Even though Kent State alumnus Eric Chine, 24, didn’t find love with super model Cindy Margolis, 44, he finished the show with new friends and ended up finding love outside of reality TV.

Chine, along with two other men, Brian Domingo, 46, and Leighton Stultz, 24, made it through a series of tasks to win over Margolis. Chine lost to fellow finalist Stultz, who joined Chine on Saturday at the Water Street Tavern to watch the final episode.

“I was heartbroken at the time. It hurt,” Chine said. “It was something where you were so secluded that all you could think about was her.”

Eric’s parents, Cindy Chine, 51, and Jeff Chine, 55, supported him through the whole series. They both enjoyed watching the show, even though, as Cindy explained, there were times where she would have to cover her eyes. The two of them were flown out for a surprise visit on the final episode, where they walked in on him and Margolis on a romantic date.

The two of them felt that Eric portrayed himself very well through the series.

“That was one of my rules; I told him he couldn’t do anything stupid, or embarrass us, and he promised it was never going to be like that, and he didn’t,” Cindy said.

“He was really just Eric to a tee,” Jeff said.

The winner of the show, Stultz, proposed to Margolis. Margolis gave back the ring, but continued dating him to build a better relationship before getting too serious. Stultz explained it was nice to take things slow and relax once the show was over. The two of them have split since the show ended.

“We had a lot of differences in our lives at the time and coming back to reality, coming home, and being back in our own lives, you kind of get back into a routine and take a step back to look at the overall picture,” Stultz said. “We still keep in contact but we are definitely taking time to ourselves right now.”

Chine is still working at the Water Street Tavern but is happy with the outcome of things.

“Now that the show is over, and obviously everyone knows I have lost, I have found happiness and I have found someone who is completely perfect for me,” Chine said.

Contact student life reporter Lauren Vogel at [email protected].