STOP. EVERYTHING. (Except breathing – don’t stop that. Just… look.)

The most recent TV appearance from newly crowned Bachie lovers Sophie Monk and Stu Laundry has all of Australia asking, ‘Are they, or aren’t they?’ (Absolutely everybody in this country watchesThe Bachelorette, right?)

That’s because when the new couple appeared onThe Projectlast night, things looked a little… uhhh… awkward.

Fans were quick to point out that the couple’s ‘lack of physical contact’, and snide jokes and looks at each other throughout may be evidence that the pair are not together or in love at all.

Hmmmm.

It’s a question panelist Meshel Laurie was quick to ask within seconds of the pair taking their seats.

“Are you two still together?” she prodded, prompting Sophie and Stu to exchange an uncomfortable glance.

“I’d like to think so…” began Sophie, as Stu joked, “Well… it’s been a rough afternoon”.

The pair quickly clarified that “of course” they were still an item, with Stu adding they were “very happy”.

But it wasn’t quite enough to convince the die-hard Bach fans (oh, and radio star Kate Langbroek, who had interviewed the pair just hours earlier) playing along at home.

Well that was awkward don’t look like a couple in love to me!

— mary (@maryba18) October 27, 2017

Are they or aren’t they?? Hmmm not sure. Hope so. Sophie deserves happiness ????

— JanieO (@missjane25) October 27, 2017

Do not see the chemistry at all

— matthew keele (@matthewkeele) October 27, 2017

its a sham .. they are not together

— sienna (@sienna_smiles) October 27, 2017

Chemistry? Even when they held hands it looked awkward!

— Bec Greenwood (@BekstaGreeny) October 27, 2017

Okay. Let’s get ~scientific~ about this.

A bit of digging shows that Stu and Sophie’s body language throughout the interview wasvery differentfrom what we’ve seen from pastBachelorandBachelorettecouples in the past.

This is Matty J and Laura earlier this year:

Image via Channel 10.

And Georgia Love and Lee in 2016:

Image via Channel 10.

By contrast, Sophie and Stu were barely touching each other during their TV appearance:

Image via Channel 10.

What? Us, reading way too much into the outcome of a reality TV show? NEVER.

Whatever the pair's current relationship status, Laurie pressed Monk on the very thing that has frustrated some fans about her final choice.

"You said in the beginning, 'I want a down-to-Earth, normal guy who wants to get married and have kids," Laurie said.

"What you've chosen is a millionaire who's already married and has had a vasectomy."

The panel criticised Sophie for choosing Stu over a "normal guy". Image via Channel 10.

With Stu joking that the statement made him firmly "team Jarrod", Sophie clarified that by "normal guy" she meant someone outside of her own industry.

"I don't want actors, I don't want models, I don't want ego, I don't want narcissism," the 37-year-old said.

"I've got my own money, I've earned my own money my whole life... I like to think I've earned as much as [Stu], actually."

And that's the Sophie we know and love.

Watch the interview in full below...