Abby on rekindled romance with Jomari: ‘This is it for me!’

MANILA, Philippines — Abby Viduya didn’t expect to reconnect and rekindle her romance with teenage sweetheart Jomari Yllana.

“We were already happy to be in each other’s lives as friends. We didn’t expect it but since this happened, it has been so good so far,” the actress recently told The STAR in an exclusive phone interview.

Abby recalled that she and the actor, both 45 now, became each other’s first romantic relationship at the age of 15. “He was my first love, first boyfriend, first kiss, first of everything.”

They were a couple for less than a year after working together in the movie Gwapings, the launching movie of Jomari with the ‘90s boy group Gwapings. Abby, who later on became the sexy star with the screen name Priscilla Almeda, was introduced in the same movie.

They broke up mainly because they were too young. “Of course, we went our separate ways, we led our own lives and had children of our own.”

In the early 2000s, Abby suddenly quit showbiz to return to Canada where she grew up. “Then, there was a time na di naman constant, but may communication kami (with Jomari). This was, I think, in 2015, and every now and then, we would kumusta each other.

“And then, it just so happened there came a time na we were both single and ayun, nag-start dun. I was still in Canada at that time. Kwento-kwentuhan kami and then we decided na when I’d come back here, kita kami and yun. We just hit it off. It’s like picking up where we left off.”

After coming back to the Philippines late 2019, she could say that everything just fell into place with Jomari. “When I came back, it just made sense na at a certain age di na kailangan ng ligawan, di ba? When I came back here, I was 43, he was also 43,” she shared.

“Nung bata kami, magkasundo na magkasundo kami… How we were when we were young, ganun pa rin eh, but on a different level. I mean, makulit pa rin kami to each other, but now it’s just different because we’re both mature na, marami kaming pinagdaanan pareho sa buhay. We make it a point na walang bad vibes sa relationship. But, of course, that can’t be avoided but we handle things together, which is really nice.”

She said another nice thing about their relationship is how Jomari makes her feel secure. “All of my doubts and insecurities, and when I’m feeling down, si Jom has a way of making me feel so happy and secure.”

The pandemic lockdowns also “opened up our eyes to each other.”

Abby and Jomari Yllana recently celebrated their second anniversary as a couple.

“It was stressful, especially the first months, kasi hindi makalabas. But we made the most out of it. We cook for each other, I love to cook, Jom cooks dishes for me, too, yung mga recipes ng mom niya. There was a time, nakakatakot lumabas, di ba? What we would do was just drive around. Happiness na yung makita ang buildings in Makati,” she said, explaining that when she arrived here in October 2019 “sabak na kaagad ako sa work for three months” for FPJ’s Ang Probinsyano so she never got to see what’s new in Metro Manila.

The pandemic proved extra challenging when she had a gallbladder removal surgery early this year. “Pero lucky ako because I had Jom taking care of me. Basta kami, we’re always together. He really takes care of me.”

They marked their second anniversary as a couple last Oct. 11. Abby vowed to support Jomari on the campaign trail for his third and last term as Parañaque City councilor. Jomari has been calling Abby his “lucky charm” and posting their photos together with the hashtag #firstandlast.

She hopes the same. “Hopefully, this is it. I think naman, this is really it for me.”

Meanwhile, Abby, whose career is co-managed by veteran showbiz scribe Nestor Cuartero and Viva Artists Agency, has embraced her acting comeback. She just finished the lock-in taping for the 2022 GMA series, Lolong. She’s also starring in a still-untitled Vivamax film.

When asked why at the height of her career two decades ago she left just like that, Abby disclosed, “I think at that time, I could use the word, it was too toxic. Schedules were hectic and I just wanted to live a normal life where you could go out and just be you. You know, not under the limelight?

“It was different back then, the years 2000, 2001. At that time, I was doing sexy movies, although there were plans to shift me to dramatic roles na. But I shot a movie in New York (Lav Diaz’s Batang West Side) and it was such a nice feeling to be able to go out without anyone recognizing me.”

Her last film before dropping out of the public eye was Syota ng Bayan with Eddie Garcia and Tonton Gutierrez. “No regrets. Maybe, my only regret is how I handled turning back. Kasi at that time, if I decided to do something, I’ll just do it without thinking of the consequences of the work that I left behind. During that time, marami akong nabitin na projects and I just decided all of a sudden, ‘That’s it, ayoko na, I wanna go.’ So, yeah, my only regret was how I handled that.”

Going home to Canada was also partly due to her desire to get to know her biological mom and siblings. She learned she was adopted as a baby when she was 16.

“That time was a really dark time for me,” Abby shared. “Cast all of that, I got to meet my biological family in Canada, too. Di ba, I was raised in Vancouver? It turned out that my biological mother moved to Edmonton to raise a new family.

“When I looked for them, nahanap ko naman yung mom ko. My biological father naman was here in the Philippines, whom I had known. But my biological mom, that’s the time I got to know her and my siblings from her. I became close to them… even my lola there, my aunt and uncle. There was a time, when I found out that I was adopted, galit ako sa mundo. And then, for me, to be able to heal from that, I had to forgive and let go. That’s what I did.”

She took up vocational courses and ended up doing accounting and administrative work in Canada. “Sometimes, I’d miss showbiz, I’d miss my friends here because I was away from showbiz for 16 years. I told myself, OK, I left that life behind, there’s no going back, right? But of course, when there’s something to come back to, it’s different. When your heart gets called to a different direction at a certain age, you follow it eh. You need to live your life… for yourself, and no regrets, di ba?”

Meanwhile, The STAR asked Abby for her thoughts on what she has also observed as the resurgence of sexy films. During her heyday as Priscilla Almeda, she felt it was more “taboo” and a tougher time to be in, as she recalled indecent proposals and rude comments said to her in public. She believes people are more open now.

Abby said of the new gen of sexy stars: “They shouldn’t think bad about what they’re doing. Everything that’s given to them, it’s just a role, it’s not who they really are. That’s what I’ve been trying to say in the past. Di ba kasi from sweet roles, naging sexy roles? Iba kasi in the Philippines, if they say sexy, sexy star, ganun na ang dating. But that’s not who they are eh. They’re just portraying a role, they’re portraying an image. They should own up to it. I mean, if they’re classified as a sexy star now, it’s OK. Kasi sexy talaga sila. There comes a time, mawawala din (laughs). They’re young and sexy. They should enjoy this stage in their lives.”