Kendall Long has broken her silence on her emotional Bachelor in Paradise exit, which came after ex-boyfriend Joe Amabile admitted their relationship was over.

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Kendall, 29, and Joe, 34, met and fell in love on Season 5 of Bachelor in Paradise in 2018, and they announced their breakup in January 2020 after nearly two years of dating.

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Joe and Kendall both seemingly came to Paradise 7 for closure and to start new romances, but it didn't take long for Kendall to reflect on her past with Joe and lament about how they had broken up over logistics -- meaning Kendall wanted to continue living in Los Angeles, CA, and Joe desired moving back to his hometown of Chicago, IL -- despite still being in love at the time.

When Kendall stepped on the beach this summer, Joe was already falling in love with Serena Pitt, and so Kendall ultimately decided to leave the show because it was too difficult to watch and her feelings for Joe registered as painful realizations that she wasn't over him.

Kendall took to Instagram on Wednesday, one day after her Bachelor in Paradise departure aired on ABC, and posted three stunning photos of herself in a black dress and red high heels.

"Refuse to live vicariously. Dare to say no to conforming to others ideas of happiness, learn to say yes to curiosity and to leap towards things that scare you," Kendall captioned the sexy slideshow.

"In the final chapter of life wouldn't it hurt to look back and regret a story formed from pieces of others lives, wants and desires?"

Kendall went on to insist, "I do what I feel is right. I say what I need to say. I don't regret a single thing."

The bachelorette, who first competed for Arie Luyendyk Jr.'s heart on The Bachelor's 22nd season in 2018 concluded in her post, "I recommend you all stop living vicariously as well. It's very freeing."

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Kendall added a winking face at the end of her message.

One of Kendall's followers commented on how Kendall "should have made some sort of [sacrifice]" to be with Joe, seemingly referring to how Kendall had refused to give life in Chicago a chance when Joe attempted to reconcile months after their 2020 split.

But Kendall stood up for herself and responded, "I will always make sacrifices for what I want. My actions speak for what I want."

And Kendall clearly wasn't about to sacrifice her mental and emotional well-being to stay on Bachelor in Paradise's seventh season while Joe was pursuing a relationship with another woman right in front of her!

On the latest episode of Bachelor in Paradise, Kendall told the cameras in a confessional, "A part of me wants to keep trying. I don't want to, like, just give up. But at the same time, I'm not letting Joe's relationship with Serena get in the way of my happiness anymore."

"Because one thing I know for sure," she added, "I will always love Joe, and I think he feels the same way that I do."

Kendall told Joe that she still considered him to be her best friend and it was "hard" to see him sweep another woman off her feet since it reminded Kendall of why she had fallen in love with him to begin with.

Joe hugged and comforted Kendall, but he was simply on a different page.

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"To be honest, the reason I came out here was because I knew it was over between us," Joe admitted to his ex during Tuesday night's broadcast.

"And if I didn't feel that, I wouldn't have came. I was also kind of under the impression that you felt the same way. You were a big part of my life and I'm always going to care about you. I'm still always here for you."

Joe subsequently told the cameras that Paradise had worked for him and Kendall in the past but he moved on since their breakup and was really invested in what he had going on with Serena.

"If she really wanted me back," Joe said of Kendall, "she should have told me before I got here and before I started this. Because I really, really loved her."

Despite how it might have looked on TV, Kendall said during a September 13 appearance on the "Talking It Out" podcast that she didn't show up to Bachelor in Paradise this summer with the intention of getting back together with Joe.

"Initially, I knew that Joe was probably going to be on the show because he was single, and he is actively part of The Bachelor world," Kendall said, according to Us Weekly.

"When I went on, I wasn't interested in getting back in a relationship with Joe because if I wanted to, I would've done that the year and a half that we were broken up."

Kendall reportedly said joining the Paradise cast was about getting closure from Joe so she could start fresh, date and hopefully "find love on the beach" like she did before.

Prior to dating Kendall, Joe competed on Becca Kufrin's season of The Bachelorette but was eliminated right away.

Joe also competed on Season 27 of Dancing with the Stars and lived in L.A. with Kendall during his stint on the ABC reality dancing competition.

Click here to read more Bachelor in Paradise spoilers about other singles and couples on the show this season!

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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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