Yeng Constantino opened up about what happened between her and Ryan Bang and why their almost-romance never worked out.
During Day 2 of her Byaheng Bente: 20th Anniversary Concert, Yeng recalled how she once had a huge crush on Ryan and eventually found herself getting “seen-zoned.”
“Yung kay Ryan kasi ang nangyari sa’min sineen-zoned niya ako. Crush na crush kita non. Tapos ako yung nanglilibre sa kanya pang-date. Eh sobrang gusto ko siya. Pumunta ka lang sa restaurant, ako na bahala sa’yo kasi crush kita eh,” she revealed.
The pop-rock superstar also revealed that the unexpected revelation on an It’s Showtime episode years ago was completely unscripted and happened spontaneously.
“Tapos yung one time na ‘yun akala nila gimik ‘yon sa Showtime, na para bang gumagawa tayo ng chismisan para sa rating daw ganon. Hindi talaga. Sobrang random, parang hindi ko alam nangyari sa sarili ko bigla na lang ako nag-comment ‘Di ba, Ryan Bang?’ gumanon lang ako. Tapos si Mamsy (Vice) gumatong ‘Hay…’ gumanon si Meme. So ‘yon nga nabunyag na nga na na-seen zone mo ako,” she explained.
Yeng also expressed her gratitude to Ryan for finally giving her the context behind what happened between them.
“Pero sobrang thank you na nilinaw mo rin ang istorya natin kasi that gave me a context na di naman pala ako pangit, na nagustuhan mo pa rin pala ako but it was not the right time,” the singer-songwriter said.
She also assured Ryan that she would always be there to support him, celebrating his growth and success.
“Salamat pa rin, bro, sobra. I celebrate you, lahat ng business mo at kung gaano ka kagwapo ngayon. Siyempre pag kaibigan iaangat mo parang poon. Ryan, I love you, my friend,” Yeng expressed.
In a January 2022 episode of It’s Showtime, Ryan explained that he stopped courting Yeng because he initially thought she didn’t feel the same way about him.
“Kasi for the (past) 12 years, na akala ko wala akong pag-asa, akala ko ayaw mo sa akin. Kaya ako naduwag sa sarili ko. Kaya hindi tinutuloy yung, syempre, yung naramdaman ko sa'yo. Hindi ko napaninindigan yung naramdaman ko sa'yo kasi natakot din ako sa sarili ko. Kasi nung panahon na yun, yung akala ko maraming naliligaw sa'yo, eh,” Ryan admitted.
The noontime host also opened up about the “what ifs” surrounding his past with Yeng: “Kung hindi ako naduwag non, kung pinush ko yung naramdaman ko sa'yo noon, baka hanggang na yun, tayo pa rin. Di ba? Hindi natin alam eh.”
Ryan also admitted during the episode that, at the time, he felt he wasn’t good enough for Yeng.
“Kasi tuwing kumakain kami, siya nagbayad eh. Hindi ko kaya BGC, Mommy (Vice Ganda). So, gusto ko talaga maglibre. Tsaka ang dami niya fans. Tuwing punta ako concert mo, ang dami nagsigaw sa'yo. Pagkatapos ng concert mo, marami pa picture sa'yo pero hindi ako kilala ng mga tao noon eh. So, nahihiya ako sa sarili ko na hindi ako para sa'yo. Parang yun yung naramdaman ko. Kahit totoo naman yung naramdaman ko sa'yo at minahal naman talaga kita,” Ryan shared.
He also recalled their last conversation during that time.
“Naaalala ko pa yung huling text mo sa akin na ‘Ryan pwede ba kita’ ikaw nagsabi sa akin (kung) pwede ako mag-guest sa music video (mo). Um-oo naman ako, naghihintay lang ako. Tapos, yun pala, wala na. So, nahihiya rin ako sa sarili ko,” he said.
In the same episode, Yeng shared that she thought perhaps Ryan had simply grown tired of waiting for her.
“Parang ang na-feel ko nun is, siguro yung sobrang ano ko eh, yung parang galing ako sa conservative na family. Parang yung huwag ka pa-party sa labas, huwag kang gagawa ng mga ano. Pag gabi, huwag ka lalabas, gano'n. So parang siguro, parang feel ko, ay siguro napagod na si Ryan sa kakaantay,” Yeng said.