Bachelor in Paradise bachelor Michael Allio has revealed why he thinks Teddi Wright abruptly quit the show and how her departure impacted his close friend Andrew Spencer.
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"When Teddi left, it really took me by surprise," Michael told The Bachelorette alums Becca Kufrin and Michelle Young on the latest episode of the "Bachelor Happy Hour" podcast.
"I know that Andrew was so excited to get to know her, and I know she was feeling Andrew, too, to some extent."
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Teddi, who competed for Clayton Echard on The Bachelor's 26th season, and Andrew, who vied for Katie Thurston's affection on The Bachelorette's seventeenth season, sparked one of the first romantic connections in Paradise.
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The surgical unit nurse and Andrew -- based on interviews they conducted this past summer -- had been looking forward to meeting each other in Mexico prior to the start of filming, and there was chemistry on their first official date away from the Paradise resort.
But after The Bachelorette alum Rodney Mathews joined the cast and expressed interest in Teddi, Teddi suddenly realized there was something "missing" with Andrew and she wasn't as affectionate with him as she had been in past relationships with other men.
"When Rodney came down, it was almost as if these two great guys were kind of seeking [Teddi] out, which can be a really, really great thing. I mean, in most cases, to have options is fantastic. It's better than not having them," Michael shared on the podcast.
"But I think that she got a little bit overwhelmed with everything. And Teddi is such an empathetic and kind person, that you know, I feel like she didn't necessarily want to break anybody's heart."
Teddi did, however, let Andrew down gently during an emotional conversation for them both. She said she just wasn't convinced Andrew was "The One" for her and that their connection would grow and last long-term, and so she dumped the football player, who never saw it coming.
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But instead of getting to know Rodney or waiting to date new arrivals in Paradise, the proud virgin just up and left the show without saying goodbye to anyone -- not even to her good friend Serene Russell, who seemed offended and hurt by Teddi's silent exit.
"If it can't work with him, I don't know if [Paradise] will be able to work," Teddi lamented on the show.
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Michael explained to Becca and Michelle how Teddi seemed "really exhausted by the process."
"[I think she] found out that it really wasn't for her," Michael said of the process, "and it took everybody by surprise when she left."
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Michael said Teddi's decision to quit left Andrew "incredibly beat up."
"[He was] beat up about the whole thing," Michael revealed, "feeling anywhere from guilty that she left and that it didn't work."
The single father continued, "And so my heart went out to my buddy because, I don't know, I think he wanted it to be something special. And the thing is, you know, with finding love and finding your person, you can't plan for it and you can't arrange it."
Michael said a person can get excited but, especially in Paradise, it's "better to find out sooner rather than later" that a romance isn't going to work.
"Because in the real world, you could spend six months with somebody before you realize you're not a match, and that's just time wasted," Michael said. "Here [in Paradise], it could be a week or two, and that's kind of a good place to be."
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Michelle said she could feel for Teddi, who clearly realized the process wasn't for her and so she just wanted to hit the road.
"I think that's where Teddi was coming from. You know, it was weird because for a while, we were all wondering where Teddi is, and the last thing we thought was that she left," Michael revealed.
"But at the end of the day, people have to do what's best for them, and she realized that this wasn't the place for her. And I actually applaud her for being decisive and making that decision vs. dragging it out without her heart being in it, or her head."
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During an early April appearance on the "Talking It Out with Bachelor Nation" podcast, Andrew told co-hosts Bryan Abasolo and Mike Johnson how he had "heard great things" about Teddi.
"She's one of the girls that I am definitely looking to see on the beach, if she were to go or if I were to go," Andrew said, referencing Bachelor in Paradise's eighth season.
But Andrew confirmed he and Teddi were not dating outside of the show and there was "nothing going on between" them at the time.
Andrew also shared at the time how he was hoping to meet Serene, Eliza Isichei and Jasmine Nguyen on Bachelor in Paradise.
One month earlier, Teddi shared on the "Chicks In The Office" podcast how she had her eye on Andrew as well as The Bachelorette alum Ben Smith, who competed on Clare Crawley and Tayshia Adams' season of the show in 2020.
"I will say the person I've been consistent in definitely wanting to meet on the beach... I definitely want to meet Andrew Spencer if I go," Teddi said in March.
And Teddi also previously gushed about Andrew at The Bachelor: The Women Tell All taping for Clayton's season.
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"Andrew Spencer is someone that I think is cute, but I don't know him at all," she told Us Weekly in early 2022.
"I think he's just the definition of joy. Like, when you see him, he's just so joyful and I love that. He's so funny. I love a guy that's funny, and he's very attractive."
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