She may have lost the mirrorball trophy, butAlexis Rencertainly didn’t go home fromDancing with the Starsempty-handed!
The 21-year-oldSports IllustratedSwimsuitissue’s 2018 Rookie of the Year placed fourth on Monday’sDancing With theStarsfinale. But her romance with dance partner Alan Bersten — whichblossomed before viewers’ eyes on this season of the hit ABC competition series— has left her with the ultimate prize.
“I feel like I won!” she toldEntertainment Tonightafter the show, cuddling closely with Bersten, 24.
Though it appeared Ren dropped the “L” word in a pre-tapped package that aired during the finale, she clarified toETthat she still hasn’t said it, explaining that theDWTSteam had done some clever editing.
“They cut it! I really felt love in myself,” she said. “Honestly, I have no idea where that came from.”
Still, Ren and Bersten have hit a milestone in their relationship. Before they danced in the finale, she met his parents, who were visiting from out of town.
“They’re so cute!” she told the outlet of her partner’s family.
Asked what his parents thought of Ren, Bersten gushed, “What can you not think of her? She’s such a sweet person and she’s so caring and it’s amazing.”
Alexis Ren/Instagram
Speaking to PEOPLE and other reporters after the finale, Ren said she has “never felt more [like] myself.”
“After each dance I found a new side of myself that I didn’t even know I had, so at the end of this, I’m just standing here and thinking I won,” she gushed.
As for what the future holds for her and Bersten?
“I mean, we’ll see, we’re allowed to be normal people for a few days now,” Bersten said. “We’ve been in the studio everyday for hours, so it’ll be nice to relax.”
“I’m a very honest person and I wear my heart on my sleeve,” she said. “I’m still learning in the entertainment industry how to pull myself and speak. I think both of us were 100 percent ourselves on this journey and I don’t regret any of it.
“It was an incredible journey,” Bersten agreed. “Do I wish it was my subtle? Yes. Do I regret it? No.”
source: people.com
