Originally appeared on E! Online
Camila Cabello will always be a special señorita to Shawn Mendes.
Despite officially calling it quits on their romance after two years in 2021 — and again in 2023 after a brief reconciliation—the "Fifth Harmony" alum and the "Treat You Better" singer have maintained a good relationship.
And that fact was emphasized after Mendes' recent appearance on the Jay Shetty Podcast, where he discussed the breakup, saying that the duo had preserved a "private little fire of love for each other."
So, when one user on X, formerly Twitter, shared their thoughts on the interview, noting in an Oct. 1 message, "They don't play about each other," Mendes responded the following day, writing, "No we don't."
However, the comment left some fans confused, with one writing, "I feel like you need to clarify what you meant with your last tweet just so the general public and Camila's fandom don't take your words and make them into something you might not have intended, does that make sense?"
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And Mendes was happy to oblige, explaining that he was hoping to clarify the nature of his current relationship with Cabello before saying his response "came from a place of being a little annoyed with all the projection over the last few months about us."
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"I'm usually pretty good at just watching all the 'noise go by," he continued, "but lately it's been kinda bugging me. feeling human i guess."
In a follow-up post, Mendes added, "Part of me knows quoting a tweet and saying that is gunna start a little spin up and i guess to be honest part of me just wanted to address it and actually have a real honest relationship with you guys about how it feels from my side."
And as the "Why Why Why" singer said, he wanted to make sure he was "having a real relationship," with his fans through his responses, especially as it can often be "pretty intimidating to come online and be honest and vulnerable considering how quickly our words can be twisted and used against us."
But for Mendes, it's important for his fans to know that their support goes both ways, saying, "all the rest is just noise."
As for his relationship with Cabello, he expanded on it with Jay, explaining that the on-and-off romance was "brutal," and in the end, they decided that they weren't necessarily cut out to be a couple.
"Love is a lot, but partnership is more than love and I think it has a lot to do with how you support each other in your day-to-day life and really being honest about who you are," he said during the Sept. 30 podcast episode. "And making sure that someone that you're with is in support of that and doesn't have to bend themselves entirely to be in support of that and vice versa."
And while Cabello may not be his girlfriend anymore, Mendes confessed that the two still text each other from time to time.
"As long as we're good, all the noise is just noise," he said, adding that they make sure to be careful when speaking about each other in the media. "I don't think either of us would ever cross a line. We deeply respect each other."
He added, "I'm just lucky she's an amazing human being and she's incredibly understanding and thoughtful and caring."
And Cabello previously echoed his statement, stating that their relationship was "not a fit."
"It doesn't feel right," the 27-year-old told Alex Cooper on the Call Her Daddy podcast in March. "I think luckily, I was in a place in my life where it took me less time to realize that—and it took us both less time to be like, 'This doesn't feel right and we don't really need to try so hard to make it work. It's all good. This is not feeling good, like 'Let's be friends, I love you. It's all good, let's move on.'"