Gossip of the Week: Robin Thicke

His marriage to Paula Patton became engulfed in scandal after an Instagram photo emerged that appeared to show Robin Thicke groping a blonde 20-year-old’s bottom. Turns out there was more to the story than a pinch.

It all began on Aug. 25, the fateful night of the MTV Video Music Awards. Robin had just performed a racy routine with Miley Cyrus at The Barclays Center. The crowd’s reaction invigorated the crooner, who decided hours later, to hit up an after party at a trendy club in Manhattan. There, the 38 year-old crossed paths with an attractive young woman named Lana Scolaro, who convinced him to pose in a picture with her. Unbeknownst to the new “friends,” the photo was taken in front of a mirrored wall and the reflection captured Robin’s hand grabbing the young lady’s backside.

Although Lana posted the snapshot shortly after the run-in, the flirtation didn’t become news for quite a while, mostly because the media was still “twerked” out over the “creative” choices Miley and Robin made during their VMA’s medley.

PHOTOS: Soulful Crooner Robin Thicke

Things would gradually change over the next 24 hours. That’s when a whistleblower (@JenLeadley) took Lana’s pic from Instagram and Tweeted it to Paula with a warning, “Look at the reflection girl.”

While the message came from a complete stranger, it was a ballsy move nonetheless — who said sisterhood was dead?

WATCH IT NOW: Is Robin Thicke In Trouble With Wife Paula Patton?

Thus, the story of “ThickeSco” began its ascent into the gossip world. Four days later, on August 30, various outlets latched onto the item and blew it up across all media platforms. Was Robin having an affair behind his wife’s back or was he just being hands-y?

Rather than speaking up, Robin responded by Tweeting a photo of his son, wife and him on a boat, during a “family vaca,” he wrote to accompany the pic. Hmm… not obvious at all!

But obviously, Lana had to come out — in this case to Life & Style. On Sept. 4, the mag released their exclusive interview with the college student. The details (or claims) were explosive. Not only was the grope consensual at the nightclub, Lana claimed she and Robin later made out at a second party, while his wife was just a few feet away!

“His hands were everywhere,” Lana was quoted telling Life & Style.

PHOTOS: Celebrity Scandals

But, the buck stopped there. Lana further claimed Robin gave her his digits and the party came to a close at 8 AM.

The article got Robin’s camp to fight back… finally. Paula released a statement to the publication through her spokesperson. It stated that she and her husband “aren’t concerned” with the “attention seeker” (or maybe the situation altogether, for that matter). To drive the point home, Paula and Robin walked the red carpet at a party hosted by Treats! Magazine that same Wednesday, where he performed “Blurred Lines.” The “best friends” did it with smiling faces, looking very much together. Suffice to say, there was plenty of canoodling and PDA for the cameras.

The photos of the pair ran on several entertainment news shows (including Access Hollywood) on Sept. 5 and the high school sweethearts were the golden couple once again. As for Lana, she has since taken down the mirror shot and replaced it with a photo of herself and Robin posing on the red carpet instead.

In full disclosure, I also attempted to get in touch with Lana. I called the fashion school she studies at in New York City and I even messaged her on Instagram. Thanks to social media, I found out she was a European socialite who enjoyed private jets and vacationing in Ibiza. She might even have a famous artist boyfriend.

It was unfortunate that I didn’t end up speaking with Lana directly, though I did receive a strange phone call from what sounded like a young man posing as her asking me what I wanted. I still don’t know what to make of that one, but I remain optimistic that Lana will tell me her side of the story someday.

In the end, the 11 days of hoopla taught us media professionals a lot. For one, Robin’s eight-year marriage to Paula might not be as cookie-cutter as we thought. As for what’s considered cheating in a Hollywood marriage — a second listen to “Blurred Lines” might guide us towards a better answer.

— Genevieve Wong