Are they, or aren't they?

For so long, people have been asking what the real score is between Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera. The long wait is over! In the YES! February 2010 issue, the two primetime stars of GMA-7 give an exclusive interview to talk about their special relationship.

Marian and Dingdong share a love story that started with an uneventful first meeting and went on to a highly successful team-up in Marimar, where they had a strictly professional relationship despite their onscreen chemistry.

"We would connect on the most important scene, and then after that, wala na," Dingdong recalls. "Siguro, wala lang sa tipo namin ang magpa-cute sa set."

Marian adds, "Hindi si Dingdong ang tipo na pa-cute, e. Hindi rin ako 'yong tipong pa-cute."

SLOW REVELATION. As the pair continued to work together, things changed, subtly at first. Dingdong realized that he had feelings for Marian while on a trip to New York together with two other friends.

"Nag-dinner kami. Wala lang. Saya-saya lang. We took some pictures and then, when we went home, na-realize ko lang," he says.

For Marian, the epiphany happened during one of their trips to Los Angeles. She tells YES!, "Do'n ko na-realize na love ko siya."

Today, that love is growing even stronger and sweeter as the days go by. "Pagmulat ng mata niya, ako ang una niyang tatawagan. Ako, pagmulat ng mata ko, siya ang una kong tatawagan to say, 'Good morning, I love you!'" Marian says.

She adds, "Hindi kami papayag na hindi kami magkita sa isang araw."

UNEXPECTED. The relationship works because, as Marian sees it, they started by getting to know each other's absolute worst first. Today, the worst and the best work in full complement.

"Aminin man namin o hindi, kung anong kahinaan ko, meron siya. At kung ano ang kulang sa akin, napupunan niya. Swak kami. Kaya balance kami. Hindi kami parehas, e," says Marian.

She gets a little emotional as she reveals, "Iyong last Christmas, meron siyang sinabi sa 'kin na hindi ko ine-expect na masasabi niya sa 'kin no'ng Christmas na 'yon."

Prodded to share the heartfelt words, Dingdong obliges and says, "More or less, it's 'Let's do this every year... As long as I live.'"

So, exactly what are they to each other? Find out by grabbing your copy of the February issue of YES!, available in newsstands and bookstores nationwide. An online version of YES! is available for international subscribers. Visit PEP.ph for more details.