Spoilers for all episodes of Love Island USA season 6 ahead. In the world of Love Island USA, nothing's better than leaving the villa in an established relationship. (Well, aside from taking home the $100,000 prize.) Season 6 standouts Kendall Washington and Nicole Jacky are one of the lucky pairs who made things official during the hit dating reality show, which saw their relationship challenged by frisky challenges, bombshell flirting, and even Casa Amor. Still, Kendall and Nicole remained one of the strongest couples in this season of the popular dating series, which now airs on Peacock. The pair even said "I love you" to each other by the July 21 finale, where they stood as season 6 finalists.
Now that cameras have stopped rolling on the Islanders (at least until the Love Island USA season 6 reunion special, of course), fans are wondering what will happen to the couple when they re-enter the real world. Read on for everything we know about the couple's status post-season 6 so far.
What happened between Kendall and Nicole on 'Love Island USA' season 6?
Kendall Washington, a 27-year-old from Dallas, Texas, was one of the 12 original cast members who arrived on Love Island USA on day one. He originally coupled with Hannah Smith, but everything changed with 26-year-old Nicole Jacky entered the Fiji villa as a day six bombshell. Nicole and Kendall quickly hit it off as she pursued him, and they paired up at the subsequent recoupling.
Kendall and Nicole ended up becoming one of the most tight-knit pairs, remaining together for the rest of the season and even surviving the drama of Casa Amor. During the July 21 finale, Kendall confirmed that he knew he loved Nicole when he returned from Casa Amor and found that she had decided to wait for him.
Nicole and Kendall made things official in the fourth week of the season, becoming boyfriend and girlfriend after Kendall popped the question. Of course, they were among the four couples who became finalists, including Serena Page and Kordell Beckham, Leah Kateb and Miguel Harichi, and JaNa Craig and Kenny Rodriguez. Though they were among the four couples who became finalists (and even shared the big L-O-V-E by the season's end), the pair ended season 6 as the fourth-place couple. (Fan-favorite Serena and Kordell inevitably took home the big prize.)
Are Nicole and Kendall still together after 'Love Island USA' season 6?
Kendall and Nicole seemed to be on cloud nine immediately after the season's end. In a post-finale interview with Us Weekly, the couple shared that their plans following season 6 include eventually living together in California. Though Texas Christian University alum Kendall currently lives in Dallas, he has connections to the Sunshine State, where Nicole resides in Sacramento.
“It’s good that she lives in California because I have a lot of family there—my sister and my mom are in California. So it’s a win-win situation when I go there, I get to see Nicole and I also get to see my family,” Kendall told the outlet. “I know my family eventually wants me to move back to California so my mom, specifically, is excited that Nicole is from there.”
The couple has also had to deal with offscreen drama since the show's end. While Kendall was filming Love Island USA in Fiji, a "private" video of him was shared without his consent on social media, as reported by Page Six. Kendall responded to the leak in an Instagram Story written once he got his phone back following the finale.
“What a way to get my phone back y’all," he wrote in a post shared on July 22. "I just want to address the content that came out from my past. That was something I shared to someone in confidence and trust. It’s unfortunate that it’s no longer private but it is what it is.”
He continued, “I want to thank you all for the calls/texts to support me during this time. I am so grateful for my love island [sic] experience and I love you all for tuning in to watch my journey. Excited for what's next."
Clearly, he's looking past the unfortunate blunder and more so toward his future with Nicole. We'll have to see how their romance continues to play out in the coming weeks.
