People are only just discovering Donald Trump’s bizarre link to Erika Kirk

“Mr President, my husband loved you. And he knew that you loved him too. He did. Your friendship was amazing. You supported him so well, as did he for you,” she said.

Trump also addressed the crowd while Erika Kirk stood beside him. As he wrapped up his speech, he pulled her into an embrace while the crowd erupted in applause.

Online, however, attention quickly shifted, with many social media users commenting on Trump’s facial expression during the moment. And as it turns out, it wasn’t the tragedy that brought these two close together. In fact, the paths of Trump and Erika Kirk crossed long ago.

A social media user found a photo of Erika from the time she competed at a beauty pageant. He reshared the photo, writing, “Oooooh. Erika Kirk competed in the 2012 Miss USA competition, which was owned by Trump. Her talent portion for the Miss Arizona contest was performing a dribbling exhibition with two balls. Her website still lists contact info to book her for modeling and acting.”