For all the diehard Vampire Diaries fans out there, it's probably safe to say that when Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder started dating in real life, just as their on-screen characters were just about to fall in love, we all thought it was the best thing that happened since Damon first told Elena he loved her.
For a while, fans were able to bask in their relationship. They loved seeing the uber-fit Nina walk the red carpet with her co-star. It was basically like watching the real-life Damon and Elena love each other.
Then it was all tragically ripped from us. While we don't know exactly what happened to the seemingly happy couple, at least we still got to see our favorite on-screen couple thrive for a time.
But tensions on set became real when Somerhalder moved on and started his relationship with Nikki Reed.
Things Got Awkward After They Split But They Remained Friends
One of the suspected reasons for the pairs split in 2013 was that Dobrev was not ready to settle down, and was more career-oriented. So, after three years of dating, the pair called it quits but continued to be friends. Also, a surprising fact about Nina on TVD was that she also remained supremely professional with Ian on set. They even accepted a "Best Chemistry" award together at the People's Choice Awards shortly after breaking up.
During the filming of season five of TVD, Somerhalder confirmed that he was dating Reed. According to some rumors, Somerhalder brought Reed by the set and it made things very awkward for Dobrev, who's character was still in a relationship with Somerhalder's.
These rumors would be put to rest, however.
But that didn't stop fans from speculating that the drama between her and Somerhalder, especially when the announcement came that Nina would be leaving the show after Season Six.
Then There Was The Marriage Announcement
Sixth months after first dating Reed, Somerhalder announced that they were getting married. So, the next logical thing for fans to wonder was if Dobrev was going to be invited...
Would Dobrev want to go to her ex-flames wedding?
Would she think, 'That could be me?'
Those thoughts are what went through fans' minds at the time. But ultimately they couldn't be more wrong. Dobrev and Somerhalder were, and still, are extremely supportive of each other.
But while you can be happy for someone, it doesn't make it any less painful, and according to Hollywood Life, Dobrev was invited to the wedding but turned it down because of that very reason. "She was invited. She actually thought about going, but in the end, Nina decided it would just be too awkward," an insider said.
"She truly does love Ian with all of her heart, but watching him marry Nikki would have just been too painful," the source continued. "She’s now closed two doors in her life and just wants to move forward."
There Really Isn't Any Ill-Will
On the day the newlyweds tied the knot. Nina sent out this Tweet...
"Positivity. Love. Happiness. That is what I'm sending out into the Universe, may your day be filled with it..."
Obviously no one can know if the tweet was directed at Somerhalder, but our suspicions are that it was.
After the wedding, Dobrev told E! News, "When I heard about the wedding, I thought it was beautiful. They look happy and I am happy and so I don't see why there should be a problem with that. The drama is in the media, it's not with us. But of course, we're on a teen drama show, everyone's going to look for drama. If there's no drama, there's nothing to write about. I just ignore it."
All Of The Rumors And Drama Have Been Dispelled On Both Sides
Not only is Dobrev still friends with Somerhalder, but she's also actually really close with Reed.
Last year, on Watch What Happens Live, Dobrev talked about their friendship and said it isn't weird at all.
Dobrev even commented on the couple's child and said, "I think that they have a beautiful baby and they are happy and so am I. What's bad about that? I don't see any problem with that."
In 2017, the trio came together for a little friendly reunion and posted about it. Dobrev wrote on her post, "Can’t believe how time flies. Farewell dinner with team Somereed! So good catching up with these goofballs. All [love]."
Reed also posted about it and wrote a lengthy message about all the drama rumors. She wrote, "For the last few years we thought addressing any baseless rumors with silence was the best way. Besides, who wants to respond to made up stories about 'friends backstabbing friends', 'cheating exes', or 'cast members exiting shows' on low-brow websites like hollywoodlife that are just perpetuating trends that preceded us. Yuck. I now see that silence was taken as an opportunity to fill in the blanks with even more falsities, and juicer stories."
So, despite what some of the rumors have said over the years, they're apparently the complete opposite of the truth.
Who knows maybe Dobrev was just busy the day of the Somerhalder's wedding, but either way, there was one less vampire there...