Bachelor in Paradise star Kira Mengistu has opened up about what it felt like to have Jill Chin bash her on the show when the girls were fighting over Romeo Alexander.
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"I was pretty hurt by Jill watching the first episode," Kira admitted during a recent appearance on the "Talking It Out with Bachelor Nation" podcast co-hosted by Bryan Abasolo and Mike Johnson.
"I was pretty surprised and shocked to see some of the negative things that she said about me to her interviewer and also to other people."
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Jill, for instance, called Kira an "annoying b-tch" and accused the physician of always stealing men she's interested in dating.
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"I was not calling her names or talking bad about her that whole day, like she was," Kira insisted. "So that was really disappointing to see."
Kira noted how a lot of the issues she had with Jill at the beginning of Paradise were "misunderstandings."
"Like the drink situation," Kira noted, referring to how Jill had accused Kira of interrupting her conversation with Romeo and stealing her drink right out from under her.
Kira recalled how there were three cups around her when she sat next to Romeo and Jill on the beach.
"I came over with my cup... and at one point, I wanted to drink. And they're identical cups, so I was like, 'Oh, can I take that one?' And I took that one, not realizing that that was [Jill]'s drink," Kira explained.
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"And honestly, I found out that was her drink when I watched the episode. So a little communication at that time could've saved her some resentment towards me, and it was an honest mistake."
At the time, Jill thought Kira was intentionally being rude and didn't care about her feelings.
"I was surprised to see it play out onscreen. And yeah, that's what I have to say," Kira said.
Kira also claimed the fight she had with Jill on the beach wasn't even about Romeo.
"That was not me taking my frustration out on her because he [rejected] me. No, that argument was a result of me being very confused why she was, like, acting weird towards me the whole day," Kira recalled.
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"[Jill] was running away whenever I approached a group. And some people had told me that she was saying some things about me right before I came down to the beach."
Kira said she wondered, "Why is she talking bad about me?"
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Kira told Mike and Bryan how that dispute was "more about" their personal relationship, considering the women had been good friends in the New York scene before Romeo got in the middle of them.
Jill previously told Us Weekly that she was hanging out with Romeo -- and seemingly starting to develop feelings for the mathematician -- before Paradise filmed, but then Kira kissed Romeo at a club one night in New York.
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Kira, however, said Jill had claimed she wasn't interested in Romeo romantically at the time, and so Kira apparently made out with Romeo thinking there would be no consequences for her friendship with Jill.
Because of past drama, Kira pointed out how her relationship with Jill was "strained" at the time they reunited in Mexico and that's what they were talking about on the beach.
"She said, 'But we're friends, we're friends. We're good,' and I was like, 'You're not acting like we're friends. What is going on here?' So that's what that conversation was about, and that's the context," Kira shared.
"And maybe I could have handled it better. I think it shouldn't have escalated to the point of it being a screaming argument, but I wish that we had better communication throughout the day."
Kira believes had she and Jill hashed things out, they "could've been spared that confrontation."
Kira said she respects Jill "a lot" but they "didn't have a good experience together in Paradise."
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In terms of where the women stand now, Kira revealed they haven't spoken since the show.
"I'm not sure if we'll ever reconcile, but yeah, right now, we're sort of taking space," Kira acknowledged of the architectural historian.
On Bachelor in Paradise's eighth season, Romeo stepped foot onto the beach in Mexico and said, "It's been so long since I've seen her, but I still think there is something there between me and Jill. But I am afraid Kira will be here. As long as she doesn't get in the way of me and Jill, [it should be fine]."
Once Kira arrived in Paradise, she assumed that Romeo was going to be her man, which appeared to erupt an argument between the two women -- the one Kira had mentioned on "Talking It Out."
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On last week's episodes of Bachelor in Paradise, Romeo seemed settled on pursuing a relationship with Jill, but he suddenly decided to keep his options open and then hit on Brittany Galvin, which resulted in all three bachelorettes being done with Romeo and wanting nothing to do with him.
Jill only accepted a rose from Romeo at the first Rose Ceremony of the season in order to meet other men who would be soon arriving to the Paradise resort.
Prior to appearing on Bachelor in Paradise, both Jill and Kira competed on The Bachelor's 26th season starring Clayton Echard.
Kira had also attended Harvard University with Romeo, although they were only acquaintances at the time.
Bachelor in Paradise's eighth season airs Monday and Tuesday nights at 8PM ET/PT on ABC.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
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