Karrueche Tran

Rihanna who? Chris Brown and Karrueche Tran shared a passionate, sunset embrace on Monday ... and she made sure everyone saw it on Twitter, too.

The singer and aspiring model, who have been together about five months, appear to be going strong. "Head over heels," she wrote beneath the pic.

In this intimate, romantic shot, Karrueche Tran and Chris Brown are seen kissing lovingly, with idyllic backdrop of the beach at sunset behind them:

No response to this social media territory-marking from Rihanna, who may or may not have been with Tran earlier this year via Facebook and Twitter.

In a March 3 TwitPic, Rihanna took what some people interpreted as a racist shot at Tran, who is half-Vietnamese, writing "Ima make u my bitch."

The pic was a bag of rice cakes dressed up in gold earrings and black shades.

This followed rumors that Rihanna and Chris Brown, who recently collaborated on two remixes together, had been secretly hooking up for over a year.

Tran's response? A Tweet directed to no one in particular, but clearly in reference to Rih, saying, "I'm Angeline [sic], you're Jen. C'mon you see where Brad is at."

It's completely unclear how much Rihanna cares, but Karrueche's latest Twitter salvo leaves little doubt that Chris Brown is hers ... for now. Congrats?

Chris Brown’s girlfriend, Karrueche Tran, has taken to the Twitterverse to send out a nice, subtle message that the R&B singer belongs to her. TO HER!

Also belonging to her? Some cute puppies!

“Basquiat & Bruno

It's easy to interpret this as a statement that it's a Karrueche Tran, not Rihanna, who's up close and personal with him, taking photos with dogs and the like.

Karrueche’s tweet came after a series of alarming tweets earlier in the week in which that Tran reportedly received death threats from some Rihanna fans.

“Sitting in the house cuz I’m too scared to go out,” she tweeted about those threats. “Sometimes you just got to make the best out of a negative situation.”

By riling them up even more by posting pics of Chris with her dogs?

In any event, there's nothing really to this story, just conjecture ... read into the picture above - and Chris Brown and Rihanna's remixes - however you like.

And Rihanna Tweeting another rice cake pic in 5 ... 4 ... 3 ...

Amid a never-ending firestorm of controversy, Chris Brown was spotted leaving Tru Nightclub in Hollywood last night with girlfriend Karrueche Tran.

They look happy. Guess there's no trouble in paradise ... at least not yet.

Karrueche Tran and Rihanna, Chris' ex-girlfriend and recent collaborator, are said to be engaged in a war of words, Facebook messages and Tweets.

In case there's any doubt where his heart is (at least last night):

Karrueche reportedly said earlier this week on Facebook, in what was seen by many as a jab at Rihanna, "I'm Angelina, you're Jennifer. C'mon you see where Brad at."

It's starting to look like the aspiring model may be right ... and may be morphing into Rihanna, with her newly blonde hair and sharpened fake nails. Just saying.

There's also this random Rihanna topless pic Tweeted yesterday. Which has nothing to do with this story, in all honesty, but still felt worth noting.

[Photo: Pacific Coast News]

The ladies in Chris Brown's life, girlfriend, Karreuche Tran, and ex-girlfriend, Rihanna, may or may not be trading social media barbs in an escalating public feud.

Either way, he's loving life these days.

Maybe it’s a welcome distraction in Brown’s life now, with the iPhone theft investigation and all. Maybe it's just nice to have his ego stroked. Maybe both.

In any case, Brown and Rihanna have reportedly been hooking up for months, despite him dating Karreuche Tran ... called “an open relationship” by some.

However, (perceived) trouble began when Rihanna tweeted a photo of a bag of rice cakes with gold earrings, and the caption, "Ima a make u my bitch."

Some interpreted that as a racial jab at Karrueche Tran, who is Vietnamese.

Maybe she was just hungry after a show? Who knows. But in return, the aspiring model fired off several missives on Facebook aimed directly at Rihanna.

In one, she wrote:

"Let me clear the air, if you have fenty at the end of ya name or your default Is Rihanna you have a better chance of winning the lottery than ending up on my friends list."

