Eliza Isichei had a big decision to make at the rose ceremony on the Nov. 7 episode of Bachelor in Paradise. Would she give her next rose to Rodney Mathews, who received her previous rose, or would she chose Justin Glaze, who came back to the beach after being eliminated just to pursue her? Eliza had a great time during her one-on-one date with Justin, and was upset with Rodney for not fighting for her to only want to be with him when she agreed to go on the date.
At the cocktail party, Rodney vowed to Eliza that was going to prove to her that he would do anything to make her happy. By the end of the conversation, he felt good about where they were at. “I’m feeling pretty confident in where I stand with Eliza,” Rodney admitted. “We had an amazing conversation and I feel like I really did release a lot, so now her and I can really focus on our relationship and continue to plan for post-Paradise.”
However, Eliza also had a great conversation with Justin, and Rodney had to watch as they made out right in front of him on the beach. Eliza was extremely torn with just moments to go until the rose ceremony, and the ladies urged her to follow her heart. Still, nobody on the beach was making it a secret that they thought Rodney was the better guy for Eliza. Mostly everyone was rooting for Rodney to get the rose and find his happiness.
In the end, all the chatter seemed to influence Eliza, as she gave Rodney the rose. “I just want to say thank you for showing up for me this week and being patient with me and fighting for us,” she told him. After breaking Justin’s heart, she walked him out to have one last conversation. She was in tears as they said goodbye. “I just want you to know how special you are and that you are deserving of all of this,” Justin told Eliza. “You are deserving of your happiness. Know that.” He also urged her not to “beat herself up” over the breakup. “That was so hard,” Eliza admitted, through tears, in a confessional. “This is awful. I knew it was going to be a tough night and I thought that I would feel better now, so why do I feel worse? I was not expecting to have to deal with this.”
The next morning, Eliza was still in tears, and admittedly began to regret her decision. “I was bawling my eyes out having to send Justin home. What does that mean?” she wondered. “I’m starting to think that maybe I didn’t make the right choice for me.”
Eliza pulled Rodney aside to tell him how she was feeling. “Last night I chose you because we’ve had such a good time together so far and it’s been so good,” she explained. “I chose you because it just felt like the right thing to do. I have a lot of feelings for you. But then, I think when i was walking Justin out, I was so upset. And I thought I was just upset because I had to hurt someone’s feelings and I thought, ‘I’ll be fine. I’m going to be emotional tonight but I’ll wake up and be okay and have clarity and it’ll pass.’ But then I woke up this morning and I felt the same way still.”
Rodney flat-out asked Eliza if she thought she made the wrong choice by giving him the rose and she had to come clean. “I just don’t think I made the right decision for myself,” she admitted. “I think I felt so much pressure and I think I was influenced a little bit by how much love everyone has for you.” She also admitted that she had stronger feelings for Justin than Rodney. At that point, Rodney had no reason to stay in Paradise any longer. He left the beach in tears. Everyone was heartbroken to see him go, with many of the contestants also crying over the heartbreak.
Eliza was also still upset, and some of the ladies urged her to go after Justin if that was who she wanted. Eliza packed her bags and flew to Maryland to have a conversation with Justin. “Going after him is definitely a first,” she shared. “I don’t usually chase guys. But he means a lot to me and I hope he’s excited to see me as I am to see him. I’m really, really nervous. I sent him home, so maybe that was a hit to his ego. Maybe he’s already closed that door in his mind. I’m trusting in that feeling that we had together on the beach. I really think he’s someone I can see myself with in the future. I hope the feelings are mutual.”
We won’t see how their conversation goes down, though, until next week’s Bachelor in Paradise on Nov. 14.