From 'kilig' Balesin trip to sweet birthday greeting: A timeline of Atom Araullo and Zen Hernandez's rumored relationship
Did Atom Araullo just go IG official with Zen Hernandez?
Rumors of a romance between the two broadcast journalists sparked anew after the GMA News anchor posted a sweet photo on Instagram to greet the TV Patrol broadcaster for her birthday.
"Happy 28th birthday po ✨," Atom wrote on his personal Instagram account.
Fellow TV broadcasters Pinky Webb, Karen Davila, Pia Arcangel, Gretchen Fullido, and broadcaster-turned-pilot Steve Dailisan reacted to the post, with some of them noting how cute the supposed couple look.
"Awwwww ❤️❤️❤️❤️ Happy Birthday @zenhernandez! Cute nyo!" said Karen.
"Happiest birthday @zenhernandez ❤️ ayie papi!" added Steve.
This wasn't the first instance the two reporters were linked together. Social media users have shipped the pair, sharing the "kilig" they felt whenever they saw the two together. So how did the Atom-Zen ship begin?
'A to Z'
Atom and Zen both worked with ABS-CBN as news anchors, with the earlier joining the network in 2005 and the latter in 2006. They've done segments together while working on Umagang Kay Ganda and even performed a dance number together for the morning show's sixth anniversary.
When she was asked by the Philippine STAR if she was dating Atom in 2018, Zen said he was just a "long-time friend."
In 2019, they shared goofy photos of each other for their birthdays, which are both in October. Atom posted first on the 4th, with Zen later uploading her greeting on the 19th which she captioned as her "sweet revenge."
Fans started speculating that there was something more between the two in June 2021 when they were spotted in Balesin Island together. CNN Philippines anchor Pinky Webb posted a photo with Atom and Zen when they bumped into one another while at the resort.
"It was such a nice surprise!! Syempre, kinilig ako 🥰 Kasi, alam mo na... it’s always so nice to see former officemates diba? 😜 Family is love 💙 Kayo talaga…" Pinky captioned.
Netizens felt the "kilig" and shipped the two anchors. They also started calling their ship "A to Z," a play on the two anchor's initials.
"Kilig naman!! Bagay sila sana magkatuluyan," wrote one netizen.
“Atom and Zen! Panis mga Lizquen, Jadine, at Kathniel," commented another.
"Father's day ngayon pero feeling ko [Valentine's]. Thank you for making me kilig," another user said.
A year later, another photo caught the eye of eagle-eyed fans as Zen shared one where she and Atom were seated next to each other while having lunch with friends from the media industry.
Fast forward to October 2022, Atom shared sweet photobooth pictures with Zen for her birthday. As much as it's cute to see the two together, they have yet to set the real score. One thing's for sure, fans will be looking forward to whether Zen will post something on Atom's birthday, too.