Recap
‘The Bachelor’: Sarah Leaves After Struggling With Jealousy & Tension With The Other Women
As Sarah realized how hard it was for her to see Matt date other women on ‘The Bachelor,’ she questioned whether she belonged on the show, and pissed off the other contestants.
Sarah Trott realized quite quickly that she wasn’t equipped to deal with feelings of jealousy on The Bachelor. After having a one-on-one date with Matt James during the show’s Jan. 11 episode, Sarah was rocked by being in a group date setting on Jan. 18. Even just seeing Matt with other women at the cocktail party overwhelmed Sarah to the point where she almost fainted, and after the group date, she knew that something felt off.
This week’s first group date had the women writing dirty stories about what they wanted to do with Matt in bed. Sarah wasn’t actually on the date, but she got to watch the live readings of the letters from the audience. It wasn’t easy for any of the women in the crowd, but Sarah took it especially hard. “I was on such a high after our one on one date, and it’s such a wake up call and reminder that he has these relationships with other women,” Sarah explained. “I knew he’d be dating other women and there was potential of seeing him being romantic and intimate with other women, but I just didn’t know it was going to be this hard.”
Despite not being part of the group date, Sarah took it upon herself to interrupt the evening so she could let Matt know how she was feeling. “In my heart, I know all these special moments we had, and it kills me that he’s having these special moments with other women, too,” she said in a confessional. “I just worry if I can’t get past this it’s going to be a real road block in my relationship with Matt.”
Katie Thurston was talking to Matt when Sarah interrupted, and she was understandably frustrated. When she went back to tell the other women what was going on, they were all pretty visibly pissed off — especially Victoria Larson. Meanwhile, Sarah opened up to Matt about how being on the show was “harder” than she expected. He assured her that her feelings were normal and urged her not to worry about comparing their relationship to what he had going on with the other women.
Eventually, Katie grew so annoyed about losing her time, that she interrupted Matt and Sarah to get her time back. Afterward, Sarah tried to apologize to the group, but they weren’t hearing it. “Couldn’t you have said this at another time?” Kit Keenan demanded, while Victoria wondered, “What did you have to address? It had to be pretty serious if you would come here.”
When Sarah left, Katie followed her outside and approached her to tell her off. Sarah was visibly emotional and wiped back tears as she tried to explain where she was coming from. Katie listened, but also made sure to say her piece.
The next morning, before Matt’s one-on-one date with Serena Pitt, he once again sought out Sarah to assure her that his feelings for her were real. “I want you to be part of this,” he insisted. “What we shared on our one-on-one was real. I was so happy after that night. I was riding on cloud nine. I just want you to know that you’re on my mind.”
Downstairs, most of the other girls were continuing to air their frustrations about the situation. “We’re all sitting here pissed off and upset,” Anna Redman said. “She is taking time from other woman. You wronged us. Come downstairs and face the mess you made.” Meanwhile, Sarah couldn’t deny how special Matt made her feel. “That was so sweet and comforting,” she said after their conversation. “This is really real. I mean a lot to him. After hearing that from him….I can’t leave.”
Still, Sarah spent most of the day upstairs, apart from the other ladies…which made them even angrier. Several of the women did not hide the fact that they wanted Sarah to go home, and the tension could be cut with a knife when Sarah finally re-joined the group. Once again, she apologized, but various women didn’t hold back from expressing how angry they were with her.
“If you didn’t want to be here, why are you taking someone else’s rose who DOES want to be here and does trust this process?” Abigail Heringer asked. Sarah tried to explain that she was just having a really hard time, which really pissed some people off. “You haven’t had it difficult!” Anna exclaimed. “You had a one on one date! You literally have not had it difficult!” She also called Sarah “manipulative” and “calculated.”
Of course, Victoria was the most vocal. “I concur. You’re acting [calculated],” she said. “You need his attention and to make him feel like he can’t talk to other girls or you’re going to go home.” Kit added, “I hope your connection with Matt is very strong because the rest of your living situation [here] is going to be very horrible.” Sarah was in tears by the end of the verbal beatdown.
Finally, she came to the conclusion that she couldn’t continue on the show any longer. She explained that it was a combination of the tension with the other girls, as well as the time she was missing with her father, who’s battling ALS, at home. “I just am not cut out for this,” she said, crying. “I just can’t give this my all. All of my worst insecurities are coming out. I really have to put my well being first and I’m not in a good place here.” In a confessional, she added, “I believe in the feelings I have with Matt, we have a great connection, but Matt deserves the best and I don’t feel my best. I want him to have everything and more of what he came here for, but I don’t think it can be with me.”
Sarah packed her bags and went to tell Matt her decision. Once again, he tried to convince her to stay, assuring her that he had real feelings for her. This time, though, Sarah had made up her mind. “I’ve prayed about this and I’ve thought about it and I just feel really called to go home and be with my family,” she revealed. “I just don’t think I’m ready for this.” Matt came to terms with Sarah’s decision, and promised Sarah that he’d be praying for her family.
