The mansion erupted into chaos when one Bachelorette decided to 'out' Jess Navin for having a boyfriend in the outside world, despite coming onto the show to build a connection with Felix Von Hofe.
It wasn't the way Jess wanted to have the conversation with Felix, hoping to explain to him that she had recently been investigating non-monogamous relationship structures, and had hoped he too would be interested in what that would look like.
Speaking to 10 Play, Jess said the decision to go on the show was not an easy one. Taking into consideration how she may be portrayed, as well as how her boyfriend Damien would also come across, Jess explained that she did the show with his full support.
Prior to meeting Damien, Jess said she had only been in monogamous relationships. "There have been doubts, do I see myself being with this person forever and ever, till death do us part? Is monogamy natural? I feel like it's a bit of a social construct," she explained.
"Because I'm such a curious person, I want to know everything and anything before I make a decision about something.
"I feel like, in my mid-twenties especially, I'm at this point in my life where I want all the information first before making an informed decision, and that includes all the different relationship structures," she added. "You can have monogamy, or you can have a relationship where you're monogamish, polyamorous, you could be open... whatever that may look like.
"There are all these different ways of going about relationships and, before I settle down and have my own kids and stuff, I think this is the time in my life where I should explore my sexuality and those different ways of going about relationships."
Ultimately, Jess said it all comes down to respect, transparency, and open lines of communication, all things that Damien really encouraged within their relationship. "[There are] still a lot of questions to be asked, I'm still learning about that whole world," she said, adding that despite being thrust into the spotlight via the show, in no day did she want to speak on behalf of the polyamorous community, adding, "I'm still trying to figure it out on my own".
After coming out of a four-year-long relationship where "there were trust issues and the topic of cheating", Jess met Damien in late 2021, and was very vocal with him that she wasn't sure if she wanted to settle down. He introduced her to these other dating structures that rejected monogamy as an end goal.
"He said, 'Jess I want you to experience the world and connections, whether that's with me or without me... you're open and free to connect on a deep level with anyone, I'm not here to hold you back.'
"When I got the call to be on the show I was a little bit like, do I actually want to do this? I don't want Damien to look like he's just a doormat or I'm potential going to abandon him," Jess explained.
Jess added that Damien was very supportive, despite her own pangs of jealousy when it came to the idea of him doing the same, she was eager to investigate what that could look like.
"I was in this grey area, this limbo, like how is this going to work? What does this look like? If I do go on another date with someone is that going to hurt you or make you feel upset? I don’t want to hurt him either along that process," Jess said.
"When the topic of conversation came about of [applying for The Bachelor], I wanted to build a life with someone - I felt like I couldn't do that with Damien," Jess admitted. "He was very much of the opinion like, 'Jess I will support you in whatever decision you make, even if that means exploring a connection with the Bachelor without me.'
"Some might call me selfish, which I understand, but at the same time I was in a position where I got to experience being open with other people," she said.
Many watching the season questioned why Jess didn't immediately tell her Bachelor, Felix, that she was exploring non-monogamous relationships and had a boyfriend during their first introductory date.
"Ideally I wanted to have a natural conversation," Jess explained, "you don't reveal everything about yourself within the first 10-20 minutes of getting to know someone. You let the conversation happen organically and naturally.
"I barely even knew his age or what he did for work, let alone feel like I had the chance to sit down with him in a proper one-on-one conversation and say okay let's get to know each other... I don't know what the right way to go about it is!"
Had the pair had hours to sit down and debrief, Jess said, "I 100 percent would have not allowed Felix to walk away without getting to know me and my situation and make an informed decision as to whether that is something he wants to keep me around for". Unfortunately, with a limited amount of time to make a first impression, Jess didn't get the opportunity.
Jess was also robbed of the opportunity to have the conversation with Felix herself after one of the other Bachelorettes 'outed' her relationship status to Jed, who passed the information on to his fellow Bachelor.
Felix was clearly on the back foot, having made an early and strong connection with Jess during their blind date. After the initial shock wore off, Felix has since made the effort to wrap his head around Jess' intentions within the Bachelor experience.
But if Jess were to make it to the end, and be standing at the finale with Felix, what would that look like? Would they enter a 'throuple', would she break up with Damien and commit to Felix? Or would they find some other arrangement?
"I mean, I didn't even know if I was going to form a connection with Felix, I was honestly just taking it day by day and reacting in the moment," Jess said.
"Everything happens so quickly I didn't get a chance to sit down and go through all the different scenarios that could be at play. I didn't have a mindmap of all the possible ways it could play out," she said, laughing. "I was simply living in the moment."
Admitting that she may not see Damien in her long-term future, Jess didn't feel right breaking up with him purely to go on the show. "I was exploring, is this whole relationship, polyamory, for me? Does it align with me? How does it feel? And it's just a bit funny that I used The Bachelor experience as my way of finding out if this is for me or not."
As she explores her connection with Felix, Jess continues to discover more facets to a non-monogamous relationship, the emotions and feelings at stake.
"But I also had hope for the future and I was questioning, how do I want this to look without impacting people along the way? I remember continuously saying I just don't want to hurt anyone. I don't want anyone to feel sad or abandoned or left behind. I just wanted everyone to have a peaceful, positive experience."
See Jess and Felix's experience continue when The Bachelors airs Sunday - Wednesday at 7.30 on Network 10 and 10 Play on demand
