12-year-old Barbie Forteza can only welcome suitors when she turns 14.

Unlike most of this generation’s showbiz hopefuls who have entered showbiz via reality TV shows or talent searches, 12-year-old newbie Barbie Forteza only appeared in a milk commercial and in an episode of “Shake, Rattle and Roll 9” before she got her big break.

Last year, Barbie was tapped to play the young Jodi, the heroine of the hit GMA -7 adaptation of the Koreanovela, “Stairway to Heaven." She made such a big splash in her TV debut that she was already doing two movies – the Metro Manila Film Fest entries “Ang Darling Kong Aswang” and “Wapakman” – even before the teleserye concluded on Dec. 11.

Around that time, Barbie also starred in the four-part Christmas episode of Channel 7’s Sunday daytime series, “Dear Friend” along with her “Stairway” co-stars Joshua Dionisio and Jhake Vargas.

Now, the trio is headlining their very own series on primetime, “First Time,” which tackles teenage concerns and issues particularly the romantic kind.

“Excited po na sobrang saya na sobrang kaba,” said Barbie during the recent press con for “First Time.” “Pero sa set hindi po namin nararamdaman ang pagod, ang hirap. Talagang ang kulit-kulit namin. Si Direk [Andoy Ranoy] ‘pag nagpatawa na, wala na ang antok namin.”

When asked if they feel the pressure of competing with the rival show, “Tanging Yaman,” Barbie shook her head. “Kasi para sa akin, ang importante po [ay] maipakita namin sa mga viewers ang kaya namin [at] ‘yung mapasaya namin [ang viewers] sa pamamagitan ng pag-arte namin,” she explained.

At the mention of first love, though, she became her tweener self again and started giggling. “Crush p’wede po pero boyfriend hindi muna po,” she said, citing Kapuso heartthrobs Dennis Trillo and Richard Gutierrez as her crushes.

Her love team partner, Joshua, is the one closest to her. “Akala ko po tahimik s’ya. ‘Yun pala sobrang daldal! Sobrang kulit pero mabait. Sobra po kaming close. Kami ang gumigising sa isa’t-isa. ‘Pag nakakatulog s’ya [sa set], ginigising ko s’ya. ‘Pag ako naman ang nakakatulog, ginigising n’ya ko,” the fast-rising young star said of her equally popular leading man.

She added that she appreciates Joshua’s caring ways, like the time when it became dangerous for them to shoot a scene on a beach. “Sinabi n’ya po na, ‘Bumaba ka muna para kung may madisgrasya, ako lang,” she recalled.

Barbie also finds Joshua very sweet but, she insisted that he’s not courting her yet. She emphasized that she could only welcome suitors when she turns 14.