‘Outer Banks’ star Chase Stokes explains what drew him to Kelsea Ballerini

Kelsea Ballerina he might be playing coy about if he’s dating her Chase Stokes — but it’s a bit more definitive… explaining to TMZ what, exactly, he likes about her.

The “Outer Banks” star confirmed to our photographer on Tuesday that he and the country singer are, in fact, a couple…but whether he intended her to slip away the way he did is another story. Check out our chat with him in Los Angeles… where we congratulate him on his new boo.

Instead of correcting us or clarifying anything… he simply said thank you, and even gave us an answer when we asked what Kelsea brings to the table in their relationship.

Another says they’re definitely dating: CS scoffs at the idea that Kelsea might need to brush him up on southern culture. She’s a Nashville girl, but Chase made sure to set the record straight… by pointing out that he himself grew up in the South and knows all about cowboy hats and such.

Speculation as to whether they are a thing started last week when they were spotted attending the National Championship game in the same group, but it seemed more official when Chase posted a photo of just the 2 of them huddled in the stands.

That appears to be the official IG photo, but Chase is letting people come to that conclusion on their own: he didn’t comment on the in-game photo, but happily talked about Kelsea.

For her part, Kelsea reacted to the gossip with an unanswered response, rolling her eyes at some DeuxMoi chatter about them and plenty of “Really?”.