'Love And Translation' viewers troll Khalil Haughton as he 'awkwardly' looks at Aire during a staring challenge

'Love And Translation' star Khalil Haughton bagged a staring challlenge with Aire
PUBLISHED JAN 22, 2024
'Love And Translation' single Khalil Haughton explores connection with Aire (Instagram/@tlc)
'Love And Translation' single Khalil Haughton explores connection with Aire (Instagram/@tlc)

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, CARIBBEAN: 'Love And Translation' Season 1 star Khalil Haughton arrived in the villa to explore the connection with 12 women and spark romance with 'the one'.

In the premiere episode of the TLC dating show, Khalil met with the women and tried to communicate with them without knowing their language. Khalil bagged a date with Airi, who hails from Japan.

However, the date came with a challenge as they had to stare at each other to feel the spark. During the 2-minute staring challenge, Airi was visibly awkward and seemed to discontinue the challenge as she found it hard to make eye contact.

However, the viewers trolled Khalil for making Airi feel uncomfortable. A social media user wrote, "She’s so cute but he looks like he’s going to eat her, scary eyes." Another person added, "Airi felt tortured during the staring challenge!! #LoveAndTranslation."

Another critic noted, "Kalil staring at the cute girl." Another viewer said, "This staring is like torture for Airi." Another X user penned, "That gazing exercise made me so uncomfortable, and I’m not a person who has trouble making eye contact. It was just so intense."



 



 



 



 

'Love And Translation' contestant Airi avoids eye contact

During the 2-minute staring challenge, Airi tried her best to keep making eye contact with Khalil Haughton. However, she admitted to being nervous and avoiding eye contact.

Airi revealed in the confessional, "There are two reasons for avoiding eye contact. First historically in Japan eye contact is seen as rude." She added, "Another reason I can't make eye contact is my lack of self-confidence."

Airi further admitted, "Staring into someone's eyes makes me very nervous."

'Love And Translation' contestant Airi feels 'nervous' while making eye contact (Instagram/@tlc)
'Love And Translation' contestant Airi feels 'nervous' while making eye contact (Instagram/@tlc)

Did 'Love And Translation' star Khalil Haughton like Airi?

'Love And Translation' star Khalil Haughton seemed to be smitten with Airi after just spending 2 minutes staring at her. Fans could expect a possible romance between Khalil and Airi.

However, Khalil admitted in the confessional that Airi might be feeling uncomfortable because of her Japanese culture. He shared, "I've a lot of anime so I feel like I've kind of got a beat on you know Japanese culture."

He added, "In Japanese culture you're not supposed to stare somebody directly in the eyes cuz it means a kind of sign of disrespect." Khalil noted, "She looks incredibly cute I don't know how to get her eye contact but there's also some weird thing in me that like I really love shy people."

He continued, "Like there's just something about them that just is like brimming with like just pureness and Airi is shy and I'm shy so I think it's very possible we could be a perfect match."

Khalil Haughton seems to be smitten with Airi (Instagram/@tlc)
Khalil Haughton seems to be smitten with Airi (Instagram/@tlc)

'Love And Translation' Season 1 premieres on Sundays at 10 pm ET on TLC.

GET THE BIGGEST ENTERTAINMENT STORIES
STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX.

MORE STORIES

'The Masked Singer' deviated from its two-seasons-per-year format in 2025 when it skipped the fall season
11 hours ago
Peacock launched 'The Traitors' official podcast with Boston Rob and Bob the Drag Queen to unpack every betrayal, banishment, and twist
17 hours ago
Old accusations resurface in the ‘Sister Wives 1-on-1’ trailer, proving the Browns’ emotional breakup is far from truly settled.
1 day ago
A subtle moment on 'Uncloaked' has sparked fresh theories about the identity of the 'Secret Traitor' hiding beneath the 'Red Cloak'
1 day ago
‘RuPaul’s Drag Race’ Season 18 launches with a high-stakes design challenge, a show-stealing guest judge, and fierce first impressions from 14 queens.
3 days ago
Netflix lifts the veil on Palm Beach’s most exclusive circles as ‘Members Only’ reveals the rules, rivalries, and secrets of elite society.
7 days ago
'The Road' on CBS featured 12 new voices judged by country music stars Keith Urban and Blake Shelton
Dec 22, 2025
Celeb guests include Singer Zac Brown and YouTuber MrBeast, with Jeff Probst returning as the host
Dec 18, 2025
Season 49 of the survival reality show concluded with Savannah Louie winning the competition
Dec 18, 2025
Savannah Louie, Sophie Balerdi, and Sage Ahrens-Nichols were the final three contestants who competed for the title of 'Survivor' Season 49
Dec 18, 2025