Whether Chris Brown and Rihanna are dating again or just hanging out, Rihanna makes it pretty clear in the new issue of "Rolling Stone" that the rest of us should BUTT OUT.

She says, "I decided it was more important for me to be happy.  I wasn't going to let anybody's opinion get in the way of that.  Even if it's a mistake, it's my mistake."

She adds, "After being tormented for so many years, being angry and dark, I'd rather just live my truth and take the backlash.  I can handle it."

She says the relationship is a lot more stable now . . . "We don't have those types of arguments anymore. We talk about [stuff]. We value each other. We know exactly what we have now, and we don't want to lose that."

Still, she's giving Chris little room for error . . .  "He doesn't have the luxury of [effing] up again. That's just not an option.

"I can't say that nothing else will ever go wrong.  But I'm pretty solid in the knowing that he's disgusted by that.  And I wouldn't have gone this far if I ever thought that was a possibility."