

As of last night, the snap had been taken down, but not before it got screen-grabbed and shared all over the place. Instead, it came from the fashion photographer Mert Alas, who tagged The Weeknd in the comments. Selena didn’t post the salacious shot herself (that would be soooooooo basic). Yesterday, a photo popped up on Instagram featuring Gomez’ bare butt in a barely there thong. Who knew Abel and Sel were gonna unite And slay all the wayyyy? #SELENAGOMEZ #THEWEEKND #ABELENAĪ photo posted by ABELENA on at 4:48am PST In this case, both players are enjoying tremendous independent success ( Starboy is a Billboard record breaker, she has more Instagram followers than anyone on the planet), but you don’t need a degree in Brangelina to understand that the power of a power couple can be greater than the sum of its parts. Mutually beneficial faux celebrity relationships aren’t a new thing, but they do seem to be having a moment: #Hiddleswift, #DraLo, whatever’s going on between Donald and Melania. The verdict: Fake! The timing is just too perfect, and a buzzy relationship is good for business. Yesterday, The Weeknd released the video for “Party Monster,” which stars a Selena lookalike and includes the lyric, “Oh, she mine, oh girl, bump a line / Angelina, lips like Angelina / like Selena, ass shaped like Selena.” Clearly, he wants us to think that Selena is the woman to fill the triple-cactus-dreadlock-sized hole in his heart. Speaking of exes, Selena’s old flame Justin Bieber has yet to weigh in/lash out/buy an illegal exotic pet in response to the situation, but we’re waiting. The verdict: Real! A pissed ex is always reliable proof of a legit relationship. And while a celeb breakup isn’t notable, this is: following the TMZ photo dump, Bella pulled a Rihanna and unfollowed Selena on Instagram.

Two months ago, The Weeknd broke up with his longtime girlfriend, Bella Hadid, the model and younger sis of Gigi Hadid, a member of Taylor Swift’s inner squad. The verdict: Fake! We’re supposed to believe they have been “caught in the act,” and yet she’s posing and smizing like they’re at a magazine cover shoot. Look at the way Gomez appears to be vamping for an unseen third party (i.e., the camera).

At first glance, the pics suggest the type of early relationship lust wherein even dumpster fumes can’t kill the mood, but a closer inspection shows something more calculated could be afoot. (And if The Weeknd can’t feel his face when he’s with her, she’s certainly feeling it for him). In the 46 snaps that TMZ published, Gomez and Tesfaye are canoodling beside what appears to be a dumpster-proof that Selena truly can’t keep her hands to herself. A photo posted by Diana Danielle on at 8:08pm PST
