We May Be on the Brink of a Kim and Pete Renaissance

KarJenner momager Kris Jenner, noted master in the art of distraction, probably has a lot on her plate right now, between allegations that Travis Scott cheats on Kylie Jenner “every fucking night” and Kanye (now just Ye) West’s ongoing antisemitic meltdown. Luckily enough for Kris, there’s one massive distraction, in particular, that she can safely leverage to divert our attention at this time: Kim Kardashian and ex Pete Davidson may—or may not!—be back on. Either way, the suspense of it all gives Kris more than enough to work with.

On Monday evening, a source told ET that Pete and Kim have “remained in contact.” We already knew they had a friendly breakup—Kim has famously only had kind words to say about Davidson, even as her camp and his very publicly went back and forth with conflicting accounts about who broke up with whom for literal weeks after their split. (Kim’s “sources” notably claimed she’d done the dumping because of a “maturity” gap between them, and Davidson’s claimed he’d done the dumping, citing all the “baggage” and “drama” with West.)

Now, on top of the ET report that the exes are still talking, Instagram sleuths seem pretty convinced the two are also hooking up again. Over the weekend, Kim shared photos of gifts and flowers she received for her 42nd birthday on Friday, and one of the snaps featured a distinctly centered Jasmin candle. According to predictably eagle-eyed fans, the candle is surely a gift from Davidson—he and Kim have been known to call each other Jasmine and Aladdin in reference to the Saturday Night Live sketch that brought them together, and he even has a Jasmine (infinity sign) Aladdin tattoo to commemorate their first kiss on the show.

If the candle thing is a bit too much of a reach for you, might I interest you in this Friday report in The Sun claiming that the two have been seeing each other since earlier this month, when Kim returned to New York after Paris Fashion Week?? Per the tabloid, the pair has been spotted linking up in hotel rooms and even taking things back to Davidson’s Staten Island. “Pete visited Kim at her room and the next day Kim was seen sneaking out a back entrance of the hotel in a disguise and hopped in a waiting Escalade to visit Pete on Staten Island,” the outlet claims.

To state the obvious: None of this is proof of anything, and neither Kim nor Davidson has commented on the current status of their relationship. Whomst among us can claim to have ever truly ended a relationship with a clean break and never back-slid after returning from New York Fashion Week, roughly a year after first getting together??

Kim and Davidson—Kete? Pim??—certainly had a hell of a run, first linked last October after Kim’s SNL hosting duties, only to split nine months later in August with an irritatingly non-dramatic statement about conflicting schedules and ongoing mutual love. But their relationship—characterized by perfect, almost certainly staged paparazzi snaps and red carpet appearances at events ranging from the Met Gala to the White House Correspondents Dinner—had its challenges. Ye loomed forever in the background, and then, of course, I imagine there were a lot of tough conversations about the need for Davidson to get a spray-tan back in May. Nevertheless, here we are, perhaps on the brink of a Kim x Pete renaissance (just weeks after Kim confessed on The Kardashians that her grandma had inspired their sex life). I, for one, won’t be rushing to any conclusions until I see new photos of Pete and can ascertain whether he’s visiting tanning salons again.