The Bachelor alum Rachael Kirkconnell is tired of Bachelor Nation trying to rush her and Matt James’s relationship.
The 24-year-old recently expressed that even though she and Matt are happy about the pace of their relationship, others are trying to pressure them to speed things along.
“I think we honestly enjoy just taking it one day at a time,” she told Us Weekly. “Of course we talk about the future often, but I think the best thing for us right now is not putting any pressure on the relationship because that’s what everyone else does to us every single day and we get that question every single day.”
Of course, the question she is referring to is about whether they’re engaged.
She continued, “It’s like ‘When are you guys getting engaged? Are you guys engaged yet?’ And, of course, we talk about it, but it’s just been nice to not have that pressure for the last few months because that’s all our relationship was in the beginning.”
Rachael and Matt never got engaged on The Bachelor
Viewers will remember that even though Matt gave Rachael his final rose, he did not propose to her at the end of The Bachelor.
Some members of Bachelor Nation may have read into this as a red flag indicating that Matt wasn’t ready for the serious commitment that comes with engagement.
However, it may have been for the better since the pair broke up ahead of the After The Final Rose special after racially insensitive pictures of Rachael posing for an Antebellum-themed shoot popped up on social media.
While there’s speculation as to whether they were even broken up at all, they’re together now and according to Rachael, stronger than ever.
Rachael and Matt are trying to move past Bachelor drama
The Bachelor drama has been weighing on their relationship for quite some time.
During their appearance on After The Final Rose, Matt had expressed that he wouldn’t be able to get past her racially insensitive actions, and Bachelor Nation had figured the two were done for good.
However, months later, the two were set to rekindle their romance in NYC.
That attempt was quickly foiled when Matt was caught trying to hook up with an ex just ahead of the trip.
The pair tried again in the months to come and found much more success.
Matt revealed that Rachael gave him an ultimatum which motivated him to fully commit to exploring a relationship with her.
Matt shared that he was able to forgive her because she was making a conscious effort to educate herself in racial equality.
Now that the pair has hashed and rehashed Rachael’s past, the pair is ready to move on and continue growing in their relationship– on their own terms.
The Bachelor is currently on hiatus on ABC.