The Bachelorette alum Becca Kufrin has confirmed she and Garrett Yrigoyen have split and ended their engagement following months of breakup rumors.
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"I [want] to address what's been going on with me and my relationship over these past couple of months. Although this is very difficult and a quite personal matter for me, I do truly value and care for all of our listeners and the questions and concerns you've had these past few weeks. So I just want to share with you directly what I've been going through," Becca, 30, began in the last 10 minutes of the episode.
"I want to preface this by saying I am sitting in my apartment alone, recording this by myself. I didn't think it was fitting to bring anyone else into this conversation when my relationship was only made up of two people, which was obviously myself and Garrett."
She continued, "I know there has been so much speculation and curiosity out there regarding where he and I stand. I've seen countless headlines and stories ran by news outlets and countless Instagram posts confirming something that, to be honest, I don't think was anyone else's place or right to do."
"No one has any right to confirm this unless it comes directly from the source and from the horse's mouth, which is, in this moment, me."
Becca's voice then changed and it sounded like she was starting to cry.
"So I don't think it's going to come as a shock to anyone, but Garrett and I have decided to end our engagement," Becca shared.
"If you followed us on Instagram for the past couple months, you'll have noticed I spent a lot of time in Minnesota. I was with family and close friends, and he was out on the West Coast doing the same. We were really just trying to take the time and gain some clarity as to what was the next best step in our lives, whether that was together or as individuals."
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Becca said she and Garrett, 31, slowly arrived at the decision to break up "after many conversations."
"It wasn't something that we just arrived at one night. It wasn't based solely off of one Instagram post or somebody else's opinions or comments. There's much more to it," Becca explained.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOWBecca was seemingly referring to the thin blue line Garrett had posted June 4 on Instagram, which showed solidarity with police forces amid nationwide protests triggered by the killing of George Floyd and appeared to spearhead the couple's demise.
Becca had made it known on the June 9 episode of her Bachelor Happy Hour podcast that she does not "align" or "agree with" Garrett's social-media post.
"To any relationship, there's a lot of layers, and it's not for me to divulge details. It's no one's business other than what I'm telling you right now. But for anyone out there who has gone through a breakup, you know it's never easy. It's a roller coaster of emotions," Becca said.
"You have these ups and downs and you try to take it day by day and navigate the best you can, which is why it's taken so long for either of us to say anything."
Becca, however, said she and Garrett have had some time to "finally come to terms with" and be at peace with their choice to split.
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"We've realized that we still have so much love and kindness and compassion in our hearts for the other person, but sometimes people's paths just go different ways, and we were on this crazy TV hoping to find love over two years ago, and we were lucky enough that we did," Becca said, sobbing at this point in her announcement.
"We really, truly did, and I'm so grateful for that opportunity and to have had the two-plus years with Garrett."
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Becca admitted it was "really hard" to publicly talk about this and she never thought she'd be in the position to have to make a breakup announcement.
"We thought we had a future that was set in stone. We thought we'd have a house together and buy a dog and probably add children to the mix one day, and again, life happens and sometimes people drift apart and have differences and go their separate ways," Becca said.
"So all I can ask is that you guys respect us as humans and our privacy and growth [and] allow us time as individuals to determine what's best for us and how to navigate this difficult time... We do just need some time to heal."
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Becca concluded her announcement by thanking the supportive fans out there and advising others going through a breakup that they're not alone.
"2020 has been a hell of a year, but I'm not the only one who's had to deal with this. It's more important now than ever to lean on each other and give out a little more kindness and grace... because we could all use it with everything going on," Becca noted.
"I hope from here on out, the rumors can be put to bed and Garrett and I can now move on into the next chapter of our lives -- hopefully, fingers crossed, the best ones yet."
Becca and Garrett have been spending time apart since June. Not only did Becca and Garrett spend the Fourth of July apart with their respective families, but Garrett also attended a friend's wedding alone on July 18.
Becca then apparently headed to her hometown in Minnesota on June 29 and remained there for weeks.
E! News reported in early August the pair had called off their engagement and are no longer together.
"Their lifestyles don't mesh anymore. Garrett wants different things and they came to a realization that they aren't compatible anymore," a source told E! News at the time.
"Garrett is doing a backpacking trip in the wilderness with his buddies and is taking time for himself. They are trying to keep it low-key because they are still working things out, but the relationship is definitely done."
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Becca seemingly spent time at The Bachelorette resort in Palm Springs, CA, in August and then settled into a new home late last month. (Becca previously shared a place with Garrett in Carlsbad, CA).
Becca and Garrett got engaged in August 2018 during The Bachelorette's Season 14 finale and celebrated two years together in May.
Becca revealed she was ready to tie the knot with Garrett in December 2019 and the pair's relationship seemed to be strong and thriving in May 2020, but then the drama began in June.
A couple of weeks after Garrett expressed support for the police in early June during the "Black Lives Matter" movement, Becca told Rachel on their podcast that she was trying to work things out with Garrett but the future of their relationship was uncertain.
"For those who are curious about my relationship with Garrett at this point, all I can say right now is I don't know," Becca said on the June 16 episode of Bachelor Happy Hour.
"I can't give anything more than that. It's something that we are trying to work through and discuss and do work on at home at this time and that's where the work will remain and that's really the best I can give you at this point."
Rachel has since made it known she's not a fan of Garrett at all.
"Becca and I have a friendship, so I will refrain from talking about her relationship out of respect for her, but I think he's a piece of sh-t," Rachel bluntly admitted on a late July episode of Everything Iconic with Danny Pellegrino.
"And I've said to her, 'I will not f-ck with him.' He has doubled down on his beliefs. This isn't the first time he's had problematic behavior."
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Garrett came under fire in 2018 as Becca's The Bachelorette season was airing on ABC for his taste in offensive, controversial and politically-extreme Instagram memes involving undocumented immigrants, Parkland shooting survivors and more.
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During Garrett's first scandal in 2018, Becca wasn't aware of Garrett's social-media behavior while her The Bachelorette season was filming. She therefore asked fans during an interview with Entertainment Tonight to "stay open-minded" because she can't fault anyone for what they believe.
"I am a strong woman and I do believe in certain things, but again, that's what's so great about our country -- everyone is entitled to their own opinions," Becca said at the time in Garrett's defense.
Becca starred on The Bachelorette after having her heart broken by Arie Luyendyk Jr. on The Bachelor's 22nd season, which wrapped in early 2018.
Not long after his The Bachelor engagement to Becca, Arie felt he had made a mistake and was actually in love with his runner-up, Lauren Burnham, instead.
The Bachelor finale therefore showed Arie dumping a totally shocked and blindsided Becca, only to beg Lauren for another chance.
Lauren ultimately took Arie back in early 2018, and then the couple got engaged on The Bachelor: After the Final Rose's live broadcast in March 2018.
Since then, Arie and Lauren got married in Hawaii and welcomed a baby girl, Alessi, in May 2019.
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
