Nina Dobrev on Ian Somerhalder Split: "People Aren't Defined by Their Relationships"

The friends that go through breakups together ... stay together?

After pictures surfaced in recent months of Nina Dobrev spending time with Julianne Hough, reports attributed it to the fact that both had recently broken up with their respective beaus, Ian Somerhalder and Ryan Seacrest.

"That's not what our friendship is about," she told the September issue of Cosmopolitan. "Unfortunately, that's how it's perceived, but there's more to us. People aren't defined by their relationships. The whole point is being true to yourself and not losing yourself in relationships, whether romances or friendships."

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The 24-year-old Vampire Diaries star, however, doesn't necessarily sound hesitant about jumping into a new romance after dating Somerhalder for three years. "You either have chemistry or you don't, but a lot of what attracts me is a guy's mind and humor and talent. I need to get to know all those things before I fall for someone," she said. "I'm not a one-night-stand kind of girl. I'm a relationship girl."

So what is it that Dobrev is looking for in a guy now that she's back on the market? "I'm progressive in some ways, old-fashioned in others. I like it when guys hold the door open and are sweet and thoughtful. The guys on our show are really good at that," she said. "A man in a suit looking put together and dapper is very attractive, but I also kind of like the I-just-rolled-out-of-bed, a-little-bit-of-scruff, effortless, not-trying-hard-but-still-sexy guy. If a guy spends more time looking in the mirror than I do, that's problem!"