Are Sal and Jessi from 'Love Is Blind' still together? The latest after the pair received major backlash

New couple Sal and Jessi caused a serious splash when they appeared on the reunion show, Love is Blind: After the Altar, dividing opinion amongst fans who were taken aback by their relationship news.

In After the Altar season 2, we caught up with the cast as they began adjusting to life post-pods. For Danielle Ruhl and Nick Thompson, and Jarrett Jones and Iyanna McNeely, that meant beginning their marriages. For Kyle Abrams and Deepti Vempati, that meant navigating a possible relationship. (The will-they, won't-they was excruciating.) 

But Sal (Perez), who was engaged to Mallory on the show, embarked on a new romance post-show (and sans Netflix), with Jessica "Jessi" Palkovic. He decided the gang's winter weekend getaway celebrating Natalie's birthday was a good time to make an introduction—but unfortunately fans disagreed, and they weren't afraid to let their thoughts be heard on social media. So following the show, are Sal & Jessi still together, and how have they been responding to the negative response to their relationship debut?

Are Sal and Jessi from Love is Blind still together?

Yes—it appears that the two are still very much a happy couple, with Sal recently taking to his Instagram to post a humorous, tongue-in-cheek video of the two of them signing a contract to be boyfriend and girlfriend.

Since the show aired, the couple haven't shared much of an update on the progress of their relationship, but at the end of After the Altar, Sal confessed to his sisters that he was considering proposing to Jessi.

There's no sign of an(other) impending wedding just yet, but we'll be keeping our eyes firmly peeled, as this couple seem to be pretty serious about one another!

The backlash against Sal and Jessi explained

So why have viewers of LOB found Sal & Jessi tricky to swallow as a couple? 

Much of the discomfort appears to be based on the fact that Sal & Jessi appeared to be 'flaunting' their relationship in front of Sal's on-screen ex, Mallory—especially when it appeared that she was still upset about their break-up. 

The couple have both received flack online for they way they handled their new love in front of her, with one fan saying, "I don’t understand why you guys felt the need to go up to Mallory when she was obviously trying to stay away. It was just unnecessary from both of you," one Instagram user stated. 

"Not really sure why she was on the show but ok," another wrote. 

To offer some context to the backlash, while en route to wine tasting, Natalie asked the new couple—in front of Mallory—to name their favorite thing about each other. Jessi replied, "I just love how open and honest Sal is. He's my best friend, I just f*******" love him."

OK, awkward, but not too bad. But at Natalie's 80-themed birthday bash, however, the two really ruffled feathers. The couple came out in an overly sexy ensemble and practically insisted on a one-on-one with Mallory, who had tried hard to keep her distance from the couple. 

It started out cordially enough, but perhaps nerves got to Jessi when she declared to Mallory, "It's like, so in the past, and like, I was never worried about you." Ouch!

Fans have criticized Sal in particular for bringing his new girlfriend to a cast-only gathering, saying that Mallory was clearly uncomfortable and keen to stay away from them.

One said on Twitter, "Sal is trash. Toxic trash. He only brought his trash gf to this get together because he wanted to make Mallory jealous! But he’s only ending up making Mallory look like a class act! #LoveIsBlindAftertheAltar #LoveIsBlind"

Another also wrote, "Yep. Sal and Jessi suck. I said what I said. There was ZERO reason for them to say some of the BS they said to Mal. Be in love, be happy, but to deliberately put it in her face and act so much better than… yuck. #LoveIsBlind #afterthealtar."

In a lengthy message on Instagram, Sal addressed the issue and asked for kindness and privacy amid the criticism, particularly for Jessi.

"All I ask is that if you have something unkind to say that you only leave it on my page. Please leave Jessi alone," part of the statement read.

Another portion read, "It can’t matter to us what folks do or do not believe about what went down, because at the end of the day, we know that everyone involved knows exactly what happened."

Jessi has also shared her thoughts on the matter, revealing she was unapologetic about the way she acted on the show. She said, "When we were invited to the reunion, I told Salvador I would only go if that’s what he wanted. Classiness is subjective—I was myself, and like Salvador said in his post, we stand wholehearedtly by our actions because everyone involved knows exactly what went down. I don’t need to meet anyone who lied to my partner, was emotionally unfaithful, and gaslit him with “grace.”"

Since the pod squad remained kind and friendly, here's hoping everyone can get along moving forward! And, since there aren't many Love Is Blind couples still together, keep your fingers crossed that Love Is Blind season 3 is more successful. 

You can stream Love Is Blind: After the Altar season 2 on Netflix now. Love Is Blind season 3 begins on October 19. Meet the new Love Is Blind cast—season 3 has 30 newbies entering the pods!