Gracie Abrams and Paul Mescal Enjoying 'Hooking Up': 'It's Still Early Stages' Says Source (Exclusive)

Gracie Abrams and Paul Mescal’s love story is just beginning.

The “Close to You” singer, 24, and Normal People star, 28, have been spotted out and about together this summer, causing romance rumors to swirl on social media.

Shedding light on the pair and the nature of their relationship, a source tells PEOPLE that “they’ve been hooking up and it’s still early stages.”  

Representatives for Abrams and Mescal did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

The Irish actor and Eras Tour opener first sparked dating rumors in June after they were spotted dining together at BRAT Restaurant in London, per photos obtained by TMZ.

The pair were pictured sitting across from each other at a window table and, in one photo, Mescal appears to reach across the table and touch Abrams’ face.

Romance rumors ramped up after the duo was once again spotted together in London over the weekend, this time holding hands, according to photos obtained by Deuxmoi and Daily Mail. 

The new couple was photographed walking around in London's Mayfair area on Sunday, Aug. 18. Daily Mail reported that the city date was PDA-filled, noting that the pair were spotted “kissing a lot.”

Later that evening, the pair was also spotted at All Points East music festival in London’s Victoria Park, per photos shared by Deuxmoi. Abrams later confirmed her presence at the festival, posting a video of musician Mitski’s set to her Instagram Stories.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Prior to her romance with Mescal, Abrams dated musician Blake Slatkin. In a 2021 interview with RIFF Magazine, the singer revealed that she and Slatkin, 26, dated for five years before breaking up and collaborating heavily on her debut EP, Minor.

"It’s maybe even more awkward, perhaps because he was my previous relationship. We had broken up and I was writing these songs in response to our breakup, which we then made a project about,” she told the Bay Area magazine. “We’d had a bunch of time together. … Our history, is what I’m saying, was strong enough to bear the weight of a creative process like this."

Mescal, meanwhile, was previously romantically involved with musician Phoebe Bridgers. The former couple first connected on Twitter (now X) in May 2020, and continued to interact on social media until they made their red carpet debut in November 2021.

Fans began to speculate that they had broken up in late 2022. Though neither Mescal nor Bridgers, 30, publicly confirmed the split, the boygenius member struck up a romance with comedian Bo Burnham around the same time.

In a February 2023 interview with Vanity Fair, Mescal said he was hesitant to address the alleged breakup, explaining that "giving strangers an answer about my life doesn't actually help me."

"It's like a quick boost of serotonin, being like, 'I've said what I need to say.' And then it's just Twitter fodder,” he added.