Does MAFS groom Jono texting Ellie count as cheating?

“They were talking every day, but they weren’t flirting, they were just friendly messages, chatting back and forth.”

Another dinner party, another round of drama, table slams and accusations of infidelity were served between mains and desserts.

At the final dinner party, the timid Jono came under fire from the group as he was interrogated for messaging another bride who wasn’t his own.

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How the drama unfolded

After the discovery of Jono’s potential wandering thumbs, Lauren felt betrayed and requested to go through Jono's phone the following day. 

Here, she found messages between him and Ellie without any mention of herself, along with some suggestive banter. 

Lauren, who arrived solo at the dinner party, shared the shocking extent of the texting scandal with the group, who rallied behind her.

Tori, never too far away from drama, put another nail into the couple’s coffin when she exposed Jono's admission that he had wished to be matched with Ellie over Lauren—ouch!

Tensions rose between Lauren and Jono as she interrogated him further during the Honesty Box session and let’s just say, if you were holding onto hope for the couple, it’s probably as likely as Jack buttoning up all the buttons on his shirt.

Amidst all this turmoil, Eden and Jayden shared a heartfelt moment, declaring their love for each other and bringing a touch of joy to the evening. 

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A romantic moment amongst the chaos. Source: Endemol Shine Australia (a Banijay Company) for the 9Network.

Just friends or something more?

An insider spilled the tea to So Dramatic!, revealing that while flirty messages weren’t being exchanged, it still wasn’t right.

“There were a lot of messages, over 100,” the secret source said. 

“They were talking every day, but they weren’t flirting, they were just friendly messages, chatting back and forth.

“It’s still bad that he messaged her during filming,” they added “They both had a crush on each other, so it definitely wasn’t just friendly.

“He should’ve waited until he’d left the experiment or been honest with Lauren,” and we couldn’t agree more.

But how can we expect Jono to be honest with his wife when he lied to the experts when he claimed that he didn’t initiate the messaging.

One of Ellie’s friends revealed Jono was in fact, the instigator in the saga, “LOL all you idiots saying [Ellie’s] a snake,” they wrote on a social post. 

“Lauren KNEW they were speaking because there was NO cheating scandal. Jono reached out to Ellie to ask how she was after she had left the experiment.

“Everything said between them was ABOVE BOARD, and they never met up until AFTER the show finished airing. Dramatisation by Channel Nine at its finest.” 

“Jono just sat there letting Lauren go off about Ellie and let her cop the heat when he was the one who messaged her first. He said nothing and threw Ellie under the bus to protect himself.”

So, while we have the dirt that the messages were perhaps not as flirty as the dinner party suggested, does messaging a member of the opposite sex count as cheating?

RELATED: Eagle-eyed MAFS fans spot hilarious editing fail

If looks could kill. Source: Endemol Shine Australia (a Banijay Company) for the 9Network.

Was it cheating?

We reached out to the Kidspot community to ask if they believed texting a member of the opposite sex over 100 times without mentioning your partner is classified as cheating, and it seems we had a mixed bag of responses.

"Absolutely!” said Sydneysider, Allie. 

“If you text someone of the opposite sex that frequently without even mentioning your partner, you're definitely crossing a line. 

“It's a clear breach of trust and shows a lack of respect for your relationship."

Talia from Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs wasn’t so convinced, "Well, it really depends on the context. Maybe they're just good friends.”

Offering Jono the benefit of the doubt, she added, “Jumping to conclusions without understanding the nature of the chat isn't fair, and if he’s texting other people as much, does it matter the gender?”

However, Mark from The Sunshine Coast didn’t think it was a problem, “Texting someone of the opposite sex without mentioning your partner doesn't automatically equate to cheating.”

RELATED: The secrets MAFS execs hoped you’d never know

These photos made it pretty clear Lauren and Jono weren't in it for the long haul. Source: Daily Mail

Spoilers ahead 

Those who saw the paparazzi shots of Jono and Ellie earlier in the year knew the pair were destined for a “happily ever after.” 

Images of the two canoodling at the beach surfaced, revealing the doomed fate of their two couples with their original matches.

So, while it shouldn't come as a surprise, we just never expected the betrayal to occur during the experiment.

There’s no doubt the reunion between Lauren, Ellie and Jono will bring with it more fireworks than New Year’s Eve and the Fourth of July, and we’re so keen!

Originally published as Does MAFS groom Jono texting Ellie count as cheating?