BAM. Oh, but it continues.

The latest rumor in the strange saga of Rihanna and Chris Brown comes to us from Ms. Karrueche Tran, his girlfriend, and an interesting remark she wrote on Facebook.

Chris and Karrueche seem on solid ground despite his musical (and purported, but not confirmed, sexual) collaborations with Rihanna. But is there tension brewing?

This weekend, Rihanna Tweeted the following picture with the caption "Ima make u my bitch." Some actually interpreted this as a veiled shot at Karrueche Tran:

In response, or maybe just randomly, Karreuche took to Facebook and made a comment that sure seems like a commentary on Chris' relationship status.

That and the fact that she's got the upper hand. She wrote on Facebook:

"I'm Angelina, You're Jen. C'mon you see where Brad is at."

If that was a diss, it was a decent one. Nice use of celebrity gossip knowledge to make the point that Chris Brown is hers now and imply that he's got no interest in Rih.

What do you think of Karrueche Tran's FB post? Was it in response to Rihanna's rice cake diss? Was Rihanna's Tweet really just about eating rice cakes?

"Girl I wanna f*** you right now. Been a long time, I've been missing your body." - the first line of Chris Brown and Rihanna's remix of "Birthday Cake"

Despite suggestive lyrics like that, and plenty of other rumors surrounding Chris Brown and Rihanna, Karrueche Tran isn't bothered by all the noise.

That's because the two have an open relationship, according to reports.

"Karrueche isn't stupid, and she has told friends that they have an open relationship. She never asks about Rihanna, ever," says a source of Brown's girlfriend.

"Chris will take several days to call her back at times, and that is OK with Karreuche. She doesn't pressure or hound Chris, it's just not what she is about."

"She recognizes that they are both young, and she isn't going to let the fact Chris is spending time with his ex-girlfriend come between what they have."

What they have? It doesn't sound like much ... but good for them!

Karreuche and Brown were recently seen in Miami, and she "is clearly enjoying the attention and notoriety she is getting being his girlfriend," a source says.

As for rumors that Rihanna may become his girlfriend instead?

Rumors have been flying that Chris Brown and Rihanna are getting back together, however, dude is still dating Karrueche Tran, and it's apparently going well.

Sources close to Karrueche say that she is not perturbed by the rumors about Rihanna, because she is currently dating - and living with (!) Chris Brown.

Guess she would know better than a bunch of tabloids ...

Furthermore, after Brown made his not-so-secret appearance at Rihanna's birthday party, he whisked Karrueche off to Miami for a romantic Valentine's Day. Aww.

So all is well in paradise? Looks like it. Probably. Maybe.

A source tells Us Weekly that Karrueche knows that Chris Brown and Rihanna have hooked up (she thinks it happens at the studio), but is sanguine about it all.

She isn't going to throw away her meal ticket break up with her boyfriend over a few minor indiscretions, after all ... you gotta look at the big picture here.

So Us claims, anyway.

Karrueche Tran is an aspiring model, if anyone wondered/cared. One who does not care about his past, obviously. Miranda Lambert would not approve.

Earlier today, we reported that Rihanna and Chris Brown are hooking up ... according to one tabloid. Well, there's a new twist, and its name is Karrueche Tran.

Us Weekly claims Brown, 22, and Rihanna, 23, have been hooking up in secret for nearly a year, despite his present relationship with model Tran, also 23.

Chris Brown and Karrueche Tran were spotted together as recently as January 12, when he escorted his love to a hair appointment in Pasadena, Calif.

If Rihanna's driving a wedge between them, they're not showing it. Publicly.

Still, Tran is fully aware of his cheating, Us swears, and suspects she knows the locale: "Karrueche thinks Chris' studio is where most of the hookups take place."

She's determined to hang onto Brown despite the presence of the "We Found Love" singer. According to a source, Tran "won't give him up for a few discretions."

Warns the first insider: "Chris is a really passionate guy. He's still a hothead and he does what he wants. He'll go off the grid and she'll wonder what's going on."

"But, at the moment Chris and Karrueche are still a couple."