Love Island USA's Kaylor Martin Isn’t Shedding Tears Post-Breakup

For most Love Island USA cast members, leaving the villa with the person you originally coupled up with is considered a success story — particularly if you’re exiting the show as boyfriend and girlfriend. But for Kaylor Martin, 22, the drama really began after saying goodbye to the reality TV cameras.

The Pennsylvania native was one of the OG islanders on Season 6, and she immediately hit it off with Traitors UK alum Aaron Evans. Though the duo steadily grew closer over the first few weeks, Evans pursued another woman, Daniela Ortiz Rivera, in Casa Amor, a time when contestants are separated to test their loyalty to one another.

Martin forgave Evans — but not without a few expletive-filled fights — and the two continued their romance. But when she left the villa, she realized how much she didn’t know about what happened with Ortiz Rivera. After a few weeks and joint media appearances with Evans, Martin finally watched the Casa Amor episodes and realized the extent of his deception. “I never want to speak to you again. You're disgusting,” she told Evans during the Aug. 19 reunion, after he admitted to putting his hands down Ortiz Rivera’s pants. This confrontation was a long time coming.

I didn't know why he waited to say it on camera — if he wanted to get a big reaction, or if he wanted to make me cry.

Now that the cameras are off, her perspective on the summer she spent with Evans isn’t quite so heated. “I’m 22. I'm going to have heartbreaks, fall in love, meet douchebags,” Martin tells Elite Daily. “I’m not saying Aaron's a douchebag... I think Aaron is a really great guy.”

Since calling it off, she’s been healing — and to the surprise of anyone who watched her on Love Island, she isn’t crying over him. I'm really proud of myself. I haven't shed a tear in a very long time,” she says.

Here, Martin opens up about her experience on the show, rumors about the reunion, and why she won’t be answering any thirsty DMs.

ED: What was your mindset like coming into Love Island?

KM: I remember telling production, "I'm not going in to find a boyfriend. I'll be the girl to couple up with five different men and fall in love with three of them." That clearly wasn't my experience. I did not expect to find someone I really loved.

ED: I know you watched Casa Amor back before the reunion — how much of the rest of the show have you watched?

KM: I kept getting comments on social media, "Kaylor, watch Episode 6." That’s when I had kissed Hakeem [White] in a challenge, and Aaron really got mad at me. I also watched Casa Amor and a little bit after that. Aaron kept telling me, "You should watch after Casa. Don't focus on the bad parts." But I had to rip that Band-Aid off.

In the villa, you forget that the outside world exists ... When I left, my love bubble popped.

ED: You may not have seen the whole show, but *a lot* of people were watching. What was it like, coming out of the villa and seeing how huge it was?

KM: I signed up for Love Island. I knew what that entailed, but I didn't sign up for all of this. The USA franchise usually doesn't do this well. When I left the villa, my socials were going crazy.

The first thing I did when I got my phone back was call my best friends. They kept saying, "You don't realize how big this is. You have no idea." It's a huge shock.

ED: You filmed the reunion a few weeks after being back. What was it like coming back together to tape that?

KM: The whole cast was staying at the same hotel. Aaron and I stayed together the first night in New York, even though we were broken up. It's hard not to see someone that you really care about. Yes, he f*cked up multiple times, but I still missed him. It was comforting to see him.

Before the reunion, we were getting into a lot of arguments, and it wasn't healthy. Caine [Bacon] had actually told him that I was all over Jalen [Oliver] in Casa Amor, so he thought I shouldn't be giving him a hard time about Daniela. Aaron was gaslighting me in the hotel room saying, "You're giving me all this sh*t for Daniela, but you did this with Jalen." Still, he failed to mention that he put his hands down her pants.

ED: What went through your mind when you heard that at the reunion?

KM: I'm not very confrontational, but then Aaron laid that bomb on me. Keep in mind, we were together in New York City multiple times. He could have pulled me to the side and shared that with me at any point. I didn't know why he waited to say it on camera — if he wanted to get a big reaction, or if he wanted to make me cry. But that really hurt me.

I know a lot of people were like, "Kaylor, why are you shocked?" It’s because I asked him multiple times if that happened, and he said it didn’t. I still trusted him. When I love someone, I'm their biggest cheerleader, and I tend to be gullible sometimes.

ED: There was a viral rumor that you and Aaron fought at the reunion, which held up the taping. Is there any truth to that?

KM: That's not true. That girl who posted that does not work for Peacock. I think she just wanted to get her like count up, and it worked. On the day of the reunion, there was actually a power outage, so we didn't start until very late.

We were there for three or four hours when it was supposed to be a seven-hour day. There was a lot we didn’t talk about. At one point, I saw on Ariana’s teleprompter, "Talk about Rob on Call Her Daddy." But that wasn't mentioned at all because we didn't have enough time.

ED: How are you feeling post-breakup?

KM: I honestly feel great. I'm loving life right now. Liv and I have been attached to each other's hips for the last month. I keep saying to her, "After this, I'd rather be with my best friend than a man." We're both 22. We don't need a man right now holding us back or holding us down.

ED: Following your breakup, you and Aaron were initially still talking. After the reunion, did you go no contact?

KM: He actually blocked me, Liv, and all of my hometown friends on Instagram. I don't know how he found my hometown friends because he never met them. He must've done some investigation work.

We haven't talked since the reunion. Honestly, it’s for the best. I have nothing to say to him.

ED: Did leaving the villa change your perspective on your relationship with Aaron?

KM: In the villa, you are only given so many men to pick from. If Aaron did all this in the real world, I would have gone to a club with my friends, had a drink, and found me another man.

In the villa, you forget that the outside world exists. Your emotions are heightened. You don't have your support system. But when I left, my love bubble popped.

ED: What was the biggest lesson from your time in the villa?

KM: Not to be so trusting. Also, I’m a big people pleaser, and I need to stand up for myself more and have my own back.

ED: What advice would you give yourself if you could do it all again?

KM: Not to put all your eggs in one basket. I wish I explored a little bit more.

Dating, stay away from me. Men, stay far away from me.

ED: What do you think is the biggest misconception about you, from viewers who watched you on the show?

KM: That I’m such a lover girl. I normally am when I really like a guy, but I usually don't fall in love that easily or even give men the chance.

But in general, I don’t think it’s fair when people blame things on production. If you have a bad edit, you kind of give them that ammo. Me? I cried every day, and I'll own that. Production didn’t make me cry.

ED: What’s your attitude toward dating now?

KM: I don't want anything to do with it. Dating, stay away from me. Men, stay far away from me.

ED: Are your DMs flooded?

KM: Yes. Men are sending me, "Let me treat you right,” or “Aaron fumbled hard, let me show you what a real man's like." I just delete them. I am loving my early 20s, and I think I'll love them even more being single and having fun.

ED: Did this experience shape your perception of love at all?

KM: Even though my experience was traumatic, I love love. I'm not going to let someone change the way I feel about it. I also wouldn't say that I was ever in love with [Aaron], but I definitely had love for him. I still do, and I think I always will. He's just not the guy for me.

They say dating in your 20s is like trial and error, right? It shows you what you do and don't want. I'm still learning, and I have a long journey ahead of me. But this summer taught me a lot.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.