Are Ace & Chelley Still Together From Love Island USA? Their Response to Rumors They Were Secretly Dating Before the Show

Love Island USA Season 7 spoilers ahead. They were only one episode close to making it to the finale, but are Ace and Chelley still together from Love Island USA Season 7? Not everyone believes in the “invisible string theory” they pushed.

Allen “Ace” Greene, a 22-year-old from Los Angeles, California, and Michelle “Chelley” Bissainthe, a 27-year-old from Orlando, Florida, were two of 10 original islanders on Love Island USA Season 7. They coupled up on Day 13 and stayed together—except for a short break in their relationship during Casa Amor—until the episode before the Love Island USA Season 7 finale when they were dumped from the island after receiving the least amount of votes from America.

Related: All the Love Island USA couples who are still together

Ace and Chelley’s elimination on Love Island USA Season 7 came after backlash Ace for his treatment of castmate Amaya Espinal, whom he was coupled up with from Day 6 to Day 13, after their fight over Amaya’s usage of the word “babe” around him. Chelley, for her part, also faced backlash from fans later in the season when she accused castmate Huda Mustafa for going “too far” with Ace during the Heart Rate Challenge. While Ace and Chelley were far from fan favorites on Love Island USA Season 7, they were the only couple in the final five to have coupled up from almost the beginning. But was their connection in the villa enough to make their relationship work in the real world?

Are Ace and Chelley still together from Love Island USA?

Given that Love Island USA releases new episodes two to three days after they’re filmed, it’s likely that Ace and Chelley are still together and in Fiji at the time their elimination aired on Peacock. Ace and Chelley also confirmed they were still together in an interview with Variety after their elimination, in which Ace revealed Chelley’s plans to move to Los Angeles, California, to be closer to him. (Chelley currently lives in New York City, New York.)

“We are going to take our time day by day. We are still getting to know each other outside of villa life. Life is completely different from what America gets to see. I’m excited to grow our relationship and improve our communication, especially since she’s in Florida. I’m in L.A., but she’s looking to move to L.A., and we’ll go from there,” Ace said.

Ace also confirmed that he and Chelley plan to stay “exclusive” outside of the villa. “I hated the term ‘closed off’ — they get closed off in the villa, go outside, and now they’re free to roam. I’m very intentional. ‘Exclusive’ means exclusive to only each other. That’s not just in the villa. That’s in the outside world too. And I’m excited to translate that over,” he said.

Of the final five couples from Love Island USA Season 7, Ace and Chelley do have one of the best chances of staying together, given that they already knew each other and were interested in each other before the season started filming. In the premiere, Chelley revealed that she met Ace at a nightclub in New York City months before they entered the villa, leading their castmates to compare them to the invisible string theory, which suggests that couples are connected by an unseen, powerful bond that links them regardless of distance and other obstacles.

After the premiere, a video of Ace resurfaced of him seemingly wishing Chelley a happy Valentine’s Day, which led to rumors that he and Chelley were secretly in a relationship before Love Island USA Season 7 started filming. “Not to be messy but like… I know Ace and Chelley irl. They’re out here acting like they barely know each other when they’ve been talking for MONTHS. Like??? He literally told her Happy Valentine’s Day this year on IG. stop playing,” a user who claimed to know Ace and Chelley wrote on their Instagram Story. “They didn’t just ‘bump into each other at a party.’ Chelley models and does music videos,and y’all know Ace is tryna be a rapper right? That’s literally how they linked. He hit her up like ‘you should be in my next vid’ and started pressing her.”

The user continued, “They’ve been intimate. They’ve been dating. He talks about her all the time. She’s been around all the bros. Everybody in their circle knows what’s up. Chelley’s not entertaining anyone else in that villa because she’s already with Ace. She’s just sitting back letting him run his little play.”

