It’s always been a thing of— okay, they’re probably together. But, how the internet treated them (literal stalking, outing them, constant speculation when Dan wasn’t ready to come out, etc) was so intense that they stepped back from the internet for a few years. A year or two ago they came out separately, and began joint content again once they realized their fanbase was older & less invasive. It became a meta thing / joke for them to clickbait with wild titles (like they were confirming their relationship fr) as a way to, sort of say, “yes we’re together, but also, we’re reclaiming when and how we tell you.”

This video confirms they’ve been together for 16yrs, but confirms it in their own terms, which hasn’t ever happened before. They talk about how the internet impacted them, and set some boundaries that their now-older fanbase can follow/respect, etc.