The Internet nearly exploded in November when Us Weekly published an article titled “Ian Somerhalder and Nina Dobrev: Why We Love Each Other.” Fans of The Vampire Diaries had long suspected the co-stars were dating — and with good reason. They’ve been spotted kissing and traveled to Paris together over the summer. But in a recent interview in Nylon ’s February issue, Nina responded to the rumors, and to that Us Weekly article in particular, insisting, “We haven’t told anyone anything.”

“I remember that interview, ” continues Nina. “They asked us, ‘What do you love about your co-stars?’ And we said, like, 10 different things about every single person on the show. But they’ll choose what they want to write about. And it’s fine — people have that fascination. I can’t say I’m not interested in Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt and their family. But it’s something you fight really hard to persevere and keep private.”

The Nylon interview also included a quote about Nina from the Mr. Smolderhotter in question: “Nina works harder than anyone else on the show: Elena is in virtually every scene — and if Elena’s not, then Katherine is. But even when she’s exhausted, she brings a light to the people around her.