MANILA — (UPDATED) “Magka-ibigan na ngayo’y matalik na magkaibigan.”

These were Juan Karlos Labajo’s words as he announced his separation from his long-time girlfriend, model-turned-beauty queen Maureen Wroblewitz, on Friday.

In a statement posted on Facebook, Labajo addressed his former girlfriend, writing, “Lagi mong tandaan na kahit pagbaliktarin mo man ang mundo, kahit saang lupalop man ng kalawakan, ikaw pa rin ang nag-iisa kong buwan.”

“Buwan” is the title of Juan Karlos’ breakout hit, which was released in 2018 and featured Wroblewitz as his love interest in the song’s music video.

Juan Karlos and Wroblewitz started dating as early as 2017.

Captioning his photo of a sweet moment with Wroblewitz on Friday, Juan Karlos said, “Maraming salamat, mahal kita, at hanggang sa muli.”

Around the same time, the Miss Universe Philippines 2021 runner-up hinted at the separation through an Instagram post. She shared an image with the quote, “Life is not happening to you; life is happening for you.”

In its caption, Wroblewitz wrote, “Some things come to an end and that’s okay. But now it’s time for us to grow on our own.”

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A post shared by Maureen Wroblewitz (@mauwrob)

Juan Karlos was among those who replied to Wroblewitz’s post, saying, “I am the luckiest person in the world to have spent the past years of my life with you and I wouldn’t choose anybody else to have [spent] those years with.”

The singer waxed sentimental about their growth both as a couple and as individuals, in an apparent indication of one of the reasons behind their split.

“You’ve taught me so much and I have learned, I am learning, and I will learn more. We are both so young and we have to enjoy ourselves. I want to see you succeed. I love seeing you achieve your dreams. You will. We will. Here’s to growth and love for ourselves. For there is no greater love than self-love,” he said.

Juan Karlos ended his comment in German — both he and Wroblewitz happen to be half-Filipino, half-German. He said, “Dankëschon, Ich liebe dich and auf wiedersehen,” which translates in English to, “Thank you, I love you, and goodbye.”