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After weeks of rumours, Paul Mescal and Gracie Abrams have been spotted together holding hands – and fans think they are officially dating.

Normal People star Mescal, 28, and “Close to You” singer Abrams, 24, first sparked rumours that they were dating when they were seen in a restaurant together in June this year.

Abrams is also thought to have referenced the Gladiator II star, in her song “Normal Things”, with fans suggesting that the lyrics were veiled references to Mescal’s breakout role in the series based on the book by Sally Rooney.

In July, the pair were seen out shopping and have kept a seemingly low-profile ever since. But now it appears that they have given up the pretence in new images and footage obtained by the DailyMail, which see Mescal and Abrams holding hands while walking through London together.

Mescal has his arms around the pop star while she holds onto his fingers. She is then seen playfully biting on Mescal’s thumb as he winces to mock pain.

The couple were reportedly on the way to Mountain Restaurant in Soho.

The actor found fame when he appeared as bookish and athletic Connor Waldron in Normal People alongside Daisy Edgar-Jones, leading to avid interest in his romantic life outside of the show.

But the actor said last year that he would be determined to keep his love life private, following media attention after his split from Boygenius singer Phoebe Bridgers.

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“When Normal People came out, I was very forthright in interviews, and it didn’t actually serve me,” he told Vanity Fair. “But the temptation still exists to be like: ‘Shut the f*** up. This is my life. This is what’s going on. Or this is what’s not going on.’”

He then explained how speaking publicly about his relationship wouldn’t benefit him.

“But moving forward as much as I can, that’s going to be my life that is private. That’s a difficult thing to achieve. But giving strangers an answer about my life doesn’t actually help me,” he continued.

“It’s like a quick boost of serotonin, being like: ‘I’ve said what I need to say.’ And then it’s just Twitter fodder.”

Mescal and Bridgers first started dating in 2020, and rumours of their engagement first sparked in April 2022. During Mescal’s interview with The Guardian in November of that year, the publication wrote that he and Bridgers were “reported to be engaged”.

The Independent has contacted representatives for Mescal and Abrams for comment.

However, the magazine later retracted the claim, which sparked rumours that the pair had split.

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