What Angel would do ... if cheated on!

MANILA, Philippines - Angel Locsin has no marriage experience to speak of, but she can somehow relate to her character, the betrayed wife Monica, on the ABS-CBN primetime soap The Legal Wife.

In last week’s intense episodes, Angel’s character finally caught her husband Adrian (played by Jericho Rosales) red-handed fooling around with her bestfriend Nicole (Maja Salvador), which led to a heart-rending breakdown car scene and explosive confrontation with the other woman (the continuation of which to air tonight). Monica is now on a warpath, and in a teaser, warns a guilt-ridden Adrian that (the war) isn’t over until she declares it’s over.

Asked if she’d do what her onscreen alter-ego is doing in dealing with such a situation, Angel told The STAR that she’s not the confrontational type. “Kung ako si Monica, siguro marami ng na wipe-out na babae. But I’m not like that. Maybe, I would even befriend the girl. My issue would really be with the guy. Siguro, pag may nasabi nalang yung babae at humirit ng kung anong di maganda, saka ako mag-re-react,” she said. “Then, I’ll walk away. I don’t want to give it my time. But with the guy, I’ll interrogate him, I’ll ask him why, because it really is painful to be cheated on.”

Angel admitted that she had her share of experiences being cheated on and lied to. There was one scene in The Legal Wife, wherein her character checked the husband’s cellphone and found a suspiciously cleaned-up call log, that gave her a flashback.

According to Angel, there are other telltale signs of a partner being unfaithful as shown in the teleserye, like when the husband brings his phone to the bathroom while he’s having a bath although “we’re not trying to generalize because they might be simply listening to music or playing games.” Or, she added, when the husband moves away when answering a call or acts uncharacteristically too sweet because he could be overcompensating for something. So, the series is a wake-up call for cheating men to change strategy, Angel joked, because they’re too predictable already.  

Kidding aside, Angel said that cheating is a dealbreaker for her, and she’s had breakups caused by it. But she’s also the type of person who first tries to make sense of things when painful things happen. She said, “Ang dami kong naging relasyon na naghiwalay dahil sa cheating. People say that very natural kasi sa lalake talaga ang pangloloko so kailangan mong intindihin... parang kailangan mo rin isipin, saan ka nagkulang, di lang kung ano yung (kulang sa) part ng lalake. Baka kasi di mo nabibigay yung part mo, di ba?

“But I’m not saying what they’re doing is right because cheating is cheating and you’re already hurting another person. Yes, you can deal with it by breaking up with that person rather than staying on and looking stupid. But then, if you really love that person, you’ll have to think hard if you can give him another chance, especially if you’re married to that person.”

She herself had given a relationship (no specifics though) another shot but “sobrang bihira talaga. And it doesn’t mean that just because you’re given a chance, you can do it to me again. It doesn’t mean I’ve forgetten everything. I’ll give you a chance because I love you, but hanggang diyan ka nalang.”

One thing is for sure, she believes a relationship would never last if and when someone else is hurting because of it. “No relationship will be successful if it’s hurting another person. I believe in that. And I don’t believe that kind of relationship is God-given. If you’re in a relationship, it’s important for it to have a good foundation and for you to have a strong relationship with God to be able to make good decisions and withstand temptations, which are plenty in our line of work.”

Passionate reactions aside to The Legal Wife’s unfolding story, Angel stressed that the teleserye is not trying to pass judgment on anyone. Recalling how she initially had doubts about accepting the project, thinking it could be another mistress story, which she feels has been told and retold many times already, Angel said doing it has been worth it.

All angles, she insisted, are explored, especially that of the title character, the aggrieved woman — how she will carry on and how she will come out of it. “We’re not passing judgment on anyone here, but we hope it will give inspiration to people going through the same experience.”

Meanwhile, in contrast to the personal woes of Angel’s character, the actress appears happier than ever over her rekindled romance with Luis Manzano, as documented by their social media accounts, which recently showed their sweet birthday surprises for each other, both being April-born. Angel, who turned 29 last April 23, is keeping mum on what Luis gifted her, but Angel’s grand gesture for Luis, who’s now 33, included a private concert of Side A, his favorite band.

Luis had said in interviews that he and Angel are having casual talks about settling down.

A laughing Angel explained, “Iba naman kasi love story namin. Come to think of it, our relationship has been seven years in the making. We were separated for four years, and we didn’t talk to each other for years. Yung sa amin mas malalim yung relationship. If it comes to that (marriage), we’re not going to be surprised. Kasi parang pakiramdam namin para na rin kami sa isa’t isa talaga. Gusto kong sabihin yun kasi para sa akin, pakiramdam ko, siya naman talaga. As for the date, I can’t say when but I’m hoping this is it kasi iba yung happiness ko talaga.”