Kaylor Martin and Aaron Evans reunited for the first time in nearly a year when they filmed Love Island: Beyond the Villa in April. The former couple hadn’t seen each other since their dramatic split during the season 6 reunion show.
Martin tells PEOPLE she’s “at a better place” with her ex now. But their emotional reunion in the Peacock spinoff wasn’t easy for either of them.
New episodes of Beyond the Villa drop Thursdays on Peacock.
Where Things Stand Now
Martin says Aaron Evans didn’t occupy much space in her thoughts during the months after their split. The 23-year-old reality star moved on with her life while Evans returned to the UK.
“I feel like I’m at a better place. But to be honest, I felt like I was in a fine place all year.”
“We left the reunion, and then I went on and lived my life, as he did,” she explains. “I think seeing him again and being in this environment again with each other, my reality was like, ‘Oh s—, Aaron is a person. He’s involved in this project.'”
Being back in the same world as him “was a lot.” It was nerve-racking.
A Rollercoaster Dynamic
Their relationship becomes a “rollercoaster” throughout the spinoff’s first season, Martin reveals. She and the 28-year-old Evans know how to push each other’s buttons.
“I definitely played part-instigator this season with Aaron,” she admits. “But in all, I think it’s all good.”
The drama between them was inevitable. They know how to pull each other’s heartstrings and instigate situations.
“I think that we’re on good terms. You’ll see our roller coaster go throughout the season.”
Aaron’s Mental Health Struggles
Evans opened up during the premiere episode about how much his mental health suffered after the original show. The backlash hit him hard when he returned to the UK.
“After the reunion, I basically dipped back to the UK. It was quite a horrible experience, the whole reunion situation. There was a lot of backlash, there was a lot of negativity.”
He described going through a dark period after filming wrapped.
“After the reunion, it was pretty dark, and I just remember times where all I wanted to do all day was sleep because it was the only thing that would get me out of thinking of what was going on in my head,” he told Connor Newsum.
Evans had to step away from social media completely. “I just had to unplug myself and just get off of all socials, which I think was really healthy,” he said. “And even to this day now, I’m still signed out of all my social medias.”
A Real Apology
When they finally reunited for Beyond the Villa, Evans took the opportunity to apologize and take responsibility for his past behavior.
“I apologize for what I put you through. The f—– gaslighting, manipulating, all that stuff, I do apologize for.”
He admitted to feeling like he’d dug himself “too deep” during Love Island and didn’t know how to fix things. Evans said he didn’t want to ruin the whole experience for everyone.
“And then once Liv [Walker] got to New York [for the reunion], you went from one extreme to the other,” he told Martin. “So the first few days, when you were with me, you were pretty chill vibes, and then as soon as you saw Liv, you kind of flipped.”
That’s when he realized there was no going back. “It registered in my brain, there’s no coming back, we’re not gonna be together.”
Martin later described the reunion as “so awkward” in a confessional. “But we’re gonna be in the same friend groups and be around each other, so let’s have a good summer.”
New episodes of Love Island: Beyond the Villa drop Thursdays at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET on Peacock.
