Justin Bieber showed up at the 2011 CMT Music Awards without Selena Gomez. But that doesn't mean he walked the red carpet alone. His date was an attractive older woman, who is, in fact, his first best girl--his proud mom, Pattie Mallette. And how delighted Pattie must have been to see her son walk away with yet another major award. The Biebs' Collaborative Video of the Year Award which he won for his collaboration with Rascal Flatts on That Should Be Me was his first country music award ever. It was sweet of him to bring his mom to share that moment with him. But the question remains: where was Selena Gomez?

It was rather odd to see Justin Bieber at the CMT Awards--or anywhere else for that matter--without Selena Gomez. The teen lovebirds seem to be joined at the hip nowadays, providing fans, haters, and the omnipresent paparazzi with plenty of PDA and fodder for speculation. Could Selena's failure to attend the CMTs, coupled with JB's reportedly giving her the cold shoulder on June 7 at an NBA game in Dallas signal trouble in paradise? Anything is possible, but probably not.

Selena Gomez probably flew back to L.A. instead of going to Nashville for the CMTs with Justin Bieber because she's scheduled to appear on The Tonight Show on June 9. On June 10, she'll kick off her Monte Carlo mall tour which will last through June 27. Selena and her Monte Carlo co-stars Leighton Meester and Katie Cassidy will travel to 10 select cities meeting fans and promoting the film which will open on July 1. She'll also be performing songs from her new album, When The Sun Goes Down, as well as her hit single, Who Says? Looks like Selena's going to be a busy girl.

So, the couple's fans can relax and the haters can grit their teeth and shake their fists in frustration. Jelena is no doubt still steady as they go. They'll just be apart for a while.

Wonder if Justin will visit Selena on tour just like she visited him in Indonesia?