Breaking up — together? Clayton Echard and Susie Evans continue to do things their own way, giving a joint interview about their decision to call it quits less than two weeks after their split.
“There was so many factors at play. This wasn’t a traditional relationship. This was a relationship that was broadcast on national television. There was so many moving parts. … I wasn’t really sure of what my next step was going to be once the show ended,” the season 26 Bachelor began on the “Off the Vine” podcast on Tuesday, October 4. “I had uprooted myself, I had sold my place. I was like, ‘OK, I can go wherever.’ But as far as what I ended up doing — am I going to go back to corporate America? Or am I going to chase my passions? There were all these unknowns. And I think it put me in a place of instability. Plus, with the backlash from the show, it became very overwhelming, very quickly. And so, what I think ended up happening is I was trying to figure out what my next step was [and] I started questioning who I was because of all the negativity. I started to believe some of what was being said about me. And I now look back at it and realize, like, I couldn’t be that stable, secure man that I needed to be to really be able to give my all in a relationship.”
As Echard, who noted he kept asking Evans for more time to heal, continued to be candid about how he struggled with his “self-identity” and the backlash from his season of The Bachelor — he told Evans, Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia that he was in love with all three of them — the wedding videographer began to cry.
“I’m, like, so emotional over here. … We just talked for two hours [on the phone] and we were fine. I wasn’t crying or anything,” Evans said. “But yeah, I think a lot of it was just self-identity and I think that he was looking for stability. And there were times [when] I didn’t provide that as well because I just wasn’t sure. I was like, you know, ‘I can’t wait three months.’ I can’t promise three months or whatever. And I think that’s really hard in a relationship too when I’m on the other hand like, ‘I need security. … I want to be two whole people.’”
Echard and Evans went public with their split on September 23, releasing a joint statement via Instagram.
“We understand that there will likely be a lot of questions about this decision — social media is definitely a highlight reel and much of our experiences together we have kept private as I’m sure most can understand,” the pair wrote about their “painful” decision to split. “But we will share this — although this last year together has brought us so much joy and so many laughs, there has also been a significant amount of pain. We know no healthy relationship comes without its struggles, but we’ve realized that we were not prepared for the external forces that hindered our ability to not only heal as individuals but also as a couple. We both are focused on continuing to work on ourselves, so we can be the best version of ourselves. … Although Claysie is no more, we hope that our communities can support us individually as we move forward with love and respect for each other. Thank you to all of you that supported our relationship. It means so much more than you will ever know. ❤️”
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