Well, it finally happened.
After months of social media rumors and reports from inside sources, Kim Kardashian has filed for divorce from Kanye West.
Even though the move was not unexpected, it raised a number of questions among fans of the couple.
The number one mystery of the moment seems to be why, after enduring so many years of Kanye’s monstrous egotism and wildly erratic behavior, would Kim finally pull the plug on her third marriage?
For nearly seven years, she’s demonstrated saint-like patience in her dealings with her famously volatile husband.
Over the past few months, however, that patience seemed to wane.
So what was the nail in the coffin for Kim and Kanye’s marriage?
What prompted Kim to finally part ways with the father of her four children?
Well, to understand those questions, we need to examine Kanye’s behavior in the last half of 2020.
It was already a strange year for the couple, as Kanye’s presidential run attracted all the wrong types of media attention.
Whether it was a serious foray into the politcal arena or an ill-conceived publicity stunt, the campaign was undeniably a failure.
And that failure seems to have taken an emotional toll on the famously fragile West.
In July, long before he formally suspended his run for the White House, Kanye began to show signs of emotional strain.
It’s unclear whether this was a consequence of the year’s tense political climate or a symptom of the bipolar disorder with which West has struggled for several years.
Whatever the case, it seems to have increased the strain on his marriage.
In July, Kanye unleashed one of his signature Twitter tirades.
But this time, the target wasn’t the music industry of the news media, but his wife and her family.
In a series of tweets that left even his harshest critics stunned, Kanye accused Kim of cheating on him with rapper Meek Mill.
He then turned his attention toward his in-laws, slut-shaming Kylie Jenner for posing in Playboy and referring to Kris Jenner as a white supremacist.
Many thought that would be the end, as it was difficult to imagine Kim giving her husband a second chance after such a vicious attack.
But amazingly, Kim continued to work on the marriage.
Just days after the tirade was posted, she flew to Wyoming, where Kanye was living in seclusion on his ranch.
She was photographed having a tearful conversation with her husband while both of them were seated in his car.
The next day, she returned to Los Angeles, alone, and still crying.
It’s unclear if it was then that Kim decided to call it quits, but less than three months later, reliable outlets such as Page Six and TMZ began to report that the mother of four had made up her mind.
No doubt further details will emerge in the weeks to come, but those hoping for a messy divorce are likely to be disappointed.
Despite the fact that Kim and Kanye have billions in assets to divide between them, insiders say they’ve pledged to keep the split as civil as possible for the sake of their children.
For the same reason, we hope they’re able to stick to that pledge — but when Kanye’s involved, you never know what might happen.
We’ll have further updates on this developing story as more information becomes available.