Jonathan Van Ness Reveals Why His Love Life Is Complicated

One of life's greatest mysteries is how the lovable Jonathan Van Ness remains the only single member of the Fab Five. The Queer Eye fan favorite is the living, breathing embodiment of joy, equally adept at helping others fix their hair and sharing his deepest, darkest secrets with the world (including his devastating HIV diagnosis). With the release of his memoir, Over the Top, JVN gave fans a further glimpse into his struggles in life, admitting to issues with drug, sex, and, even awkward fan encounters.

The TV star and hairdressing pro has clearly been through a lot but it would take a seismic shift to dim his shine. And yet, in spite of all the wonderful things in his life, Van Ness continues to find romance elusive. It doesn't help that he's the busiest he's ever been, seemingly taking on more work than any normal person could manage and always smiling through it, but why does his love life continue to be so tangled for someone who specializes in working out the kinks?

In a characteristically open chat with Self, JVN admitted that his twenties were loaded with casual encounters but he's done with that whole scene, not least because his HIV+ status makes everything so much more difficult. The Queer Eye star even recalled being dumped by someone after a month of dating when he revealed his diagnosis, describing it as a "tough" moment. Van Ness has dealt with plenty of rejection in general, advising, "I'm not going to lie. The rejection sucks. I think that people are getting a lot more informed, but the stigma and the ignorance still remain."

Nowadays he requires a proper emotional connection rather than simply something casual, explaining, "I've been there, I've done that. I was very busy in my 20s." Van Ness wouldn't be drawn on whether he's currently seeing anybody, subsequently clarifying, "It's not that I will always be private about my relationships, but I just think that I need more time to kind of learn to date and be in a relationship as this public figure." As JVN sees it, "Dating's hard enough not as a public figure, and then when you add this into it, it's like, Well, f*** me. It is a whole pile of complicated."