There's no denying American Idol contestants Casey Abrams and Haley Reinhart clicked from the get-go, fueling rumors and speculation that they were more than just friends. We saw with our own eyes the flirting and chemistry between the two, but when we caught up with Casey the morning after his elimination he told us the true nature of their relationship.
So what's the deal--and how does he feel moving on from the Idol spotlight?
MEANWHILE: How can you be reading about Idol? Don't you know two British people just got married?!
Last night, eyebrows were raised when Casey went wild with his final song on the Idol stage, giving out kisses, hugs and handshakes to anyone in his path. And he saved his time with rumored girlfriend Haley for last.
When they finally came face-to-face, we all held our breath, as he took her hand and looked into her eyes...for a kiss that didn't happen.
Some fans thought the moment was a thinly veiled attempt to keep their romance a secret, but Casey says nothing is going on.
"We were never dating," he told us. "I was completely on random mode. I didn't plan on ending up on Haley. It just happened that way. I was saying goodbye to my very special musical friend--that's all it was."
The pair did knock out duets over the past few weeks, and the relationship is something Casey is thankful for. He revealed he had fears being on the Idol stage, and it was Haley who helped him keep his cool.
"I was scared of looking stupid on stage because I didn't know a certain song," he said. "I think I had more fun with Haley because I fed off of her energy."
Aside from stopping the romance rumors in their tracks, Casey says his kisses with Jennifer Lopez, Steven Tyler and random audience members makes him out to be a bigger kissing fan than he actually is.
"I'm not a big kisser," he laughed. "I feel like when I'm on the stage and people are watching I tend to do things nobody would expect. I think, 'What are you going to say and then what am I going to say that's completely different from that?'"
So who's the better kisser, Jennifer or Steven?
"Steven Tyler," he said, but added, "J.Lo just let me kiss her, but Steven Tyler kissed me back, so it's a different story."
While Casey's Idol dreams are now in the dumps, he's not looking back with regret. Instead he's happy he and the rest of the top 13 have been able to bring musical diversity to the show and given Idol more music to think about.
"I couldn't feel anything less than amazing because I feel that I've done something pretty cool in this competition," he said. "I think we're all doing our part to make American Idol a little more different than last year, vary the genre."
Do you think Casey and Haley would make a cute couple? Who's your favorite Idol? Would you want to kiss Jennifer or Steven? Let us know in the comments!