The most explosive season yet of Married at First Sight Australia has just come to and close and true to form, it was drama-filled right til the bitter end.
If you thought watching Dan finding out in front of the whole group that Jess had hit on Nic was awkward viewing, what happened next was a complete showstopper.
Since filming wrapped, things between the pair clearly haven’t been as rosy as Jess has tried to made out. Despite professing their love for each-other during the final vows, they hadn’t seen one another since then. It had been six whole weeks.
After that episode was filmed they went their separate ways – her back to Perth and him to the Gold Coast. And the first time they saw one another was at the reunion dinner. You know, the one where all hell broke loose after Martha poured a glass of red wine over Cyrell. The very same one where Jess was boasting about how she always gets what she wants, and that stealing someone else’s husband isn’t really that big of a deal.
The fact that they hadn’t seen one another since then is strange, you’d have to admit, for a couple supposedly in love.
Dan was forced to watch footage of Jess hitting on Nic and his face says it all.
Fast-forward to three months later when the final episode aired this week. Jess and Dan sat down together and watched it all play out again, and all of the hurt came flooding back for single father Dan.
As if re-living it wasn’t hard enough, they were already booked to appear straight afterwards live on the show Talking Married, and to say things were raw for Dan would be an understatement.
Jess tried to make out that things had been OK between the pair and that they’d come a long way in their relationship. But the more they talked, the more their body language said otherwise.
“I’d be lying if I said it didn’t scratch the surface of some previous wounds,” Dan said when he was asked how he was feeling.
“That (the finale episode) was filmed a few months back. We’ve come a long way since then. Obviously after that commitment ceremony I did end things with Jess for a small portion of time.
He says it was hard to watch back and admits he shouldn’t have watched it. “I love the girl, but it’s an awkward position I’m in right now.”
And then came the truly awkward part. Co-host Ben Fordham then revealed that the couple had fought during the ad break. “You guys had a bit of a dispute. There were some F-bombs going back and forth,” Ben said.
They didn’t need to say anything – their body language spoke volumes.
The moment Ben brings up the fight…
“The question I’ve got for Jess is, why did she lie about it? Why couldn’t she just be honest from the start?” Dan implored.
“It just raises huge trust issues for me and that’s what we’ve been struggling with over the last few months in our relationship.”
And then came the bombshell. Co-host Shelly Horton asked Jess “Do you still deny hitting on Nic?” to which Jess sheepishly admitted “No I don’t deny hitting on Nic,” going on to say that it’s been blown out of proportion.
Dan’s indignation was palpable as he realised he’d just been blindsided for the second time. “That’s the first time she’s admitted it to me, just right now,” he revealed.
Cue head shaking, rolled eyes, hands in the air, head in hands. Jess tried to backpedal, saying that “It looks like I did hit on him…I don’t feel like I did, but it’s obviously what Dan wants to hear.”
Jess finally admits the truth.
When Dan tried to call her out on it and the bickering started, Jess shut him down, saying “we’re not having a fight on national television.”
Dan went on to talk about trust, “If we can’t trust each other and I can’t trust you it’s just like we’re banging our heads against a wall trying to get something out of it.”
And then it looked like all hope was lost. When asked if he thought he could get past it, Dan said he didn’t know.
With Dan now facing jail time for fraud, the rocky road hasn’t ended for this pair.
“There’s every chance he’s going behind bars soon,” a family friend of Dan’s told Woman’s Day. “The word is he might go inside for around six months and that’s really going to put pressure on his new relationship with Jess.”
We wait to see whether they can pull through, but it’s not looking good.
