What Happened to Stephen and Monica From Love Is Blind Season 7?

Love Is Blind Season 7 introduced Stephen Richardson and Monica Davis, who hit it off almost immediately in the pods. However, episode 8 revealed that not everything was as it seemed. This led to the first filmed breakup of the season, so what really happened?

Stephen and Monica’s Love Is Blind Relationship

Stephen and Monica made a strong connection in the pods, so strong that they were one of the seven couples who became engaged this season. Their story resonated strongly with fans, with them bonding over Stephen’s curiosity after discovering his West African heritage.

While they were still in the pods, Stephen revealed to Monica that he previously had an emotional affair with another woman. While this could have served as a red flag, Monica instead chose to embrace Stephen, thanking him for his honesty.

However, a few more red flags emerged during the couples’ retreat in Mexico. During this time, Stephen had an alarming (and somewhat vulgar) conversation with Monica and castmate Taylor regarding fellatio. Though the ladies showed no interest in the conversation, Stephen didn’t seem able to take a hint, creating one of the cringiest moments of the season. Taylor later revealed that Stephen had another conversation with her that was equally inappropriate.

All of this came to a head in episode 8, when Monica discovered that Stephen had been exchanging explicit texts with another woman. With this discovery also came the revelation that his relationship with the other woman had been going on since before Stephen even entered the pods. Of course, Monica confronted Stephen about the texts — and it was not pretty.

Stephen and Monica’s Breakup

Love Is Blind captured Monica’s confrontation with Stephen, in which she discussed details of the texts with him. The unnamed woman discussed Stephen’s kinks and how she was the only one who could really satisfy him. This left Monica feeling disgusted and betrayed, especially considering Stephen was mere days away from meeting her father.

The normally chatty Stephen didn’t have much to say for himself in the face of an angry and emotional Monica. For the most part, he simply apologized and admitted that he should have never come on the show. Stephen eventually left the apartment they were sharing after giving Monica back the money she had spent on him during their relationship. He left his engagement ring on the counter and neither he or Monica have been seen on the show since.

What Happened to Stephen and Monica After Love Is Blind?

Monica Davis appeared on the October 10th episode of the Viall Files podcast and shared more about her breakup with Stephen. She revealed that she discovered the text messages when she checked Stephen’s phone for a text from castmate Garrett. At the time, Stephen had left to use the restroom. She also clarified that she was not shaming Stephen for his kinks, but rather for not sharing who he really was.

“I’m not kink-shaming,” Monica clarified. “I’ve been accused of kink-shaming already. I just didn’t know that this was the person I was, you know, that I was sharing a bed with.” She also revealed that her and Stephen would be “hashing it out” on the reunion that airs on October 30th.

Stephen opened up in an interview with People, joking that it’s “probably smart to put a password on your phone.” He then went on to talk about the importance of therapy and being “fully healed” before starting a new relationship.

Love Is Blind Season 7 is now streaming on Netflix. New episodes premiere on Wednesdays.