Recent victims of the Breakup Plague sweeping through Hollywood were Demi Lovato and Wilmer Valderrama. After six years – off and on – together, they issued a joint statement along the lines of ‘We’re done but it’s cool and we still have mad PLATONIC love for each other. ‘However, those mystical sources that crawl out of the woodwork during times like this are saying they saw this coming from months away. Apparently the lovefest that once was Loverrama had fallen into a relationship that resembled siblings more than lovers.

Demi Lovato and Wilmer Valderrama took the world by surprise with news of their split on Friday, but people close to the pair say this was actually a longtime coming.
After dating for nearly six years, the couple called it quits last week, realizing they were better friends than lovers.

“It had turned into more of a big brother-little sister kind of relationship,” a source tells E! News exclusively. “The romance wasn’t what it used to be. That said, Wilmer is still very protective of her. He did a lot for her—not just in terms of being there for her when she had her health issues, but really helping build her brand and launch her product lines. You never saw him out in front though. He never tried to ride her fame.”

The insider adds, “He was very close to her family. I don’t expect that will change. There was a lot of love there.”

The love, however, is on more of a friendship basis than a lifelong romance. In fact, a second source tells us that when Wilmer was asked whether they would walk down the aisle soon, he replied, “No, I don’t think we’re in that space.”

Another source noted that the relationship had been on the rocks for awhile. “They love each other but aren’t in love anymore. They are really great friends which they’ll continue to be but the romance sort of died.”

[From E! News]

The article states a second time that this breakup came as a shock to fans of the couple; was it really that much of a surprise? From personal experience, it seems that the five year mark brings on the ‘where is this ultimately going’ talk. When she was dropping boulder-sized hints that she wanted to get married while he maintained they weren’t, “in that space,” I waited for this announcement. I would guess her desire to get married played a bigger part in their breakup than their love going cold, although that may have been factor. I just got a little creeped out at the description of their relationship becoming “more of a big brother-little sister” so I choose to focus on the marriage thing.

However, Demi has been very vocal about how Wilmer’s support got her through her darker periods and for that, I give them both credit. He will likely always remain on my Side-Eye List for prior bad behavior but Demi sounds stronger and healthier and she says he had a hand in that so good on him.

Photo credit: WENN and Fame/Flynet Photos and Getty Images