Kourtney K. & Younes' Body Language Before Their Reported Split Reveals So Much
By now, you’ve probably heard the news that it's reportedly a wrap for Kourtney Kardashian and Younes Bendjima. I know what you’re thinking: Weren’t they just soaking in the sun on a lavish vacation in Italy? Well, as it turns out, the signs that they were headed south were clearer than the Portofino sky, especially if you take a closer look at Kourtney Kardashian and Younes Bendjima's body language before their rumored split. The setting may have been uber-romantic, but the body language? Not so much.
In case you haven't been following along, Kardashian and Bendjima first met in Paris, back in October 2016 (the night before Kim Kardashian was robbed at gunpoint, according to People). They dated casually throughout 2017, and were seen vacationing together in exotic locales like Cannes and the pyramids in Egypt. By the end of 2017, things seemed to be getting even more serious, as Kardashian had reportedly already introduced Bendjima to her kids and invited him to the annual Kardashian Christmas party.
The couple seemed to be going strong and steady, up until mid-July 2018. After their luxurious European vacation, Bendjima left a demeaning comment on one of Kardashian's Instagram photos. The photo featured Kardashian in a floral thong bikini, and Bendjima's (awful) comment read, "That's what you need to show to get likes?" That seemed to be what first set their breakup in motion.
On a trip with friends to Mexico in early August, Bendjima was photographed looking suspiciously affectionate with model Jordan Ozuna. He responded with an angry Insta story slideshow, where he calls out the media for really "wanting him to be the bad guy." It was weird. And Kardashian unfollowed him on Instagram. And Kim and Khloe Kardashian both left shady comments on The Shade Room's Instagram, very obviously directed at Bendjima. Again, weird, and seemingly very abrupt.
While both Bendjima and Ozuna have denied anything happened between them, it seems to have been enough for Kardashian to call it quits on the relationship. Elite Daily reached out to both Kardashian and Bendjima's teams for comment, but did not hear back by the time of publication.
Looking over their history, it may seem like the split really came out of the blue. However, according to body language experts Lisa Mitchell and Traci Brown, the signs that there was trouble in paradise were very clear in their body language. Mitchell and Brown took a look at some recent photos of the former couple, shortly before they called it quits. Here's what they see.
01Kardashian and Bendjima appear out of sync.
In this photo from early May 2018, Brown is immediately struck by how distant the body language is between Kardashian and Bendjima.
“Wow! It’s no wonder they separated,” Brown tells Elite Daily, pointing out how Bendjima’s body is pointing away from Kardashian’s. “If they were tight we’d see them facing each other in a V,” she added. “That’s never a good sign of a strong connected relationship.”
02 2. There's a lack of connection in their body language.
Once you get past the beautiful backdrop of Portofino, you may be struck by how cold these two seem toward each other in this photo — something both the experts noticed. There's a distinct lack of connection here between them, in part because, rather than reaching out to one another, they both kept their hands in their pockets. Brown says this is a sign they're “holding back a bit.” She adds that, by choosing to tuck their hands away, they're “not really using them to connect with each other.”
For Mitchell, what's most telling comes down to their body positioning, again. “[Kardashian] is facing straight on, not turned toward or leaning toward [Bendjima], and her head and one foot is pointed away from him, showing a distancing behavior,” she tells Elite Daily. But Mitchell also points out that “He, however, is turned toward her with his whole body, which is unusual for him, perhaps him attempting to bridge the distance she's displaying.” She also zeroed in on their hands as well, but her read is even more suggestive.
“They both have their hands partially hidden in their pockets, indicating that there's something that they are protective of or not wanting to share.” Hmm, shady.
03Their body language indicates trouble for the relationship.
In this final image from their romantic Italian getaway, we see the couple making physical contact again, which should signify a strong connection. However, there are subtler signs Mitchell sees that show they still don’t seem to be on the same page. Although Kourtney is leaning on his shoulder and has her leg swung toward him, Mitchell explains, “Younes is only slightly turned toward her and is not making any type of additional physical contact with her.” So, again, we see a missed opportunity for them to make that V shape with their hips that Brown mentioned, which would indicate a stronger bond.
When taken all together, these images seem to show a couple who is out of sync. Mitchell points to the pattern of how Bendjima repeatedly faced away from Kardashian in the photos, saying, “Even if he's got a hand on her, his torso, legs, and feet are pointed straight out or away from Kourtney, not toward her as you would expect to see in a couple that is highly engaged with each other.” To Mitchell, this means “he's keeping a distance between the two of them, blocking even.”
Brown believes they're a couple that seems like they’ve stopped enjoying each other's company, noting that Kardashian only looks happy in the first photo, from May. “The rest of the time there’s just not joy for either of them,” she says. So, what’s her final analysis?
“The signs were all there that their time together was short lived,” she concludes. We should've known their luxury yacht getaway was too good to be true!
While breaking up is rarely a fun experience, let's hope things don’t get uglier from here on out. They both deserve to move forward, and be happy and healthy with new, better-fitting partners down the line.
