Selena Gomez gets a little too close to Justin Bieber; Beliebers not amused

Selena Gomez gets a little too close to Justin Bieber; Beliebers not amused

(Image: Jake Auzzie)

We all know that pop heartthrob Justin Bieber is the object of affection of innumerable prepubescent girls. So when photos of the Stratford sensation cozying up to Disney actor Selena Gomez surfaced on the Web, it’s none too surprising that more than a few flew into a digital tizzy.

Gomez and Bieber have denied any romantic involvement, with 18-year-old Gomez describing 16-year-old Bieber as “one of my best friends.” Bieber recently said of Gomez, “We just like to hang out. People shouldn’t be stopping us from going out to dinner and things like that.” But photos that recently surfaced on the Web of the two leaning in to kiss while on vacation in St. Lucia would seem to imply otherwise. For many of Bieber’s fans, this was simply too much to take, so they took to Twitter with some (hopefully harmless) death threats for Gomez.

A sampling:

“@selenagomez I’ll kill you I swear on GOD!!!!”

“@selenagomez If you are the Girlfriend of Justin I will Kill you I HATE YOU :@ !!!

It’s not the first time that thoughts of Bieber in the arms of another have incited Belieber rage. Back in May, Kim Kardashian received similar Twitter death threats after Bieber joked she was cute while hanging with her at a White House Correspondents dinner. That incident prompted a spectacularly awkward Elle photo spread and some pretty ridiculous May-December love affair speculation.

The Gomez-Bieber connection seems more like the real deal. Let’s hope the two can keep it under wraps and out of the glossies, for the sake of Gomez’s safety and sanity, and for those of us who would rather not see a couple of teenagers making out in the pages of every fashion mag in town.

• Photos of Justin Bieber and Selena Gomez kiss spark threats [Toronto Star]
Justin Bieber & Selena Gomez Kiss Off the New Year [TMZ]
Today in Bieber news: more German gaffes, death threats and hair trends [Toronto Life]
Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian’s Elle spread = awkward [Toronto Life]