Tino Franco has revealed that he intentionally locked himself in a bathroom before filming the live The Bachelorette: After the Final Rose special.
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"I was like, 'I'm not doing it!' I was crying in the bathroom because it was overwhelming being there, and that was, like, pretty taxing for me."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
On The Bachelorette: After the Final Rose that aired on September 20, Rachel confirmed she had called off her engagement to her Season 19 winner, Tino, because he had cheated on her, and the pair publicly discussed the demise of their romance and how it impacted them.
The Bachelorette host Jesse Palmer then told Rachel that someone was waiting backstage "demanding" to speak to her, and it was Aven Jones, Rachel's The Bachelorette runner-up.
Aven then surprised Rachel onstage and asked her out for a drink so they could "catch up." Rachel said she'd absolutely love to and the pair took off together, leaving a hurt and embarrassed Tino in their dust.
"That was mean," Tino admitted to Nick.
"That wasn't very nice. I don't know. I don't ever think about it. I think I have disassociation with that because I don't remember it."
After the finale aired, many The Bachelorette fans accused Aven and Rachel of kicking Tino when he was already down and humiliating him unnecessarily.
But Rachel has said in multiple post-show interviews that Aven had no idea Tino was onstage during his "knight in shining armor" moment and the bachelor never would've done it had he known.
Rachel even went as far as to say Aven was angry at producers for letting him show Tino up like that on national television.
Tino therefore confirmed he was "way more frustrated with the show" than he was with Rachel at the time.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW"If Rachel wanted Aven to come out in front of me, like, I can't really say much -- I was the one who cheated. So, like, she has every right to be hurt. I'd be hurt! How we all process things is different," Tino explained.
"I went to rock bottom when I felt hurt and I ran and kissed some other girl, so I can't pass judgment on that. The show, I would've thought with them knowing how much I'd been struggling, wouldn't go there or do something like that."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
When asked what was going through his head when Aven walked out, Tino recalled, "I think I was like, 'Why am I still out here?'"
Tino, however, noted that's just a guess because he doesn't really remember what he was thinking or feeling in that moment.
"I was like, 'They could have a cute moment. Why am I here?' At that point, we'd been broken up for a month," Tino said.
It was apparently a big deal that Tino even showed up on After the Final Rose to begin with.
"I was at war with myself even going to AFR. The pressure was on to go, but I was also like, 'Man, I feel really bad! I told this girl that I messed up and I kissed another girl. We broke up and she has to see me four weeks later? That's torture for her -- and likewise for me,'" Tino recalled.
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"There was no way AFR was going to be a nice look for me, and I landed at, like, 'Okay, you have to go. Just get up there and say you're sorry and tell everyone how [you feel],'" Tino explained.
"Rachel and I weren't talking at all. There were no toxic texts or anything, or drunk phone calls, between us after the breakup. We [had] a clean break."
Tino said after their split, he did a lot of "self-reflection" and came to the conclusion that Rachel had done so much for him and he really appreciated it.
"I really wish during my dark times I could have leaned more on that," he shared, "because I don't think I would've gone with a toxic outlet [of cheating]. So that's one of the things I wanted to do at AFR, was really make sure I told her on this world stage, like, 'Look, I appreciate you.'"
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Tino said Rachel was "so good" to him and "it was so not right" how their relationship ended.
"This is certainly not how I wanted it to end," Tino insisted.
"I wanted to be with her forever, [but I told her] the time we spent together [meant] so much and still does, even after AFR, I can still appreciate her setting the bar really high on how a woman can treat somebody in a relationship."
Also during his podcast interview, Tino revealed why his relationship with Rachel fell apart and why he ultimately cheated on her.
In late September following After the Final Rose, Rachel said on Live with Kelly and Ryan that she'd like "to see where things go" with Aven.
But in early October, Rachel told Kaitlyn Bristowe on her "Off the Vine" podcast how she's now really sure where she and Aven currently stand.
"I don't know [what's going on]. I feel like that's the big question," Rachel noted.
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The flight instructor added, "So what's to come? I don't know. I mean, I'm definitely, definitely open to seeing what happens, but it's two people [and] we've been through so much."
Rachel previously shared how Aven was extremely supportive of her during her The Bachelorette journey and all of its ups and downs.
But Rachel clarified to Kaitlyn that she's "not actively trying to date at all" right now.
"But I do feel like I'm not in a position where I'm, like, so broken that I need months to heal," she continued on the podcast.
Rachel insisted that she's "okay" and has been working on herself.
"I've been broken up with [Tino] since before you guys knew. So I do feel like I am in the spot where I do want that, but I'm not, like, on the dating apps," Rachel said.
She added, "I don't want to start doing that yet. Because it's so sad to me that's where I'm at, honestly... Going two full seasons and then to end up right back where you started? That's where it's frustrating."
On potentially starring on The Bachelorette again, Rachel said she'd definitely do the show if she could be guaranteed to find her person.
On Part 1 of The Bachelorette Season 19 finale, Rachel broke up with Aven because he admitted he didn't feel ready to propose marriage at the Final Rose Ceremony.
At the time, Rachel felt lied to and betrayed. She had assumed they were on the same page about an engagement.
Aven said, after meeting Rachel's family, that he was falling in love with Rachel and wanted to continue dating her after the show more than anything.
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But it wasn't enough for Rachel, who said she wanted her final bachelor to be totally sure about her and confident in their relationship.
Aven told Rachel before leaving the show that he was never going to get over their split, and he apologized on Part 1 of The Bachelorette finale for hurting her and leading her on with all of their engagement talk in the Fantasy Suite.
Rachel told Aven that she respected his honesty and he ultimately had every right to feel the way he did while filming. Rachel even pardoned Aven from having to apologize to her.
"You were perfect... but you can't really look back," Rachel concluded on Part 1 of the finale.
"I'm really happy to see you, and I really just wish you nothing but the best."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
