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Colton Underwood, 28, and Cassie Randolph, 25, want to still have a relationship with one another — just not a romantic one. The now former couple, whose love story fans rooted for on Season 23 of The Bachelor, revealed that this romance has come to an end in two separate emotional posts on their respective Instagrams on May 30. First up was Colton, who shared a sweet photo of himself looking out at a lake with Cassie.
“Its [sic] been a crazy few months to say the least, Cass and I have been doing a lot of self-reflecting. Sometimes people are just meant to be friends – and that’s okay. We both have grown immensely and been through so much together – so this isn’t the end of our story, it’s the start of a whole new chapter for us,” Colton announced under the post, spurring shocked fans to leave comments like “my heart is broken.”
Just minutes later, Cassie followed Colton’s cue by sharing a few candid shots of her own that featured the dynamic duo’s adventures over the past year. “First off, I want to say this is one of the hardest things I have had to share as neither one of us is quite ready to talk about it yet,” Cassie began in her Instagram caption. “However, because our relationship is such a public one, our silence on the matter has been speaking for us. Colton and I have broken up, but have decided to remain a part of each others lives. With all that we have gone through, we have a special bond that will always be there. I love Colton very much and have an enormous amount of respect for him. We have both learned and grown so much these past couple years, and will always have each others back. Always.”
The Bachelor Nation family quickly sent their social media love to the exes. “Here for you man,” Ben Higgins commented underneath Colton’s post, while DeMario Jackson wrote, “Sending you love brother.” It’s clear that Colton remains in good standing with Cassie’s family; her little sister Michelle Randolph left a “Love you” in his comments section, and her boyfriend, actor Gregg Sulkin, echoed that note by writing, “Love you both xx.” Meanwhile under Cassie’s post, Onyeka Ehie wrote “Love you so much Cass” and Becca Tilley left a string of red heart emojis.
However, the breakup completed blindsided Bachelor fans, especially just after seeing Colton and Cassie quarantine and battle a health scare together. Colton was diagnosed positive for the lethal COVID-19 disease in March, and made a full recovery while living under Cassie and her family’s roof in Huntington Beach, CA. On April 7, he even gave a warm shout-out to his now former girlfriend and her family in a sweet Instagram post: “I just want to take a second and thank this beautiful woman and her family for taking such good care of me. Not only physically, but mentally too (and I’m probably the most high maintenance patient). She’s hardworking, passionate, understanding, kind and has the biggest heart. Her family opened up their doors to us while we were in quarantine and through everything we stuck together.”
Regardless, fans are used to the roller-coaster of a ride that is Colton and Cassie’s relationship. They didn’t have a typical Bachelor love story; Cassie realized she wasn’t ready for an engagement, and opted out of the show in week nine of Season 23 (which aired between January-March 2019). This was devastating for Colton — so much so, he infamously hopped a fence to escape the cameras in Portugal. In the finale, Colton even ended his relationships with finalists Hannah Godwin and Tayshia Adams to be with Cassie, who ultimately gave their relationship another shot. Despite all they’ve been through, at least this memorable Bachelor duo can remain friends!