After two years together, one of social media's brightest star couples is splitting up.
Chris Olsen and Ian Paget—known to fans through TikTok, Instagram and a joint YouTube channel—confirmed their split exclusively to E! News in separate statements.
"The past couple of weeks have been difficult for Chris and me, but ultimately, he's my best friend and always will be," Ian said. "While we're not boyfriends anymore, we're excited to explore our new relationship moving forward. We thank everyone for their continued love and support, in a way, this is just the beginning."
In his own statement Chris told E! News, "I'll always have so much love for Ian. We've been through an incredible amount together, and we'll always be connected in a beautiful way. While we're going to take some time apart and grow as individuals—this isn't the end of our time together, but a shift. I can't wait to keep cheering him on."
Chris officially confirmed the news with fans directly in a Jan. 7 TikTok video, saying, "Not an end, just a shift ! We love u forever."
In the debut video for their YouTube channel, the pair recalled becoming an official couple two months after meeting in July 2019. "I was trepidatious at jumping into this new thing with someone who was so willing—he was just so willing to love me and he didn't know me yet and so, that was beautiful," Ian said in the video. "You just say yes to that."
And less than four months ago the two celebrated their anniversary, commemorating the milestone on Instagram. "2 years of Chris & Ian," Chris wrote at the time. "Happy anniversary, Ian."
"2 years with my sweetheart. happy anniversary Christopher!" Ian echoed in his own post, both amassing thousands of likes.
However, in recent weeks, they began making red carpet appearances without each other and were noticeably missing from each other's Instagram posts. Eventually, some fans began to speculate about the possibility of a secret breakup.
"So chris olsen and ian paget have obviously split up," a Dec. 31 tweet read, "and i need them to tell me so i can deal with it."
Their latest TikTok confirmed things are good between them: "When you break up but are still best friends," it read.