WATCH: Janna Tee And Brent Javier Talk About Their Relationship, Engagement, And Wedding Plans

It was a doubly special day for couple Janna Tee and Brent Javier—it was May 10, Mother’s Day of this year, and it served as a great disguise for the wedding proposal he’d been hoping to do. “It was nothing like Brent planned originally,” the soon-to-be Mrs. Javier tells Metro.Style. The pandemic may have affected and changed some of their plans, but for these lovebirds, one thing stays constant: their love for each other.

With COVID-19 around, it may not have been an ideal time to propose, but Brent had always thought this trip in Ontario, Canada was going to be life-changing for him and Janna. “In my perspective, this was always going to be the trip where I [would] propose to her,” Brent explains. The proposal, set in a penthouse suite in his tita's condo building, gathered a few of their loved ones to celebrate with the couple on such a special day. It was the surprise of Janna’s life—one that she had been imagining, but didn’t quite see coming at this time.

“I [would] tell him, ‘If you’re ever gonna propose, I don’t want anyone other than us to be there because I don’t like attention.’ I never liked attention on me,” she recalls, laughing. But the Mother’s Day plan turned out for the best when it came to taking Janna by surprise—the unsuspecting Janna enters the hall only to be stunned with the sight of the “JB” balloons, their initials, hanging by a corner. The next thing she knew, Brent’s sister was nudging her to walk towards the center of the room, and there, a few moments later, the love of her life was down on one knee, asking her one of the most important questions she’s ever had to answer.

Although it took her a while to respond because she was in utter shock, of course, she said yes.

A modern love story

Janna and Brent’s love story dates back to about eight years ago. Both of them were part of a workshop with acting coach, Beverly Vergel, during their modeling days. Janna, who’s a self-confessed neat-freak, didn’t really have a good first impression of Brent. “He seemed like a very standoffish guy. He walked right in front of me and he stunk—he smelled like a walking ashtray. So that wasn’t good. He was good-looking, but no,” Janna laughs as she recalls the first time they met.

But first impressions aside, somewhere along the way, they just clicked. From finishing the workshop together to being a constant in each other’s Twitter DMs to finally agreeing to hangout together, it was an easy transition from strangers to lovers. Theirs is a modern love story. When they met, both were freshly out of their previous relationships, with no plans of committing to a next relationship just yet. But romance just bloomed unexpectedly in between—and that’s something that can’t really be stopped when it happens.

Brent describes the progression of their relationship as “very organic”—from starting a friendship with Janna to eventually casually, playfully wooing her. “It didn’t seem like he was making ligaw. There was really no vibe of that,” Janna points out.

“It was very fast that we don’t really have an anniversary. Because from the time that we met to when we realized we were together, there wasn’t that formal, ‘Hey, will you be my girlfriend?’ We just both knew it,” Brent adds.

Finding ‘The One’

When asked about how they knew they found “The One,” the reason easily comes out from Brent’s mouth. “She completes me,” he says. “Cliché, but I can’t help it if it’s true—she makes me be better, she makes me want to be better. And in a partner, she’s everything I’d ever want.”

For Janna, the feeling is mutual. “If you ask me on another day, I would probably have a different answer. Because as cheesy as it sounds, I love everything about Brent. Even his most annoying traits, I’ve grown to love and live with them,” she muses.

They admit that it’s not a flawless relationship—like other couples, they have a handful of arguments and misunderstandings from time to time. But for them, balance and compromise keep their relationship strong and steady. With love in the middle of it all, they are able to work things out just fine.

“You don’t have to win all the time. That’s something that everyone should know,” Brent offers when asked about the secret to maintaining a relationship. “The way we see this relationship, it’s not something that is ever going to expire. This is a partnership for us. A love that is going to last until the end. And that’s the goal.”

Wedding bells ringing

It’s been five months since their engagement, but the pandemic doesn’t show signs of leaving the world alone soon yet. The couple has grand plans for their wedding, so they prefer to take their time in preparing for their big day.

After all, this is a process Janna and Brent wish to enjoy to the fullest together. They envision an intimate destination wedding somewhere in Europe or the US, followed by a bigger reception at a beach here in the Philippines.

Indeed, love knows no time and space—even in the darkest times, love shines through. And Janna and Brent, who have decided to start their road to forever during this time, are a testament to this.

Watch Janna Tee and Brent Javier's full "Metro in Love" episode below:

Photos from @jannatee and @brentjavier