How Nikki Reed & Ian Somerhalder Met Is So Adorable & Relatable

On Aug. 10, Nikki Reed and Ian Somerhalder welcomed their first daughter into the world. Prior to the birth, Somerhalder and Reed told fans they'd be taking "one month of silence" to enjoy their little girl without any distractions, according to People. Despite the fact that Reed and Somerhalder are in total hibernation mode right now, fans still want to know everything about the new parents, including how Ian Somerhalder and Nikki Reed met. Similarly to a lot of couples, it turns out Reed and Somerhalder were friends for a long time before they made their relationship official.

When Reed and Somerhalder first got together in mid-2014, there was a lot of public drama surrounding their relationship. Many Vampire Diaries fans blamed Reed for Somerhalder's split from his then-girlfriend Nina Dobrev, and allegations of betrayal followed the couple for years. To add another layer of complexity to the situation, Reed broke up with her first husband, Paul McDonald, just a few months before getting into a relationship with Somerhalder.

Despite all the tabloid fodder, the truth behind Somerhalder and Reed's coupling is actually pretty tame and relatable. According to POPSUGAR, Somerhalder and Reed were friends for years before they decided to become more than that. Although Reed and Dobrev were also close friends at the time, there weren't any hard feelings when Reed and Somerhalder became a couple. On Feb. 7, Reed addressed her alleged feud with Dobrev once and for all.

A portion of Reed's note read, according to Instagram:

For the last few years we thought addressing any baseless rumors with silence was the best way. Besides, who wants to respond to made up stories about "friends backstabbing friends", "cheating exes", or "cast members exiting shows" on low-brow websites like hollywoodlife that are just perpetuating trends that preceded us. Yuck. I now see that silence was taken as an opportunity to fill in the blanks with even more falsities, and juicer stories, and we, yes WE, believe we have a moral responsibility to young girls to end that narrative, because at the end of all of this, those young girls are the ones who lose.

Prior to Reed's pointed message, Somerhalder defended their relationship shortly after they first got together. In a 2014 Instagram post, Somerhalder wrote, according to E! Online:

You HATE NIKKI REED? Really? Do you know her? Hmmmm, I’m not sure that you do. Look on her Instagram feed or twitter and all you will see is a compassionate and beautiful human being. Please put your negative Please put your negative energy elsewhere. You don't even know the person you're talking about. Do you care about me? Ask yourself that question. What's the answer? Is it yes? If it is—then please be happy for me. Stop this nonsense—you're spreading horrible energy into the world. Do some research of the person you say sucks or you HATE. You'll find that she's a magical person doing great things in the world.

Yep, it's pretty clear Somerhalder and Reed won't stand for falsehoods surrounding the start of their relationship.

Fictitious narratives aside, Somerhalder and Reed couldn't be more in love. Reed said of Somerhalder, according to People:

I love him more every second, I don’t know what to say.

It goes without saying that navigating a relationship amid unfounded rumors is difficult. Somerhalder and Reed have experienced the pitfalls of fame firsthand, and they've had to combat rumors about their pairing for years. Despite all the drama, Somerhalder and Reed have maintained a loving and committed relationship, and they're now enjoying parenthood for the first time. Although Somerhalder and Reed have had to endure a lot, their success as a couple isn't too surprising when you consider they were friends first and foremost. Friendship is often the bedrock of a lasting relationship, right?