Will Robert Pattinson Forgive Kristen Stewart?

Wonderwall, Wednesday, August 8, 2012, 9:49am (PDT)

By Kat Giantis

• When last we heard from Robert Pattinson, he was drinking and laughing with pals at a country-western bar in Ojai, Calif., where he escaped to Reese Witherspoon's ranch after Kristen Stewart's pap-snapped hookup with her "Snow White and the Huntsman" director, Rupert Sanders.

  But with a fresh crop of tabloids hitting the stands, the actor's apparent internal romantic conflict remains under the microscope.

  “One moment he thought he had his partner and the next he was forced to rethink decisions he's made," a source tells People (via Hollywood Life). "He's sad about it."

  But not yet sad enough to make a clean break, according to Us Weekly, which says members of his inner circle are hoping he'll soon kick Kristen to the curb.

  "What he wants still changes from day to day," sighs a source. "He loves her very much."

  No word on whether one of Pattinson's pro-dumping pals is Katy Perry, who has purportedly offered Rob a sympathetic ear.

  The popster has taken time out from sucking face with John Mayer (shudder) to check in on Pattinson and lend her support, a spy tells Us, explaining, "She's been through heartbreak this year, too."

  One confidant believes the forthcoming awkwardness of the impending "Breaking Dawn -- Part 2" promotional campaign could give the relationship a nudge into reconciliation.

  “He's putty in her hands," an R.Pattz insider notes to Us. "Once they're on press tour, it will be hard for him to resist getting back together with her."

  Expect to see co-star Taylor Lautner used as a strategic buffer during photo ops, although that, too, could prove uncomfortable for Stewart.

  Us says Taylor is "disappointed" with K.Stew for her betrayal of Pattinson because "he looked up to her," but he will handle it like a professional.

  The erstwhile Edward will also keep his composure, says his pal: "Rob would never do anything to Kristen out of spite. He's too good a guy. It's not like him to want to hurt her."

  And what about the guy she hurt him with? On Tuesday, Sanders was photographed in Los Angeles in the company of estranged wife Liberty Ross. The tête-à-tête, rumored to be their first since word of the "momentary indiscretion" broke, took place outside an office building and appeared both brief and tense.

  Ross, who showed off her bare ring finger earlier this week, was decked out in a leg-baring ensemble and vertiginous stilettos, although her outfit may have had more to do with her lunch date than her rendezvous with the father of her two children. After leaving Sanders, she met up with a fashion stylist pal for a laughter-filled meal.

• The filmmaker, meanwhile, flashed his wedding band while noshing on a sandwich all by his lonesome. To complete the sad-sack picture, he went grocery shopping and ended up dropping several of his purchases on the ground while loading them into his car.

  And finally, a voice of reason emerged from the Twi-pocalpyse, now that "Breaking Dawn -- Part 2" director Bill Condon has weighed in on the affair fallout.

  "The fact is, these are actors playing parts, and maybe it's not such a bad thing that people be reminded of that," he explains to Entertainment Weekly. "Both of these actors gave heart and soul to the 'Twilight' movies, not only during shooting, but also by navigating so graciously the whole life-in-a-fishbowl aspect of the phenomenon. Above all they have always shown great respect for the fans who made these movies such a success. Now it's time that some of that respect be returned to them."

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  Rob a 'total mess'?

  Notorious cheating scandals