Pete Buttigieg is growing a beard and we almost forgot about the coronavirus pandemic for a bit. (Screen capture via Instagram)

In news that you simply had to read as you clicked this link and are now using your finite time on this Earth to read this sentence, Pete Buttigieg is growing a beard.

From vying for the top seat at the White House to staying indoors with his husband, the former South Bend, Indiana mayor has taken it easy since suspending his historic campaign bid.

As campaigners tried to court gay voters, Buttigieg did stumble on a potential way to win them; grow a beard.

Indeed, The Lizzie McGuire Movie director Jim Fall shared a sensual photo of Buttigieg but used the FaceTuner app to dot a beard on him in Feburary.

Quickly decreed as “Daddy Pete”, the episode proved, once again, that all white men need to do to be attractive is grow a beard.

The bearded Buttigieg took off, with many feeling he could easily top his Democratic rivals as well as Donald Trump.

But now, life imitated art Wednesday afternoon after husband Chasten posted an Instagram story of the pair using their home gym with Istanbul by Bahjat blasting in the background.

During which, it showed Buttigieg… with stubble.

‘Even more beard edge edge during these trying times’.

Dad’s home, apparently, and fans of the former Democratic presidential candidate flocked to Twitter to express their undying love for the “Buttigieg-beard”.

OPERATION BEARD EDGE EDGE IS A GO, #BEARDEDGEEDGE IS LIVE: pic.twitter.com/A4nAlwrfBI — Stefan Smith (@TheStefanSmith) March 18, 2020

The subreddit forum dedicated to all things Buttigieg eventually discovered the beard, tallying up nearly 600 upvotes in less than a day.

Truly.

One user said: “A few days ago, my wife asked if there was a subreddit dedicated to Pete’s beard. I responded, ‘yes, it’s r/Pete_Buttigieg‘.”

We can only begin to comprehend what the gay man who has intense Buttigieg-related fantasies and wants to call his husband “Mayor Pete” in bed has to say about the beard.