The user went on to claim that Ace and Chelley had a plan before coming on Love Island USA Season 7. “Neither of them has kissed anyone outside of a challenge. That’s not a coincidence. It’s cause they agreed on it,” the user wrote. “They were like ‘let’s play the game’ but obviously they knew people would catch on if they avoided challenge kisses too. That’s the only reason they’re even doing that.”

The user continued, “And y’all thought that little licking scene was cute or whatever? Please. She’s okay with it cause they’re actually together. Ace will do anything for fame.” The user also went on to accuse Ace of eliminating contestants like Jeremiah Brown to get rid of his competition.

“He told people he was going to be a disruptor and that’s exactly what he’s doing,” the user wrote. “Trying to break up real connections while making sure people root for him and Chelley. Don’t get played. Y’all are watching a performance.”

After the accusations, Chelley’s friends denied that she had a relationship with Ace prior to Love Island USA Season 7. “We want to be transparent and clear the air, as some of the rumors have gotten far from the truth,” Chelley’s friends wrote. “Chelley and Ace briefly crossed paths in New York and later connected on social media.” The post continued, “They were never in a relationship, never lived together, and there are no children or hidden past. What’s unfolding now is real, unscripted, and could change at any moment. We’re fully supporting Chelley, wherever her heart leads and with whomever she chooses to couple with.” Ace and Chelley also have the issue of distance in their relationship.

Ace also responded to accusations he was “strategic” in the villa in an interview with Variety. “It was not being strategic,” he said. “It was being very intentional with every conversation. I’ve already had a following coming into this, and I didn’t want to come in with that entertainer mindset of doing whatever to get attention. It wasn’t that. It was me being open and communicating to the fellas, ‘We have to communicate more if you want to talk to a person. Let them know if you’re not interested so there’s no miscommunication, people think you’re or that you are not here for the right reasons.’ But I never was strategic. I stated how I felt every time. It was never a matter of Ace being messy. If you feel a way, come talk to me about it, or I’ll pull you aside to clear the air. Again, it’s 24 hours in a day. You guys get shown for one hour. But I was never trying to be strategic or messy. Messiness is when you don’t want people to know how you’re feeling. I’m gonna stay how I feel every single time.”

Before Love Island USA Season 7, Chelley also knew Amaya because they both live in New York City, New York. Ace, for his part, resides in Los Angeles, California. So it’s a positive sign they have plans to live in the same city, as distance is the main reason most couples from dating shows (including Love Island USA) break up.

After Love Island USA Season 5, runners-up Kassy Castillo and Leonardo Dionicio announced that they had split due to the distance between them. (Kassy is from Fort Worth, Texas, while Leo is from West Hartford, Connecticut.)

“No Leo and I are not together, I think it’s just best that we do our own thing right now. It’s long-distance, it’s a lot. I still care for him and wish him all the best. Truly. He was my Love Island experience so he has a special place in my heart,” Kassy said in an Instagram live in 2023.

She continued, “Everything was real and genuine, that’s what makes it harder now. Breakups suck. All that I ask is for everyone to give us time because it’s so new. I care for him so much and I wish it didn’t go this way but I really do think this is for the best. I hope soon… who knows? I’m open to anything in the future but it’s just not aligning. He doesn’t deserve any harsh words or comments.”

While Ace and Chelley live in separate states and could face the same fate as Leo and Kassy, it’s also possible for their relationship to work long distance, like Season 6’s runners-up, Leah Kateb and Miguel Harichi. Leah is from Los Angeles, California, while Miguel is from London, United Kingdom.

In an interview with StyleCaster in February 2025, Leah explained that she and Miguel made their relationship work post-Love Island USA because Miguel almost immediately moved to Los Angeles to be closer to her. “It’s always been my dream to have a barn so I can take in foster animals,” Leah told StyleCaster about her and Miguel’s plans to build a house together. “Miguel gets to pick one animal. He wants a cow. I want fainting goats.”

Love Island USA streams on Peacock.