*Warning: Spoilers ahead*
Last week on The Bachelor, the remaining contestants teamed up against Alayah after she was caught in multiple lies, leaving Peter Weber with no other choice but to send her home.
And now, the pageant queen returns to not only confront the pilot but also defend her tainted reputation. Here’s what went down in season 24, episode four of The Bachelor.
The episode opens on Chris Harrison surprising the 15 remaining contestants at the Bachelor mansion. The host reveals that the ladies are packing up and traveling to Cleveland, Ohio, and their reactions say it all.
“When I think of Ohio, I don’t necessarily think of romance,” one contestant says. Two words: budget cuts.
When they arrive at the hotel, the first date card arrives, and it’s addressed to Victoria F. (Not to be confused with Victoria P., who had a one-on-one date in last week’s episode.)
Victoria F. is taken to an airport and nearly has a panic attack when she assumes the date involves skydiving. (Spoiler alert: It doesn’t.) Instead, Weber is flying her to Sandusky, where they visit a world-famous amusement park, Cedar Point.
Everything is going great, despite the fact that Victoria F. is afraid of heights. But things take an interesting turn when Weber surprises her with an impromptu Chase Rice concert.
The problem? Victoria F. used to date the country singer, and Weber has no idea. So, she awkwardly dances with the pilot and then drags him out of the venue without saying anything.
After the concert, Victoria F. makes her way backstage and pulls Rice aside. He claims he had no idea she’d be on the one-on-one date, even though Victoria F. says Rice tried to stop her from coming on the show. *Eye roll*
Later that night, Victoria F. comes clean to Weber during dinner. “I think it would be really unfair not to tell you,” she says.
Weber is in disbelief. “Wait, the singer?” he says. “I just talked to him.” Victoria F. explains she dated Rice before coming on the show but broke off the relationship. When Weber asks why she didn’t say anything during the concert, Victoria F. gets overwhelmed and excuses herself from the table.
The pilot tracks her down and confirms that her past relationship won’t hurt her chances on the show. At the end of the night, Weber gives her the rose. (#Predictable)
When the group date card arrives, it’s addressed to Victoria P., Kiarra, Kelley, Deandra, Madison, Lexi, Shiann, Tammy, Sydney, Hannah Ann, Savannah and Mykenna, which means Kelsey is the lucky recipient of the one-on-one.
The ladies are taken to a football stadium, where they undergo a bootcamp with Cleveland Browns football legends Josh Cribbs and Hanford Dixon. Then, the women are split into two teams for “The Bachelor Bowl,” which is basically a super watered-down version of tackle football.
Victoria P. decides to sit out since her back hurts, and her decision pays off, since she spends the majority of the game getting a massage from Weber.
As for “The Bachelor Bowl,” the game ends in a tie. Womp, womp.
That night at the after-party, the contestants are already on edge, since there are 13 people on the group date, making it nearly impossible to get time with Weber. Things only get worse when Alayah randomly walks through the door and steals the pilot away. (ICYMI: She was sent home in last week’s episode.)
“Shut the front door!” multiple girls scream at once.
Alayah explains that she wants to defend herself, saying, “I’m here to freaking set the record straight about what was said about me.” The beauty pageant says that Victoria P. lied when she threw her under the bus in last week’s episode, and Weber doesn’t know who to believe.
“I’m obviously being lied to by someone,” he says.
When he pulls aside Victoria P., she breaks down in tears and plays the victim card, claiming she never lied about anything. So, Weber enlists Alayah to join their chat. Alayah says she’s hurt that Victoria P. ruined her chances at staying on the show.
“I don’t know what else to say,” Victoria P. says.
Weber apologizes to Alayah for judging her without hearing both sides of the story. “Do you want to come back?” he says. Of course, she happily agrees.
When Weber returns to the group, he breaks the news to the other women, and they’re pissed. To make matters worse, he gives the rose to Alayah. Yikes.
The next day, Weber takes Kelsey to explore Cleveland. The date consists of the usual activities, including eating Pierogies, dancing in front of a live band and racing mini cars in the street. They seem to be getting along really well—probably because there’s no Champagne involved.
Later that night, Kelsey shows her vulnerable side when she opens up about her parents’ divorce. She explains that she has high expectations for a life partner, since she didn’t have a father figure growing up and wants her future children to experience that.
Weber gives her the rose (natch).
Back at the hotel, Alayah is already starting drama. It all begins when she tells the other women about Victoria F.’s former relationship with Rice. Since Alayah stumbled upon this information after getting sent home, Victoria F. says it’s unfair for her to be sharing her personal business when it hasn’t been addressed with the contestants yet. Alayah denies any wrongdoing (again).
The next day, Weber tries to kick off the cocktail party, but the women don’t let him. They interrupt his speech and say they’ve never felt more “underrecognized” in their entire lives, since they battled it out on the football field and then watched the rose go to Alayah.
When Victoria P. pulls him aside, she says she’s hurt that Weber didn’t trust her when he asked about Alayah. “She’s manipulating you the same way that she manipulated me,” Victoria P. says. She adds that Victoria F. agrees, which prompts Weber to confide in her.
Victoria F. explains what happened and says she’s embarrassed that Alayah beat her to the chase (pun intended).
The episode concludes with Weber sitting down with Alayah, who claims the women are ganging up on her. In the other room, the ladies are bickering about who said what.
Right on cue, the screen reads, “To be continued…”
Will Weber finally see Alayah’s true colors? Or will he abandon all responsibilities and send himself home? (Totally kidding…sorta.) Guess we’ll have to wait until The Bachelor returns to ABC next Monday, February 3, at 8 p.m.
