Now, we're not professional lip-readers ... but we could SWEAR Rihanna referred to Drake and his posse as a bunch of "a**holes" when they won an MTV VMA award last night.

Check out the video ... moments after Drake, Lil' Wayne, Nicki Minaj and the rest of the crew walk to the stage to accept the award for Best Hip-Hop Video ... the camera cuts to a close-up shot of Rihanna.

Rihanna mouths some words to the person sitting next to her ... it appears she says, "I hate these a**holes."

Rihanna -- who was sitting just a few seats down from Drake -- also refused to clap for the rapper when they announced his name and even turned her head so she wouldn't have to look at him.

No surprise since Rihanna is tight with Chris Brown ... whose face was busted up during that crazy NYC nightclub brawl back in June.

Then again ... maybe she was just talking about "these rascals?"

The biggest moment at the MTV VMAs wasn't aired on TV ... it was captured on a live Internet feed ... when Rihanna approached Chris Brown on her way to her seat and gave him a HUG AND A KISS.

It all happened live on MTV's "VIP Seating Cam" -- Rihanna made a beeline for Brown before the show ... and when she got close, Brown stood up and then Rihanna kissed him on the cheek.

The two then hugged each other ... and when it was over, Rihanna walked back to her seat.

It's the first time we've seen the two actually touching each other since the infamous beating incident back in 2009 ... the night before the Grammys.

Recently, Rihanna has been opening up about her feelings for Brown ... telling Oprah she still cares about him ... calling him "the love of my life."

MTV is hosting an awards show to honor something called a "music video" ... something that hasn't been seen on MTV in years. 

Still, the stars need an excuse to get together and wear crazy outfits ... and TMZ has the photos of all the insanity that went down outside the event.

Chris Brown's word is his bond -- weeks after the singer promised to reward the fan who returned his $22 thousand watch at the VMAs ... he came through.

Breezy rolled through the fan's hometown of Cincinnati last night ... and he hooked the girl, Alisha,  up with 2 great seats to his concert at the Riverbend Music Center.

Chris also met with Alisha to thank her face-to-face ... then invited her to hang with him and his entourage before the show to eat some cake.  And Chris threw in a signed picture for good measure.

As we previously reported, CB accidentally tossed the diamond-encrusted Rolex into the crowd at the MTV awards last month ... Alisha caught it and gave it to Chris' bouncer.

Chris Brown is one step closer to thanking the girl who returned his lost $22 THOUSAND Rolex -- TMZ has learned ... the super-honest fan has come forward!

We spoke to the Rolex-returner herself -- a girl named Alisha -- who tells us she was in the audience at the VMA's with a friend -- when Chris took off his watch, dropped it on a trampoline ... and it bounced right over to her.

Alisha says she put the Rolex on her wrist -- then saw one of Brown's people looking for the wayward watch ... so she turned it in.

We're told the two parties got in contact after seeing the story on our site -- and Alisha was promised tickets to a show, backstage passes and a meet-and-greet with Chris.

Alisha tells us she's SUPER excited about the offer -- and was never expecting a reward for her good deed.

Chris Brown is ETERNALLY GRATEFUL to the super honest female fan who returned his $22 THOUSAND diamond-encrusted Rolex  -- and he wants to show his gratitude by treating her to some pretty cool swag.

As we previously reported -- Chris' pricey timepiece got lost in a sea of screaming fans during his VMA performance. A bodyguard went looking for the watch ... and shockingly, someone turned it in.

A rep for Brown tells us -- Chris' bodyguard didn't get the name of the girl who returned the watch ... but they're hoping she'll contact them ... so Chris can personally thank her and reward her with tickets and backstage passes to his new tour.

Remember kids ... honesty is its own reward.

Chris Brown thought his $22,000 diamond encrusted Rolex was LOST FOREVER when he accidentally tossed it into the crowd at the MTV VMAs ... but lucky for him, he thought wrong.

TMZ has learned ... Brown's watch -- a gold Rolex with a white oyster face and diamond-encrusted bezel -- came loose at the beginning of his performance ... so he took it off and tried to toss it to a safe place ... all while dancing his face off.

But Brown missed his target and the watch ended up in the crowd.

After the performance, Brown's bodyguard went into the audience and asked if anyone had found the watch -- not really expecting anyone to come forward ... but to his surprise, the watch was in the possession of an HONEST person, who returned it to its rightful owner.

A rep for Brown tells TMZ, "Although Chris did not get to meet the fan, he is very appreciative of the fan's actions."

Still, we gotta ask ...

Kid Cudi is NOT Don Draper, so he doesn't get to smoke wherever he wants -- and he learned that lesson the hard way when he sparked up at the MTV VMAs last night.

Honchos at the Nokia Theater at L.A. Live spotted the rapper puffing away as Lady Gaga went on stage to accept the award for Best Female Video -- which is a problem because the place is a non-smoking venue.

A rep for the building tells TMZ an usher was dispatched to speak with Cudi -- where, "He was asked to put it out and he complied."

And they all lived happily ever after.

It was the standout performance of the MTV VMAs -- Chris Brown dancing his face off -- but while everyone from Kanye to Bieber stood up and cheered ... Jay-Z refused to even crack a smile.

Of course, Jay is the man who discovered Rihanna -- and they're still VERY tight. So, was his decision to NOT clap a message to Brown?  Or is Jay simply too cool for the room?

Beyonce just showed up to the MTV VMAs with a very special guest -- HER FETUS.

Rumors have been swirling about B having a bun in the oven for weeks ... but tonight she confirmed the buzz by showing off her baby bump on the red carpet.

With Beyonce as the mom ... and Jay-Z as the dad -- one thing's for sure ... THAT KID IS GONNA BE RICH!!!!

For more on the MTV VMAs check out TooFab.com.

Pauly D has feelings too ... and dude tells us he was DEVASTATED when he learned that honchos at the Hollywood Walk of Fame have banned reality stars from receiving the honor.

The "Jersey Shore" star is in L.A. for the MTV VMAs -- but told us he's still thinking about his family on the East Coast ... who've had to board up their homes and evacuate because of Hurricane Irene.

Still, Pauly insists his hair is "Irene-proof!"