini-radio na kaagad ’yon. Hello! Even if I didn’t have bodyguards, why would I do it? Why would I ever think of it? Why would I do that? Okey naman ang buhay ko."

Told that the rumor about the break-up came not from showbiz sources, Gretchen surmised that she knew who and where it’s coming from.

"Alam ko who’s spreading the rumor. . . Well, life is so short for me to be making war with anybody. But I know of a group that wants Tony and I to break up, pero hindi nila kami kayang paghiwalayin. You know what, Tony and I just celebrated our eighth anniversary last Feb. 2; it was a three-day celebration. We didn’t want to hold a big party so what we did was split our friends into three groups and we treated them to separate dinners."

Didn’t she and Tony go through the "seven-year itch" thing?

With a laugh, Gretchen admitted, "Oh, of course, we did. But we survived it."

Last year, wild rumors linked Tonyboy to a sexy singer-actress separated from her singer-husband (who has since married a non-showbiz girl after his and the singer-actress’ marriage was annulled) but Gretchen never believed it. Because it wasn’t true, the wild rumor died a natural death.

"As I’ve been saying, there are some people trying very hard to destroy our relationship. But thank God, we’re still together. Kung minsan nga, I would wonder, ‘My God, how did Tony and I get this far?’ Kasi sa umpisa pa lang, people were saying na that we wouldn’t last five months together. Well, eight years na kami ni Tony. Sabi nila, ‘Naku, matagal na ang one year, maghihiwalay ’yan.’ Well, we’ve proven our detractors wrong."

Isn’t she, as per the rumors, as possessive and as jealous as she used to be?

"Oy, I’m not possessive or jealous; I’ve never been the possessive and jealous type. You know, our life is so simple. It’s so simple that you won’t believe it. It’s even more simple now (that Tonyboy has given up PLDT). We sleep at 8:30 p.m. together – Tony, Dominique and I – and we wake up at 6:30 a.m. I take Dominique to school and then go back home. I wait for Tony to leave for work. Then, I’m off to the gym where I work out until 1:30. And then I fetch my daughter from school at 2:15 p.m. and take her to her tutor and for her gymnastics, and we’re back home at 5 p.m. I’m comfortable with the routine; I’m happy and comfortable with it. It’s quiet, it’s peaceful. It’s not magulo. We hardly have any nightlife. Every now and then, during Dominique’s vacation from school, we go abroad. Simple lang ang buhay namin."

Doesn’t she miss showbiz?

"Of course, I do. That’s why nga Eric and I are planning that TV special. We’re not in the process of making adjustments sa schedule ko. The shooting won’t take a week; it won’t change my life, it won’t disrupt my routine."

Yes, said Gretchen, she always tells Tonyboy about offers (TV, movies or commercials, including the latest for Pantene) coming her way. But knowing that Tonyboy won’t let her, she has stopped mentioning about a showbiz "comeback." They have talked about it already.

"Tony and I have just one goal – to hold on to this relationship and to make it as peaceful as possible. We know that the moment I go back to showbiz, we won’t be spared by the tsismis and intrigues. Commercials, okey lang. In fact, Dominique and I have a standing offer to do a commercial. Kaya lang, Dominique has just lost her two front teeth so we’re waiting for them to grow back."

Do Tony and she ever fight?

"Oh, yes, we do. But not these days, not like before. Tony is a peaceful person; he never picks a fight. He’s always the one who says ‘Sorry’ even if I’m the one at fault. Ayaw niya ng gulo. How do we make up? No, Tony doesn’t make any ‘peace offering,’ like gifts, ganoon. Material things have never been an issue between us. Tony knows that I can’t be bought."

The crucial question: What about the (much-delayed, oft-postponed) wedding?

"Ay naku, I’d love to answer that question. If we get married," she started, jokingly, "our life will be too perfect." Seriously now, "At this point, only God can tell when that will ever happen. There was a time when we were already in the planning stage but things didn’t go right. When that time happens, I want to get married for the right reasons."

There might be some pre-nuptial agreement, who knows? (Gretchen has properties of her own.)

"It’s okay. No problem. I’d marry Tony for love, not for anything else. Tony has told and reassured me that we’d get married someday and I’m waiting for that someday."