Tarek El Moussa isn't having a quiet week in the media. Not only was it rumored that his ex-wife and the mother of his children might have pulled another quick engagement, but he came down with COVID-19. Since he's very in demand when it comes to filming his HGTV shows, it means a lot of people may have been exposed.
It also means that production of his fiancée's show, Selling Sunset, has changed a bit. Tarek is currently planning a wedding with Heather Rae Young, a luxury real estate agent and personality on the popular series.
But that's not it. Two weeks ago, he also made it clear that he and Heather would be celebrating their bachelor and bachelorette parties in a week, meaning that even more people might have been exposed.
Tarek's rep told TMZ that the star recently tested positive, so he plans on quarantining with Heather until it's safe to return to his show. Heather has yet to test positive. Reportedly, they both got the vaccine — which is excellent news. That means that the chances of them needing to be hospitalized from the virus are low.
But still, she's taking precautions — just in case. She's not going to be filming Selling Sunset to help keep her costars safe. There are a few rumors that Tarek's test may have actually been a false positive, as he took other tests right afterward and tested negative. But when it comes to something like COVID-19, it's better to be safe than sorry.
According to the US Food and Drug Administration, the rapid tests do have the potential to give a false positive. A lot of it has to do with how the test itself is used. "Reading the test before or after the specified time could result in false positive or false negative results," the FDA states.
We're still in the midst of a pandemic. The vaccine has proven to be an effective way to avoid deadly side effects, and boosters are likely going to become widely available soon to improve protection even more. While it may seem to some that Tarek's quarantine might be a bit much, it's actions like this that have been lessening the spread.
Of course, for Tarek, it comes at an odd time. While it's never been revealed what the wedding date is for him and Heather, it seems like they're going forth with plenty of wedding-inspired events. That means it might happen any day now. Tarek also celebrated his birthday recently.
The Flip or Flop star turned 40 on August 21, and Heather set up a big surprise dinner for him. He's no stranger to talking up Heather on Facebook, but it's been pretty extreme these days. Between the party and the upcoming wedding, it looks like they've had a busy month together.
Tarek was well enough to comment on the news regarding ex-wife Christina Haack. Christina recently shared that she was engaged to Joshua Hall, whom she began dating in the spring. This would be the third marriage for Christina. After divorcing Tarek, she married Ant Anstead in 2018 and had a child with him in 2019.
When asked about the news, Tarek responded to People magazine with, "We just saw, but congratulations!"
Heather added that she's happy for her as well. "Wow, awesome! We just want nothing but happiness for [Christina and Josh] and nothing but happiness for the kids," she said.
Tarek and Christina share two children — Taylor and Brayden. Christina shares son Hudson with Ant, who recently confirmed his own budding relationship with actress Renée Zellweger. While their arrangement may seem a bit complicated, the most important thing is that everyone's happy.
And judging by Tarek's Instagram account, that seems to be the case. Taylor and Brayden seem very lucky to have multiple people in their lives who love them and want the best for them. Let's just hope the two of them don't get sick, if they're also planning on quarantining with Tarek and Heather.
