Gabi Elnicki has explained why she didn't self-eliminate from The Bachelor before the Final Rose Ceremony when it was "clear" to her Kaity Biggar was Zach's choice.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I thought about my friendship with Kaity, and I hesitated saying this, but I think it is important to know, like, why I did stay," Gabi said during the March 30 episode of the "Click Bait with Bachelor Nation" podcast.
"I thought about my relationship with Kaity, and if I were in her shoes. And it was clear, Kaity was the choice. Kaity had been the choice. But if I had left, she could've felt like she was the choice by default. And she was truly the choice."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Walking up to Zach at the Final Rose Ceremony of The Bachelor's 27th season, Gabi told the cameras, "I think I know what's about to happen."
ADVERTISEMENT
Gabi even shouted at production to avoid dropping Kaity off in a mud pit when it became time for her pal to meet Zach. Gabi's assumption Kaity would be arriving after her was another hint that Gabi had a strong feeling she was about to get dumped in second place.
At the Final Rose Ceremony, Zach told Gabi that he wasn't "fully" able to make his final decision until the night before, when he was in bed, but Gabi argued, "You've known. You've known."
If Gabi truly knew she was going to finish as Zach's runner-up before the Final Rose Ceremony filmed, fans have been wondering why she didn't just quit while she was ahead.
On "Click Bait" hosted by Joe Amabile, Gabi recalled how Zach had only spoken to Kaity at the Rose Ceremony following Fantasy Suite dates, which was a major giveaway about where Zach's heart was leaning at the time.
"He wasn't making eye contact with me. It was a really isolating feeling," Gabi explained.
ADVERTISEMENT
"And in that moment, I knew it was not me. Because any one who loved me and wanted it to be me wouldn't speak of something that was a special moment in that way."
After Gabi and Zach had sex in the Fantasy Suite, Zach broke down into tears with The Bachelor host Jesse Palmer about how he had failed himself and the women.
Zach felt guilty for having gone back on his word, and he seemed more worried about telling Kaity the truth than he was about betraying Gabi's trust and spilling their secret to the public.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
"He was speaking about his parameter and the mistake he made by setting that parameter. However, there was a level of, like, 'These words are really mean. Why are you saying these words? They're so mean!' And I knew that it was not me," Gabi explained.
ADVERTISEMENT
Gabi said that when she met Zach's family as one of the Final 2 bachelorettes, she felt "so much love," which lifted her spirits a bit.
"I just wanted to be home with the people I loved... They're a very close family and they reminded me so much of my family. I felt very in love in that moment, but I don't know if I was just so craving my family that I just needed any kind of love," Gabi recalled.
"And so on that day on the beach [during our last-chance date], I knew for sure, 'It's not you.' And I said that."
Gabi could have saved herself embarrassment and tears by quitting The Bachelor and leaving before the Final Rose Ceremony, but she reiterated during her "Click Bait" interview thatshe and Kaity were very close during The Bachelor season and still "remain good friends" to this day.
Gabi therefore wanted Kaity to have her moment -- a beautiful engagement free of doubts, reservations and insecurities.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I never wanted her to feel like, 'Well, Gabi left, and so he had to choose me,'" Gabi explained.
"Because no, he was always choosing Kaity. The only reason I would've left is because I knew he was choosing Kaity, but I didn't want her to feel any kind of doubt when he proposed to her and she watched it all back."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Even though Gabi said she saw her elimination coming, she admitted in her final words that she felt "humiliated" by the breakup.
"I've been strung along this entire f-cking time and for what?" Gabi lamented in her final words.
"What really pisses me off is that I f-cking knew!... When your gut speaks, you should listen to it. I stuck around thinking, 'Maybe it's just all the things you fear and all the things you hate about yourself. Maybe it's not your gut.' No, your gut is always right. I put myself out there again and I'm not good enough. If I were, I wouldn't be here."
Gabi vented about how she's "unlovable for whatever f-cking reason," and continued, "There's something wrong with me. Why am I so hard to love? Why am I always so misunderstood? I don't know when someone is going to choose me. I just want to go home."
But Gabi insisted she's very happy for Zach and Kaity now, and she only wants the best for them.
Zach and his fiancee plan to move in together in Austin, TX, this summer, and they've already talked about having a 2025 wedding.
"If I'm not invited to the wedding, Kaity and I have beef. No, I don't think she'd ever do that to me. That's different, I know," Gabi concluded.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
ADVERTISEMENT
Interested in more The Bachelor news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group!