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- Kendall Washington and Nicole Jacky were one of the final four couples on "Love Island USA" season six.
- While they didn't win, they left in a relationship. But their romance fractured quickly post-show.
- Here's what we know about their relationship status now.
Kendall Washington and Nicole Jacky were seemingly one of the most solid couples on "Love Island USA" season six.
The two even exchanged "I love yous" (although some fans were convinced Nicole, who'd admitted on their last date she was nervous about dropping the L-word, felt pressured to say it back to him on camera). They made it to the end of the show and ultimately came in fourth place on the season, losing out to fan favorites Serena Page and Kordell Beckham.
Immediately post-show, Nicole and Kendall presented a united front, completing joint exit interviews right after the finale, which aired July 21. But very quickly, things seemed to go south, particularly after Kendall's nude video leaked while he was filming the show.
Here's what we know about their relationship status today.
Fans quickly became convinced Nicole and Kendall had broken up
Nicole and Kendall went to the Universal Studios Hollywood outing with the rest of the "Love Island USA" season six cast and even posed together with wands at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. That happened on July 26, just a few days after the finale aired.
But cracks quickly started to show in their relationship, and fans picked up on it.
Kendall appeared on "The Viall Files" podcast solo on July 29 and said that they were still together (though it's not clear exactly when the conversation was filmed). However, he did admit that things have been tough for them, saying they're "taking it day by day."
Nicole sounded decidedly less optimistic when she gave her own update.
In response to fans wondering why she'd been silent on social media as the season was airing, Nicole shared an Instagram story text post on August 1 saying that even though she had an "amazing experience" on the show, things hadn't been easy since leaving the Villa.
"There's much more to share on what has happened since coming home, and for now, I've been taking time to process — these are real feelings and my real life," she wrote.
On August 15, the day after the reunion was filmed, Nicole was part of the cast excursion to the Empire State Building in New York, but Kendall wasn't there, further leading fans to question whether they were still together.
Confusingly, according to Instagram stories captured by TikTokers like Arianna Lillie, Kendall was still sharing things that seemed to suggest he and Nicole were a couple after Nicole's cryptic Instagram story post. That included reposting a photo that showed Nicole as his phone background with the text "team #kencole rise up."
On top of that, ahead of the reunion airing, there was an extremely unverified claim floating around on TikTok, saying Nicole told a fan after the reunion taping that she and Kendall were still together.
The claim was originated by a TikTok user going by Asher Oliver, who shared several videos from outside the reunion taping, including several where they posed with the "Love Island USA" season six stars in attendance. The TikToker claimed in their caption that Nicole said she and Kendall hadn't split.
Only a live photo, not a video of Nicole saying this, accompanied the post.
When the reunion finally aired on Monday, August 19, it confirmed that, despite all the cryptic messages, what the fan outside the taping reported was right — Kendall and Nicole were still together.
At least at the time the reunion was filmed.
Kendall and Nicole had a tense conversation at the reunion, then broke up a few days later
Jocelyn Prescod/Peacock
During the reunion, the couple had a tense on-air confrontation about the status of their relationship. Both admitted things had been difficult, and Nicole criticized Kendall for not communicating with her. When Kendall replied that they'd been giving each other space, Nicole hit back by saying he'd lied to her.
According to Nicole, Kendall told her that the explicit video of him was taken "years ago" with an ex-girlfriend. But she found out a few days after from their costar JaNa Craig that the video was actually taken from the hotel room right before he went on "Love Island USA" for someone on a dating app.
Nicole also accused Kendall of not checking in on her during her social media break, while Kendall maintained he was just trying to give her space. Nicole said she believed that Kendall loved her and that she loved him too, and that she wanted to repair her relationship with him. Kendall said he wanted to fix their relationship too, and get past the lie he'd told her.
Unfortunately, that didn't end up happening. On Tuesday, August 20, Nicole revealed on Instagram Stories that Kendall had broken up with her just days after the reunion was filmed.
"On August 18th, Kendall and I agreed our relationship was worth working on, and we were making plans for me to visit him in Dallas soon. However, today, on August 20th, he called and ended things," she wrote.
"While I understand and respect his decision, it's hard to process this one. I opened up to him in the villa and still love and care for him now," she continued. Nicole ended the post by saying she was "struggling mentally" and requested privacy to deal with the split.
In his own Instagram Stories post shared shortly after, Kendall confirmed Nicole's version of the breakup.
"I have decided to end things with Nicole. It reached a point where it was not healthy for us to continue the relationship," he wrote. "I still love and care for Nicole. I've never developed such strong feelings for a woman in my life. I have no regrets for the connection I made with her in the villa and it was real."
He ended his post by saying that Nicole doesn't deserve any hate and asked fans to stop leaving negative comments and DMs.
"We're taking this time to focus on our mental health. Thank you guys," Kendall wrote.