‘BIP’: Demi Burnett Feels ‘Really Bad’ About How She Was in Her Relationship With Kristian Haggerty
Demi Burnett got engaged to Kristian Haggerty on the most recent season of Bachelor in Paradise. They were the first same-sex couple to do so. Haggerty was also the first person to join the cast who hadn’t been on any previous Bachelor shows. It was an unprecedented BIP relationship all around.
“We could have easily said that because Demi is in somewhat of a relationship back home that she won’t find love here and we should send her home and go on our way. Instead, we all made the decision to break or bend the rules a little bit. And the good news is, there is no rulebook. I always say that to contestants and producers,” host Chris Harrison told The Hollywood Reporter of the decision to have Haggerty join the cast.
He continued: “We have no rules and can essentially do what we want with the show as long as we’re treating everybody fairly and with respect. It was a pretty easy but big decision to go down that path with Demi, especially since it’s with someone who is outside of our franchise and our family.”
Demi Burnett and Kristian Haggerty broke off their engagement
On October 31, 2019, Burnett and Haggerty announced their split on Instagram.
“What has always been at the forefront of our relationship is love and care for one another. Our priority is doing what is best for us. With a heavy heart full of love for one another we have decided it is best for us to take a step back from our relationship. We ultimately want what is best for us in the long run and for us right now, that means being apart and growing individually,” they both wrote on their respective pages.
The statement continued: “We have felt so much love and support from you all as you’ve followed our journey together and for that we are grateful. We will forever be proud of the impact our love story has made and we hope it has helped others feel more accepted and confident within themselves. We hope it reminded others they aren’t alone and don’t need to be ashamed of who they are.”
If Demi could go back, she’d do her relationship with Kristian differently
On April 30, Burnett opened up about what went wrong in her relationship with Haggerty on the Almost Famous Podcast With Ben Higgins & Ashley Iaconetti.
“Kristian is very, very loving and she’s the best girlfriend, the best partner to be with. She would do anything for you, and I didn’t reciprocate that. I wasn’t as good to her as she was to me,” Burnett said on the podcast. “I was kind of distant. I was overwhelmed, I was freaked out.”
Burnett says she feels “terribly” for how everything ended up.
“I wish I could go back and do it better. Treat her way better. Like she deserves because she deserves way better than what I gave her,” she said. “She’s in a new relationship now and she looks so happy, and so that makes me very happy. I just feel really bad that I was the person I had become in the relationship, you know?”
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