Maine Mendoza has broken her silence on the buzz surrounding her viral revelation that she once fell in love with her former love team partner and Kalyeserye co-star, Alden Richards.

In a lengthy post on X, Maine admitted she was surprised by the noise her podcast statement created.

“I didn’t think the part about my story with Alden would spark controversy, let alone be a big deal, considering that everyone had already moved on from Kalyeserye and AlDub,” she wrote.

The actress-host clarified that her intention was simply to look back on the AlDub phenomenon nearly a decade later and to “share behind-the-scenes stories—the untold ones—and that can include personal experiences, narratives, and sentiments.”

Maine also defended her choice to mention Alden in the conversation, saying he was too important to leave out.

“There is no reason to exclude him from the story/our stories because he was a big part of Kalyeserye. It would have felt strange to leave him out. I was asked, I answered, and I shared a short anecdote,” she said.

Addressing online bashing, Maine questioned why telling her truth continues to trigger hostility. “Why pit a woman against a man, as if there’s a competition for who’s more successful? In the grand scheme of things, what is really there to prove?”

She assured fans that all is well between her, Alden, and their dabarkads, urging critics to move forward. “Life is short… don’t let your only contribution in this life be negativity online. Ang dami pang pwedeng gawin sa buhay.”

To end, Maine appealed: “Please don’t throw hate on Alden. Don’t read much into it.”