The Golden Bachelor runner-up Leslie Fhima has opened up about how she found Gerry's treatment of her "harsh" during their reunion on After the Final Rose.
|
ADVERTISEMENT
|
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Months after their emotional breakup in Leslie's hotel room in Costa Rica, Leslie and Gerry reunited for the first time on The Golden Bachelor: After the Final Rose, which aired live Thursday, November 30 on ABC.
Leslie confronted Gerry about feeling blindsided and betrayed, and Gerry had a very blunt delivery in his explanation of why he had dumped her.
"It's [Gerry's] journey and his choice, but he could've chosen not to say those things to me, that's all," Leslie said on the December 4 episode of the "Bachelor Happy Hour" podcast.
"He said he wasn't ready and his heart wasn't ready, or something like that. I kind of was glazing over at that point... He said something about choosing Theresa over me, and I thought that was a little harsh."
Leslie added in her interview with Bachelor in Paradise spouses Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt, "He could've maybe said that a little bit nicer, especially because being chosen is my [insecurity]."
On After the Final Rose, Leslie called Gerry out for having convinced her in the Fantasy Suite that she was The One for him and they were going to end up together.
"Only you and I know what was said on the overnight. I'd never share that with anyone; it was our private time. But those words gave me 100 percent certainty that I was your girl and we were going to get engaged," Leslie said.
Gerry explained to Leslie in reply, "You were the person I believed was my person until I suddenly knew you weren't."
And The Golden Bachelor star continued live onstage in front of a studio audience and viewers watching at home, "It didn't really go wrong, Leslie, it was just better with someone else."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
FOLLOW REALITY TV WORLD ON THE ALL-NEW GOOGLE NEWS!
Reality TV World is now available on the all-new Google News app and website. Click here to visit our Google News page, and then click FOLLOW to add us as a news source!
At that point, the audience gasped because Gerry's words were very hurtful to Leslie.
Gerry then went on to clarify, "[Theresa] was the right person in another direction, and I'm so terribly sorry. I'll never forgive myself for the pain I've caused along the way."
Joe pointed out on "Bachelor Happy Hour" how particular exchange between Gerry and Leslie during their reunion on After the Final Rose seemed tense and a bit cold.
"It felt a little bit like a business transaction, like, you know, you were almost being fired almost," Joe said.
"Yeah," Leslie agreed. "And I felt that way too, but I don't know, Gerry, I feel like he switched."
When Gerry dumped Leslie in Costa Rica before the Final Rose Ceremony, Gerry also didn't tiptoe around Leslie's feelings.
"It's been very difficult and I've made a decision about how I want to go about this, and I have fallen in love with Theresa, and that's the direction I'm going to take," Gerry explained.
In the heat of the moment, Leslie reflected on her Fantasy Suite with Gerry and told him in reply, "So everything you told me the other night was a lie!"
ADVERTISEMENT
"Yeah it was," Leslie clapped back. "Everything you told me the other night was a lie. Everything you told me the other night was a complete and utter lie!"
"No," Gerry argued. "Because at that time, that was the truth. Things have changed and things have evolved."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Leslie asked Gerry where she or they had gone wrong, and The Golden Bachelor star assured her that nothing was wrong.
"You're both wonderful, but only one of you is right," Gerry explained. "Leslie, I'm so sorry. Had I known this was the pain I would cause someone, I would've never taken the first step of this journey."
Leslie cried about how she was totally heartbroken, and she was embarrassed that her emotional breakdown was going to air for everyone in the world to see.
"You didn't choose me... The other night, you made it sound like you chose me!" Leslie lamented to Gerry, adding, "You said things to me that made me think this was going to be it. You led me down a path and then you took a turn and you left me there!"
Leslie said it was actually "mind boggling" how Gerry could tell her that he loved her and then completely change his mind just 12 hours later.
Leslie explained to The Golden Bachelor host Jesse Palmer on After the Final Rose how she had envisioned a life with Gerry after the show in which they'd walk his dog together and go out to restaurants, both in Indianapolis and Minneapolis.
Once Gerry discovered how devastated and crushed Leslie was about their breakup, he acknowledged how he's only human and could've handled things in a better way.
"I don't know if I accept your apology, but I understand it," Leslie concluded.
Gerry, meanwhile, is still happily engaged to Theresa, and the couple has plans to move to South Carolina together.
ADVERTISEMENT
Gerry has since broken his silence on the allegations, and Theresa also commented on the unflattering report about her fiance.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Interested in more The Bachelor news? Follow our Bachelor Nation News Page on Facebook or join our The Bachelor Facebook Group!
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
