When Love Island USA Season 6 wrapped last month, Nicole Jacky and Kendall Washington were loved-up while walking out of the villa on the finale.
In the aftermath, it was evident that things were not going smoothly for the pair, and it all came to a head during Tuesday’s Love Island Season 6 reunion.
The couple got into a heated debate during the episode when host Ariana Madix asked them how their relationship had been since the finale.
Kendall quickly admitted that it’s been “tough” but claimed they were trying to “communicate and work things” out.
Nicole cut him off because she was so shocked that he would use “communicate” to characterize their relationship status.
“Communicate? You’ve not been communicating, and you never have been,” she complained.
Nicole then accused Kendall of lying to her face, which we later learned was related to an X-rated video that leaked of him before the season finale.
Kendall lied about the timeline of the video
It seems that Kendall lied about when the video was recorded because fellow islander JaNa Craig told Nicole that it was filmed in a hotel room and sent by Kendall to someone he met on a dating app before filming the show.
“So I just want to say something because obviously the video is not OK,” Nicole said of the video being leaked without Kendall’s consent.
“Nobody deserves that. Everybody in this room can agree that it’s f***ed up,” she affirmed before putting her love interest on blast for lying to her.
“However, I think if you say you love somebody … you need to be honest. Instead of saying [the video] is from years ago,” Nicole doubled down.
Kendall then said getting his phone back and learning about the video spreading across the internet was difficult, revealing that his “life was turned upside down.”
Despite Kendall claiming that he wanted Nicole to be by his side in the aftermath, Nicole felt that he only wanted to communicate with her on his terms.
Kendall did not agree with those sentiments, arguing that Nicole had ignored him countless times since.
Is there hope for Kendall and Nicole?
It was a raw and emotional argument because it was evident that the two islanders still had a connection.
The biggest surprise was Nicole’s admission that they’re still very much together, hinting they could work through their many issues.
However, the lack of communication is a cause for concern and probably doesn’t bode well for their future.
The good news is that they’re at least open to repairing things.
Few reality TV relationships survive their first few months in the real world, so stay tuned for any updates.
Love Island USA is available to stream on Peacock.