MAFS EXCLUSIVE: Insider reveals truth about Jesse and Janelle's 'romance'

Following months of speculation that MAFS stars Jesse Burford and Janelle Han were an item, the celebrant appeared to confirm the rumours when he shared a photo of the pair holding hands on Instagram on Sunday.

The groom shared a throwback snap of the pair holding hands at Falls Festival in Perth over New Year's Eve, alongside several other snaps of the cast all attending the event together.

However, Yahoo Lifestyle can reveal the pair are still just friends after enjoying a "brief flirtation" five months ago when the picture was taken.

A friend of the pair says: "There's nothing going on between them and never really was. They became close after filming wrapped when their partners cheated together and because they were both in Perth, but that was it.

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"Janelle moved to Sydney months ago and the only time they've seen each other since then is when hanging out as a group."

Meanwhile, Jesse also shut down the romance rumours in an Instagram story, where he joked: "No I'm not dating Janelle, Lyndall or Bronte. But that doesn't mean they're not dating me."

Janelle addressed the rumours during Yahoo’s All-Star MAFS Reunion, clearing up whether their flirtation was real or a 'publicity stunt'.

“So there are some articles out there of me and Jesse hanging out a lot in Perth,” she teased.

“We did have a bit of a trauma bond, and he might hate me, but we have shared a peck. Just an innocent little peck. That’s it.

“It might have been friendly, it might have been romantic, I’m not sure. But we have had the conversation that we weren't going to pursue anything because I moved to Sydney. So at the moment, we're just really good friends.”

Janelle went on to explain that there were “a multitude of reasons” why she and Jesse grew closer after filming the show.

“During the experiment, we were good friends, but then post-experiment we got to know each other even more,” she shared.

“I understood more layers about him, understood he was more of an emotionally intelligent person, and I think things that I need in my own personality I saw in him and I started admiring him a lot.”

Jesse has also previously shared with So Dramatic! that he and Janelle are "best mates", adding, "Janelle just moved to Sydney, so even if we were gonna walk down that path, we both said to each other that a long-distance relationship is not something that is an option for us."

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