Maurissa Gunn And Riley Christian's Breakup Isn't A Surprise To Fans

Calling it quits! Less than six months after Maurissa Gunn and Riley Christian made history on "Bachelor In Paradise," the two have decided to go their separate ways.

The former couple released a joint statement confirming the news to fans on January 24. "We have decided to go our separate ways. Never did we imagine this, but we've come to a point where we both need to work on ourselves," they shared with People. "We've appreciated everyone's love and support so far throughout our journey and we just ask that you please respect our privacy as we navigate through this."

Maurissa and Riley met on the latest season of "Bachelor in Paradise." Maurissa originally appeared on Peter Weber's season of "The Bachelor," while Riley was part of Clare Crawley and Tayshia Adams' joint "Bachelorette" season. Yet, after heading to paradise, at the end of their time, Riley proposed to Maurissa with an iconic Neil Lane ring, becoming the first Black couple to get engaged on "Bachelor In Paradise." At the time, the two explained they only went into paradise with open minds and happened to find one another along the way. Yet, there was obviously trouble in paradise as Maurissa and Riley have officially confirmed their split — though, fans have been speculating a breakup announcement was on the way.

Maurissa Gunn and Riley Christian's split didn't come as a shock to many "Bachelor" fans. In fact, at the beginning of the year, fans started noticing Maurissa had removed photos of her and Riley from her Instagram feed and posting cryptic quotes online. For example, on January 7, Maurissa posted a selfie with the quote, "Don't worry, be happy," which fans took as a hint to her new single status. 

Riley, on the other hand, has kept his photos of him and Maurissa on his social media profiles, but his latest Instagram captions of him at the gym left fans wondering what he was really talking about. "We ain't come this far just to come this far. Work hard, stay humble, but still let 'em know that you got it. No matter how many times we get knocked down we get back up. Giving it everything we got all 2022." While Maurissa and Riley dropped cryptic content, fans were suspicious of a breakup, but Maurissa pretty much announced the split a few weeks ago when she posted an Instagram selfie to her Story with no ring on that finger, via US Weekly.

Yet, even now that the two have confirmed their split, fans are still taking to social media to mourn the end of Maurissa and Riley's relationship — even if they knew the announcement was coming. "Maurissa and Riley split is finally confirmed," one fan wrote with a sad face emoji. "There's the official announcement," another fan quote tweeted the official news. "Wishing Riley and Maurissa all the best."