The contestants living together in the villa of Love Island USA Season 7 have now spent an entire week together and things are already heating up. From the start, Jeremiah and Huda have been glued at the hip, not allowing anyone for a chat to get to know them. Viewers watched as Yulissa was removed from the show, and a total of four bombshells came in to shake things up.

The end of the first week also saw the season’s first recoupling. It was the men who got to choose which woman they wanted to recouple with. Some couplings came as no surprise, but with the addition of bombshells, that meant one woman would end up single and had to go home.

While Nic had the night’s difficult decision of choosing either bombshell Cierra or Belle-A, viewers believed the biggest moment of the night was seeing Ace’s choice, especially after the way he treated her right after the ceremony concluded.

Love Island USA Season 7 Sees Its First Recoupling

Fans Were Confused At Ace’s Choice During The Recoupling Ceremony

The contestants on Love Island USA Season 7 just spent their first week together and things have been solid for some couples and shaky for others. In Episode 6, host Ariana Madix made a dramatic entrance, prompting a recoupling ceremony where the men had to decide which woman they wanted to pair up with.

Jeremiah was up first, and it came as no surprise that he chose Huda. Next up was Taylor, who chose Olandria. This pair were originally coupled up but Olandria did not like how slowly their relationship was progressing. However, she was still very interested in him.

Brit Charlie got lucky when Hannah entered the villa as a bombshell. They had an instant connection, and it was no surprise that they wanted to couple up. However, when it came to Ace, fans strongly felt that he would choose Chelley after the two seemed to have built a solid relationship over the course of the week. Instead, Ace chose bombshell Amaya.

“I would like to couple up with this girl because she makes me laugh, she’s gorgeous, I’m really just excited to explore this connection. She’s ambitious, very outgoing, very assertive in what she wants and that’s really been big for me,” Ace shared.

“I’m really excited to share a bed with this person and have conversation late night about stupid s***,” he added. After Amaya was chosen by Ace, she shared that it felt “amazing,” adding that she and Ace had a “natural” connection.

Because Ace chose Amaya, Michigan native Austin chose Chelley. The two were initially paired together, but they felt that they had more of a friendship connection. However, they have since shared that a friendship could blossom into more. Despite this, Chelley also had her eyes on Ace.

Lastly, we saw Nic choosing bombshell Cierra over Belle-A. Fans also found this a bit surprising since Belle-A opened up herself a bit more to Nic, even sharing a passionate kiss with him in Soul Ties. Belle-A was now single and, unfortunately, had to leave the villa.

Fans React To Ace Seemingly Regretting His Choice In Amaya After Recoupling

Right After Recoupling, Ace Set Some Boundaries

After the recoupling ceremony, the newly formed couples could finally breathe a sigh of relief, with the women appearing content with the men who had chosen them. However, when Ace and Amaya sat down for a chat, the mood shifted. Despite his seemingly enthusiastic speech at the fire pit about getting to know her better, Ace admitted he still wanted to “stay open and explore” his options in the villa, and offered Amaya the same freedom.

Additionally, Ace opened up to Amaya about certain personal boundaries, describing himself as a “slow burner” when it comes to relationships. He explained that he wasn’t comfortable with physical affection or pet names—going so far as to say he was put off when Amaya called him “babe.” But for Amaya, terms like that were second nature, part of how she communicated. She was clearly taken aback by how quickly Ace laid down these “new rules,” especially so soon after the ceremony. She opted to call Ace “sir” instead of “babe,” poking fun at all his rules, which fans loved.

“It’s kind of giving player vibes,” Amaya told Ace. “I just went from being on cloud nine to now questioning s***. When you picked me, okay, the feelings are mutual, you were my number one, and I felt like you picking me made me feel like I was your number one.”

Amaya walked away in tears, visibly upset. Huda comforted her, gently reminding her that she shouldn’t be the one trying to change Ace’s mind or feelings—after all, it’s the men who should be making the effort to impress the women.

When the episode aired, fans reacted to Amaya calling out Ace for his confusing ways.

“Amaya calling Ace sir sent me,” a fan wrote in a Reddit thread. “Literally everyone: 😎 Ace: i chose her, i obviously chose her i just don’t want her to touch me, or look at me, or call me cute names, or write poetry about me or mention my name in conversation, or even be remotely romantic with me. If she fell into a coma that would be best,” another user wrote.

Another viewer had this opinion about Ace: “Ace seems to enjoy making women feel small. Maybe due to his bigger social media following he’s used to women chasing after him— I’m just glad Amaya didn’t allow him to minimize her personality and way of being. The ‘babe’ thing was ace nitpicking to find ANYTHING to push back about.”

Another Reddit user shared that they were completely taken aback by Ace’s comments, “I was riding for Ace hard but he COMPLETELY lost me this episode. IMO, Amaya seems to be pretty secure within herself and her attachment. She reacted way better and more confidently than I would’ve because that drink would’ve been thrown in his face after their last convo.”

At the end of Episode 7, Amaya was totally over Ace after he proposed that the two remain “cool” and friendly, to which Amaya replied, “This is not a friend’s island.”

Hopefully, a new batch of bombshells will soon arrive at the villa—giving Amaya the chance to connect with someone who’s more aligned with her pace and energy.

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