Bachelor In Paradise is like the school reunion of the Bachie franchise: everyone gets together, rehashes old dramas, and pash that hottie you always had your eye on but were in different cliques – uh, seasons.
And of course, the gossip that’s been buried deep since you were last together gets spilled even more than the cocktails.
In last night’s BiP premiere, four girls from Nick Cummins’ season of The Bachelor returned, and the secret history of fan fave Brooke‘s departure ahead of that wild finale was finally revealed.
Brooke sat down with Cass, Cat (who probably feels right at home because she’s from Bali, you know?) and the season’s unofficial narrator Alisha, and immediately spilled something she said Nick would “kill” her for telling them.
Here we go. I honestly questioned if we were going to air what brooke's about to say. But they decided to. So here we go. #BachelorInParadiseAU
— Osher Günsberg (@oshergunsberg) April 9, 2019
Namely, that Nick “smothered his mic” and told her well before the finale he wasn’t going to pick anyone, and that’s why she left, despite everyone thinking she was the frontrunner.
"He's going to hate me for this" – Brooke spills the tea on Nick Cummins. #BachelorInParadiseAU pic.twitter.com/DNqD59CvTP
— Bachelor In Paradise Australia (@BachParadiseAU) April 9, 2019
Brooke: "He stopped the cameras and smothered his mic and said he wasn't going to pick anyone at the end"
Everyone:
#bachelorinparadiseau pic.twitter.com/lgnQ30HolF— AtomicNicky (@AtomicNicky) April 9, 2019
The reason why this was brilliant isn’t just because it’s, y’know, a big wild spicy tea meatball.
It’s the fact that a) the producers actually aired it and b) that the girls discussed it with relative maturity, and then collectively decided on “never speaking of Nick Cummins again”.
It’s hard not to feel for the Badge, because it must have been a tough call to decide halfway through your season that you’re actually not ready for a relationship.
Props (no pun) to him for not just faking a contract-fuelled relationship for the sake of the cameras – and keep in mind it’s not his fault he still needed to film a finale with the last two girls. (Plus, you have to admit their reactions and subsequent bonding was still great TV.)
But also props to the girls and the show, who aren’t necessarily shading Nick by moving on with their lives on national TV.
Brooke totally deserved to share her own side of the story, and dive into the bisexual island pashfest she truly deserves with a fresh slate.
And Cass, who owned her “stage 5 clinger” label with a sense of humour I didn’t realise she had, deserved to know the truth after getting her heart broken on national TV.
Brooke: He wasn’t going to pick anyone
Cass:#BachelorInParadiseAU pic.twitter.com/YaiYXjgYCX— Kevin Horton (@SC_Kev7) April 9, 2019
When you move on from someone, you’re not saying they’re not worth anyone spending time on – they’re just not a good use of your time. And manifesting that with an emphatic glass-clinking definitely helps your brain and heart move on.
"Cheers to never speaking of Nick Cummins again" Preach! #BachelorInParadiseAU pic.twitter.com/vNv0yyGm2u
— Bachelor In Paradise Australia (@BachParadiseAU) April 9, 2019
Here’s hoping all four of them and Nick can get some closure and some happiness now that tea has been poured, stirred and enthusiastically chugged.