The Rookie’s Melissa O’Neil, Eric Winter Address Chenford’s Split

Stars Melissa O’Neil and Eric Winter answered every burning question about the shocking Chenford split that left The Rookie fans reeling.

During the Tuesday, April 9, episode of the show, Tim’s (Winter) reunion with his former military friend Ray Watkins (David Dastmalchian) didn’t end on a good note. Tim initially ghosted his girlfriend for days while trying to chase Ray down and things got even worse when the newcomer threatened Lucy (O’Neil).

Tim’s decision to end his relationship with Lucy caught viewers off guard — but not the actors.

“I don’t know if I should say this, but it’s something that Eric has been pushing for a minute because he is really interested in building that [relationship], and that’s what we want to do. We want to build a story that people can follow and grieve and be joyful with,” O’Neil, 35, told TV Guide on Tuesday. “We didn’t know how it was going to unfold, but we knew that this was the arc that we wanted to take it in, because all of the relationships on the show are pretty happy. So we need to have some type of relationship that can represent another color for how relationships can unfold, which is not harmonious all the time.”

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While putting herself in Lucy’s shoes, O’Neil found herself frustrated by Tim’s choices.

“It felt like a cheat in a lot of ways. These two have come up together. There’s so much trust, there’s so much that they’ve traversed, and then suddenly he comes to this moment, and now they don’t have this rapport,” she noted. “I personally struggled with understanding it.”

O’Neil, however, hinted that fans shouldn’t rule out hope for a reconciliation, adding, “I think the biggest teaser that I could offer is that it’s not goodbye. It’s not the end. They’ll still see each other, as far as that is concerned, and there’s still some really incredible storylines that are happening outside of this relationship. As far as Bradford and Chen, their paths will still cross and weave.”

According to Winter, 47, Ray’s return caused Tim to spiral in his personal life, which will continue to play out.

“Tim has lost a bit of who he is. He’s sort of accepting but not fully accepting the repercussions of where his past has landed him,” the actor told TVLine. “I think that in typical Tim fashion, he’s still trying to protect those around him, even from himself. So, Tim might think he’s doing good even though it’s very hurtful.”

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Winter noted that the experience “humbled” Tim going forward, saying, “He still asserts himself when he needs to, and still steps up at the right moments, but he has been humbled both in his personal life and in the way he’s approaching things going forward.”

Despite Winter rooting for Tim and Lucy to get back together, he would like to see some changes take place first.

“I think it’s going to take some time figuring out who he is. Accepting his failures. Therapy. It’s going to take Tim doing things that he has never been comfortable doing before in order to dig into his past and why he is the way he is,” he explained. “It’s very cliché, I know, but you really have to come to terms with who you are and love yourself before you can go out there and love somebody else and give them your very best.”

The Rookie airs on ABC Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET.