Out of all of Arie Luyendyk Jr.'s hometown visits on "The Bachelor" Monday night, Tia and her family proved the warmest and most thoughtful.
Tia even paved the way for Arie to strut his stuff on a dirt racetrack so that he would come across as a car racing conquering hero. Sure, Tia's dad Kenny gave Arie a hard time and even threatened Google assisted bodily harm. But so did all the fathers and father figures featured on this installment of the ABC reality series -- minus the Google part.
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View StoryWhat made Kenny stand out is that he said he trusted Tia a lot faster and more sincerely than some of the other dads. It's a trust that is easy to understand when examining a very earnest Tia at her most vulnerable as she reiterated her love for Arie, a man she saw herself marrying.
Unfortunately for the 26-year-old physical therapist, Arie didn't feel the same way and sent her packing with a good old "it's not you, it's me"-type explanation. This reduced Tia to a tsunami of tears and questions. By the time she screeched, "What did I do wrong?" Arie finally uttered that "something" was missing in their relationship. Well, hell, you didn't know that before you flew all the way to Arkansas to meet the woman's family? Ugh.
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What is even more puzzling about Arie's choice is that he picked Kendall instead of Tia. The same Kendall whose own family in Los Angeles said she isn't ready for marriage. And don't forget her Norman Bates-like obsession with taxidermy.
That whole scene where Arie and Kendall stuffed, dressed and played with two dead rats in front of an audience of equally deceased mounted creatures would've creeped Hannibal Lecter out. But Arie likes what he likes and Kendall apparently possesses whatever that missing link was within his relationship with Tia. If we're lucky, maybe Tia's dad will make good on his threats.
Until then, Arie's relationship with Becca K keeps heating up and you may have noticed he chose to give the first rose to the 27-year-old publicist. It was an affectionate hometown visit. His time with her family in Minnesota went as well as can be expected, as did his talk with Becca's uncle.
The two discussed how special Becca K is and the devastating loss of her father. Then something miraculous happened. Arie, who normally says "I love that" exceedingly too much, actually responded to Becca K's uncle with an "I hate that." Wow! Her uncle is a minister of some sort but that's a next level revelation.
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Last but not least, Arie ventured to Virginia Beach, Va., to meet up with Lauren B and her family. If you think Lauren B is laconic, you should meet her family. These people are practically mutes.
But Lauren B's dad did find the words he needed to interrogate Arie, who became so nervous at one point that he had to excuse himself just to wipe his increasingly sweaty face. Later, Arie figured out a way to win over Lauren B's military dad by telling him a story about entertaining the troops in Iraq a decade ago. After that conversation, Lauren B's mom assumed the role of bad cop and the dad relaxed considerably. Big ol' softy.
Given the three contestants who remain, you can't help but to think that it will come down to Lauren B and Becca K in the finale. Arie's had the fewest doubts with both women and the strongest chemistry. We shall see.
"The Bachelor" season 22 will conclude Sunday and Monday at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.