Jason is taking it easy

Jason Abalos may be playing a father and husband on the ABS-CBN adaptation of the hit Koreanovela Two Wives but he’s not about to take on the same role in real life just yet. Jason and his girlfriend, Pinoy Big Brother All In fourth placer Vickie Rushton, have decided to take things slowly.

Jason says he and Vickie have discussed tying the knot but they’ve come to the conclusion that neither of them are ready for it right now — even if it’s the season for celebrities to get engaged, married or have babies. For now, Jason wants Vickie to focus on her dreams and her own family. “Bata pa siya. She’s only 22,” he explains. “She still has a family to support and, besides, there are a lot of things she wants to do.”

Before Vickie joined Pinoy Big Brother All In, not many people were aware that she and Jason were together. When asked how he was able to keep their relationship low-key, Jason says, “Perhaps, people are not interested in us before she joined PBB. Dati pa naman ako nag-po-post sa Instagram, dati pa kami nag-uusap sa Twitter. Sinasabi naman niya na meron siyang boyfriend pero hindi niya sinasabi na ako nga yun. So I was surprised when people reacted, ‘Ay, siya pala yun?’”

Jason shares that he met Vickie during an out-of-town show he did in Bacolod four years ago. He saw Vickie in the crowd while singing and invited her to join him onstage. “I sang for her. Tapos ako pa yung nahiya sa kanya, nanginginig pa nga yung labi ko nun kasi ang ganda niya,” he laughs. Jason was dating someone else at that time so nothing more happened between him and Vickie then. Another year passed before Jason was able to take it to the next level — and even then, things progressed slowly.

“We met again in 2011 and we got to talk,” he reveals. “Whenever she was in Manila, I would visit her. But no courtship happened. Maybe, it took me six or seven months to realize that I liked her.”

But eventually, they became a couple. Their relationship was smooth for the most part, but Vickie’s time inside the blue-and-yellow house did put a strain on things. However, Jason and Vickie have already worked out their issues and that her becoming a Pinoy Big Brother All In housemate actually helped their relationship.

“Feeling ko nga mas okay kami ngayon, mas nagkakaintindihan, lahat ng bagay napag-uusapan ng mabuti,” he says. “Naging malaking bagay yung PBB sa aming dalawa dahil dun nakita ng mga tao kung paano kami sa isa’t isa. Sobrang proud ako sa kanya ngayon kasi nakikita ko yung transformation niya. Dati kasi mahinhin siya at hindi pala-kibo. Ngayon, nakiki-mingle na siya, nakikipag-usap na siya sa mga tao. Kaya feeling ko binigay talaga sa aming dalawa ng Diyos yung PBB.”

Since his relationship with Vickie is going well, Jason can focus on Two Wives. The show is rating very well, which he and his co-stars are very happy about. This is also Jason’s first time to be the solo male lead. In his last project Maria Mercedes, he was part of a love triangle featuring him, Jessy Mendiola and Jake Cuenca. In Two Wives, Jason has two women (played by Erich Gonzales and Kaye Abad) fighting over his affections.

He has become the talk of the town because of the show’s daring nature. Luckily, Jason says Vickie understands such scenes are part of his job and supports him — in much the same way that he’ll stand by her should she decide to join showbiz full-time. “Right now, she attends acting workshops. It’s up to her to decide what she wants to do. I’ll be around to support her.”

When he thinks about the success of Two Wives and his own rising status in the industry, Jason can hardly believe that he was given such a lucky break. In fact, he considers everything, including his smooth relationship with Vickie, a lucky break.

“Siyempre nakakatuwa,” he says. “Siguro noon hinahasa pa lang ako para sa ganitong project. With regards to the show’s ratings, we never expected the overwhelming support of televiewers. Para sa akin, ang hirap isipin na yung dating probinsiyano may ganitong career na. I never imagined myself to becoming a star, feeling ko nandiyan lang ako. I’ve just been  given the right break.”