In an interview with Metro Style Magazine, the 28-year-old beauty, Kryz Uy, is quick to poke fun at their relationship, but her boyfriend is just as ready to fire back with his memories of how they met.
Kryz jokes, “We didn’t like each other at first, and I didn’t like him.”
Slater quips, “And I thought she was maarte (dramatic/finicky).”
After a few more moments of lighthearted back and forth, the engaged pair settles down, their fingers lacing together and their hands resting on Slater’s lap in a display of mutual, profound understanding. The joking and teasing mask an unrestrained affection, the kind of bond necessary to lay the groundwork for a happy marriage. They open up about the pivotal occasions that led to their relationship, revealing that despite knowing each other for some time and having many mutual acquaintances, Kryz and Slater never felt romantic interest toward one another.
While Slater had his sights set on Manila, where he entered and won Pinoy Big Brother and launched his career as a Kapamilya artist, Kryz was also committed to a long-term relationship. Even after Kryz and her ex-boyfriend broke up and moved on, she never considered dating Slater since she thought he would never amount to anything more than a passing fancy. She would never like the limelight and the lifestyle of a celebrity.
However, this was only Kryz’s version of events; Slater had different ideas. The more time they spent together, and the more he appreciated Kryz’s company, his feelings for her grew. Kryz’s feelings for Slater evolved and deepened as she got to know him better over her single years. And with that, the pursuit was on.
Slater told Kryz what he wanted to do with him. Even though she had been open to them initially, she now felt herself withdrawing. His devotion and care for her were unparalleled, but he had a few flaws that stemmed from his obsession with becoming famous. “One day, I woke up and texted him this long message saying ‘Ayaw ko an (I give up). I can’t deal with this right now.’ And he wouldn’t back off!” Kryz reminisces.
“I was like, ‘Just take it one day at a time, and just slowly.’ I just kept seeing him, and he kept proving my initial judgment of him wrong. Then I met his family, the best people in the world. When we first started dating, I kept waiting for something to go wrong… It [was] like [trying to find] a problem because there was no problem!” she continues with a smile.
It would appear that Kryz was overreacting to nothing. Not only did Slater prove to be honest and committed, but he was also a great cultural fit with her Filipino-Chinese and Cebuano background. (It certainly helped that Slater finally gave up his stardom for a full-time career as an engineer and entrepreneur, occupations that his future wife was considerably more receptive to.)
Kryz says, her voice full of tender nostalgia, “Slater [was] nice. The very first time he had supper with my family, he unconsciously referred to my sister as “ate” in Chinese. Because they all attended the same high school, he hit it off immediately with my brother and brother-in-law. The two shared the same language and sense of humor, so whenever he joined us for a family meal, I would think, “P’wede! (can be)” My parents came around in the end. What ensued was the kind of fairytale romance most people can only imagine. Friends and family became enthusiastic supporters of the couple’s union, and opportunities presented by their respective cultural and religious traditions strengthened the couple’s bond.
Kryz eventually came to respect his honesty and modesty (“He does not care about 90% of the things the world cares about. How he dresses, what to eat, what you’re wearing, all these material things, he does not care. He wants to be chill and do his own thing,” she says). Slater’s favorite qualities in his girlfriend are her autonomy and the profound faith she places in him.
And so, in February 2018, after three years of growing, loving, and experiencing life together, Kryz and Slater decided to take the next step and get engaged. This was the logical next step for a relationship that had developed so effortlessly. Slater proposed to Kryz on the ski slopes of Niseko, Japan, drawing inspiration from their shared passion for travel; she gave him the most resounding “yes” of her life.
Kryz’s ting hun, bachelorette party, was held in Las Vegas; the groom’s stag party was in Bali, and the couple’s spectacular prenup shot was filmed in New Zealand.
After some reflection, Kryz realizes that she and Slater never had the exciting, unpredictable connection she had anticipated. No major disagreements or disputes went on for a long time that could have caused them to question their relationship. Instead, they had a bright and sunny future ahead of them, one in which they shared common beliefs, respected one another, and looked forward to spending the rest of their lives together as husband and wife, and now have two beautiful sons.
