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We said it once and we’ll say it again — the devil works hard, but The Bachelor producers work harder. After all the drama between Hannah Brown and Caelynn Miller-Keyes on Colton Underwood’s season of The Bachelor, the ABC reality series cast five former pageant queens — Kelsey Weier, Alayah Benavidez, Victoria Paul, Hannah Ann Sluss, and Maurissa Gunn — on Peter Weber’s season. 

Given the small community within the pageant world, it was always a possibility for a contestant to have a history with another fellow castmate, pre-Bachelor. And now, with all the drama rising between Victoria P. and Alayah, some fans are comparing the rift with what happened to Brown and Miller-Keyes.

How do Victoria P. and Alayah know each other?

In the Jan. 27 episode of The Bachelor, Alayah’s character was called into question after Sydney Hightower warned Weber about Alayah’s behavior. Sydney called Alayah “fake” and alleged the former Miss Texas USA acted differently in front of the cameras. 

Throughout the remainder of the episode, Weber asked women about Alayah and a few women expressed their own concerns. However, the bachelor wasn’t 100 percent convinced, still giving Alayah the benefit of the doubt, until he spoke with Victoria P., who revealed she knew Alayah because of their pageant past.

“I shared with you that I was Miss Louisiana. And so I did know Alayah a little bit before going into this,” Victoria P. told Weber. “I probably had spent, maybe, like collectively three hours with her, even at Miss USA. And it’s difficult for me to be in this position. But I do know that she asked that I not tell producers that we knew one another.”

She continued: “I didn’t really understand why because I was like, ‘Let’s not. I can’t lie, I don’t wanna lie.’ I didn’t think of it much then. But looking back now, I’m like, ‘Well, she did ask me to lie.’ And that’s not who I am.”

Then Victoria P. dropped the bomb. “[Alayah] was really open to all the opportunities that come after this, even if you aren’t her husband,” Victoria P. said. “So maybe she’s not the one for you.”

Were Victoria P. and Alayah friends before Peter Weber’s season of ‘The Bachelor’? 

Following the conversation, Weber confronted Alayah about asking Victoria P. to lie to producers about their relationship before The Bachelor. And although Victoria P. said she barely knew her Alayah, the former Miss Texas USA explained she was friends with Victoria P.

“Victoria and I are friends outside of this. Victoria P. and I know each other very well outside of this environment,” Alayah said. “Before getting here, my biggest fear is that I would get disqualified and she would get disqualified because we knew the other person was coming. I didn’t want that for her, I didn’t want that for me. And I was very scared for both of us that was gonna be an issue.”

Weber then noted his disappointment, hinting Alayah’s actions didn’t “look genuine” from his perspective. “From everything I’ve seen from Victoria so far, she just seems like she’d have no reason to lie,” Weber said. “And hearing that you were trying to cover it up, that you guys knew each other…”

Then Alayah interrupted Weber, clarifying she didn’t ask Victoria P. to lie about their history beforehand. Rather, Alayah was worried about being disqualified for discussing their Bachelor casting before limo night — which typically remains unknown beforehand.

“No, I’m not trying to cover up that we know each other,” Alayah said. “That’s not at all it. I didn’t want us to not be able to be here because we knew the other person was doing it.”

Fans react to Victoria P. and Alayah’s pageant drama on ‘The Bachelor’

It appears Alayah’s explanation about the Victoria P. wasn’t enough to convince Weber — or Bachelor Nation fans. At the end of the episode, Weber eliminated Alayah, sending her home. Many viewers also brought up the feud between Miller-Keyes and Brown in Underwood’s season as a reason to discredit Alayah’s claims.

“Alayah was worried her and Victoria P would get kicked off the show for knowing each other when Colton’s season had a whole story line around Hannah B and Caelynn,” a fan wrote with a confused GIF of Miss J. Alexander.

Other fans compared Victoria P. and Alayah’s situation with Miller-Keyes and Brown — but in a different light. And instead, they put the blame on the producers.

“Alayah had a valid concern,” one fan wrote on Twitter. “It wouldn’t be the first time producers tried to stir up drama between two pageant girls, remember Caelynn and Hannah B on Colton’s season??”

'The Bachelor' Season 24 cast
‘The Bachelor’ Season 24 cast | ABC/Craig Sjodin

For those of you who may not remember, Miller-Keyes and Brown competed in the Miss USA 2018 pageant. They were friends at one point but had a falling out. The women then appeared on Underwood’s season. And as a result, Miller-Keyes and Brown told their bachelor the other party wasn’t there for the right reasons.

Now, history is repeating itself with Victoria P. and Alayah — sort of. Miller-Keyes and Brown had negative feelings towards one another coming into Underwood’s season. On the other hand, Victoria P. and Alayah’s situation appears less personal.

That said, fans are still seeing a lot of “she said, she said” that ultimately stems from their pageant past and friendship. Regardless, everyone will just have to wait and see how this all plays out, especially with Alayah’s return in the Jan. 27 episode. So stay tuned.

Read more: ‘The Bachelor’: Hannah Brown Is Bothered By This 1 Thing About the Peter Weber Reunion

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