Arie Luyendyk Jr"s season of The Bachelor airs its finale this week — it"s two-night, five-hour finale.
Everyone who doesn"t follow The Bachelor Spoilers is in for a real shock. More than one, even.
In the video below, Arie calls himself a "monster." What did he do?
In the The Bachelor promo video that you"ll see below, Arie gets real — or as real as Arie is capable of getting, confessing to the camera.
"I could choose the wrong person. That"s a real fear. I"m terrified."
No one wants to make a mistake — and, in particular, no one wants to make it on camera in front of millions of people. Particularly when it"s something as important as choosing a potential spouse.
As we know, his worst fears are realized. The winner he chooses is not the woman he really wanted and, months later, Arie ends his engagement and pursues the runner up.
But then he makes this powerful confession:
"I feel like a monster."
While watching the video below might help you pick up on some clues on what is making Arie feel quite so monstrous, it doesn"t really spell it out.
Is this his confession of his do-over, months later, in which he goes back to the runner-up to express his regrets about having broken up with her?
Because yes, he did tell ABC about it, and their cameras were apparently rolling to capture his epic flip-flop.
Or is this just what Arie says about the planned break-ups.
Did he struggle with having to shatter women"s hearts on television?
(If so, maybe that will quell the rumors that everything about him is fake)
Despite his "monstrous" acts, he"s apparently looking forward to the finale being aired so that the audience can have more details on what"s going on.
Arie tells E! that he"s eager for fans to see the whole story:
"I think that people are going to understand me a lot more and understand the ending and understand why Caroline"s upset."
He"s also totally prepared for potential backlash — okay, virtually guaranteed backlash — that he"s likely to receive over his decision.
"But this is my journey and this is about finding a lasting love and that road is not always the easiest. Hopefully people will understand more."
He says that he tries to keep things in perspective.
"It"s all about the ending and finding that person for yourself and that"s the important part. I"m very happy."
Stars in this franchise are often accused of making mistakes.
Just last summer, the world watched in confusion and horror as Rachel Lindsay ditched Peter Kraus for Bryan Abasolo.
(For what it"s worth, Rachel Lindsay predicts that Lauren wins The Bachelor)
Fans might watch Arie dump the runner-up and then dump the winner and see it as some sort of monstrous mind game in which he plays with these women"s hearts.
Others may look at his flip-flop and consider it a brave choice.
Honestly, those in that second category may just be wishing that Rachel Lindsay had come to her senses and gone back for Peter Kraus.
(But it"s her life, folks, and the right man for you might not be the right man for her — something that the Bachelor Nation should also keep in mind as they watch Arie)
From the beginning, many felt that Arie was a random choice to play the leading man.
And fans weren"t exactly reassured when they learned that he had broken up with his real-life girlfriend just a couple of days before the announcement that he"d be on The Bachelor.
But now? From the dramatic twist of him ending up with the runner-up to the knowledge that he contacted ABC to tell them about it to let them film him even after the show was over, it"s clear that he"s a magnet for drama.
Sometimes, a controversial choice is a smart one. Especially when you"re talking about reality television.
Take a look at this epic teaser and decide for yourself why Arie"s calling himself a monster.
