When Ivan met Aleks at the altar on Married At First Sight Australia we all took a deep breath in.
We had just witnessed the 30-year-old real estate agent talcolm powdering his feet.
He wasn’t Aleks’ ‘type’ and he wasn’t wearing socks with his suit.
“She won’t like that,” Aleks friend remarked – and she was correct.
But the MAFS experts had been optimistic. While Ivan, with his strong conservative Ukranian values, was opinionated and outspoken he was looking for someone who could hold her own.
And Aleks, 26 – a real estate agent too – could indeed hold her own. Meanwhile, her Serbian heritage meant her strong conservative values were entirely in keeping his.
“She’ll be able to keep Ivan in line,” the experts agreed.
And this time they were right.
At their wedding the couple quickly warmed to one another.
Aleks helped Ivan see that rather than be embarrassed by his parents, he should feel grateful they were there to support him. Hers weren’t and he was humbled.
A few days later, an event that could have derailed the most solid of couples – the loss of Ivan’s phone down a crevice in the back seat of a car – didn’t cause a ripple with this pair. Aleks, with her calming influence, helped Ivan see that this was not the end of the world and they used their phone-free time to get to know one another.
At the dinner parties, where other couples fight and fall apart, they’ve been consistently content and loved up.
(Ivan only displeased Aleks at the first dinner party, where he ruffled Hayley’s feathers by being too forward in his line of questioning – but he made sure that didn’t happen again.)
Aleks and Ivan’s marriage has grown from strength to strength.
And when Ivan’s family pushed his patience to the limit, asking the couple over lunch if they’d been intimate, he was the picture of grace. He said nothing, and his wife diplomatically shut the conversation down.
Ivan on his own might rub some people up the wrong way. But Ivan with Aleks is charming.
And together they make the most adorable couple.
It’s not often you see two people bring out the best in one another, but in these two it appears that that’s exactly what’s happening.
Last season’s star couple were Cam Merchant and Jules Robinson, who tied the knot again after the show wrapped.
This year Aleks and Ivan have quietly edged into that spot.
We have our money on this couple to see the experiment through. They are falling in love before our very eyes and it’s lovely.
