EXCLUSIVE: Despite making it through all the highs and lows of their MAFS journey, Rachel and Steven’s relationship ended just a week before the Reunion.

And if you’re confused about what exactly happened, you’re not the only one.

Speaking to nine.com.au, the pair explained that they officially called time when Steven was visiting Rachel in Melbourne, after only a few weeks of long distance took their toll.

Why did Rachel and Steven break up?

For Steven, the sudden shock of being together 24/7 to then being 900 kilometres away in different cities was a challenge.

“We spoke every single day,” he stressed.

“However, I did have a little bit of a mess with my business because I just left it stagnant for three months. Coming into the busy season, I sort of dove headfirst into it going, ‘alright, I’ve got to get my finances underway’.”

In Pictures

Rachel and Steven’s Final Vows
“Can I do this?” asked the groom ahead of a very big decision.
View Gallery

When it became clear there was a problem during his trip to Melbourne, Steven realised he “can’t give Rachel what she needs”.

“I can’t come down to Melbourne every month. I’m a time-poor guy and she wants contact quite a lot,” he said.
While they had a fairytale Final Vows, Rachel and Steven’s relationship didn’t survive real life. (Nine)
For Rachel, it came down to not feeling like a priority.

“I hate to say it, it breaks my heart to say it, but this is the story of my life. This is the story of my dating life and I just had it happen again,” Rachel said.

“I can’t be the one continuously pushing this relationship forward. I’ve got to have someone who wants to do it with me,” she said.

She admitted to not fully believing Steven’s blame on the distance, saying “looking back now, it just felt like an excuse”.

Could Rachel and Steven get back together?

Viewers watched a tearful chat between the pair at the Reunion.

Steven put his ring back on during their conversation, giving hope that they’d be able to rekindle things.

They are still separated, but Steven said he often thought ‘what if’.

“I do have that thought in the back of my head going, ‘if I did something slightly different, would we still be together today?’” he said, adding that while they hadn’t given each other “false hope”, he knew there were regrets on both sides.
At Reunion, the pair both had regrets about their split. (Nine)
Meanwhile, Rachel said their relationship could’ve worked, but she didn’t truly believe Steven wanted it to.

“I think he cared for me but I don’t think he actually truly saw a future with me. I just have to live with that,” she said.

Where do Rachel and Steven stand now?

Despite residual feelings, the pair were amicable.

“I want nothing but the best for Rachel and hope everything good comes her way. She’s taught me so much about myself and evolved me, that I can’t ever be spiteful towards Rachel,” Steven said.

“She’s definitely changed my mindset on that I am worth it as a person, I am lovable as a person.”
Happier times! (Nine)
Rachel said Steven would always have “a special place” in her heart.

“It’s not always easy having that communication with an ex, and going through and reliving these things, especially when we both have different perspectives on how things happened,” she said.

“But there’s this mutual respect, because at the end of the day we did do this together and there were real feelings there.”

Have Rachel and Steven been dating after their break-up?

Unsurprisingly, the complicated end to their relationship means neither have jumped back into the dating pool.

“I’m not really actively looking right now for a relationship, but it is at the back of my mind that I am turning 36 this year and I don’t want to beat around the bush too much,” Steven said.
(Nine)
For Rachel, dating was “not even in a realm of possibility” currently.

“It’s time to really take that step back and heal my heart. I also think for [Steven], he needs to heal a bit too.

“I’m open to the possibilities. I think that’s what I’ve got to be because I came into MAFS looking for love, I found love, it didn’t work out unfortunately. But the possibility of love is still out there.”