Bachelor in Paradise season 6 isn't Annaliese Puccini's first rodeo. She was on the show last year, where things went horribly, horribly wrong for her. In fact, what happened to Annaliese on Bachelor in Paradise season 5 is right up there with Arie Luyendyk dumping Becca Kufrin on camera and Jason Mesnick breaking up with Melissa Rycroft on After The Final Rose. That's because Annaliese's breakup with Kamil "Social Media Participant" Nicalek also happened out of the blue... and in front of millions on national television. It was downright brutal.
Annaliese's BIP journey started out good. At first Annaliese and model Jordan Kimball were a thing until Jenna Cooper came along. Then she showed interest in Kenny King from Rachel Lindsay's Bachelorette season for a bit. But it wasn't until Kamil came to Paradise a couple of weeks in that she really thought she found her person.
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For the rest of the season, Annaliese believed that she and Kamil were meant to be. Kamil was a little less sure. He even went on a date with Shushanna Mkrtychyana from Nick Viall's Bachelor season after going on one with Annaliese. He was basically about to break up with Annaliese before she suggested they go to the Fantasy Suites together, at which point he didn't break up with her. (Not a kind move, dude.) Essentially, Kamil was never 100 percent in on the relationship, and Annaliese was very much totally in. So also she saw no issues when Kamil didn't want to propose at the end, but instead wanted to try dating in the real world. "I'm not worried," Annaliese said confidently. "I know that he wants to marry me."
Cut to the reunion show, where Kamil broke up with a blind-sided Annaliese in front of the studio audience, her fellow contestants, and host Chris Harrison. "I might not be the guy for you," Kamil told her when he joined her in the hot seat. "Because, I just feel like I kinda lost that spark we had in Paradise after leaving." Annaliese had no idea he was going to dump her like that, and the audience was shocked as well.
Fortunately, Annaliese has now had time to process everything and she's ready to try the process again on the show. She told E! News that she and Kamil eventually talked in private, and she came to the conclusion that he really wasn't the guy for her. "We had a couple of conversations after the breakup and I felt like it just became really clear that I was looking for something different at that time in my life," she said. "I was ready for a different level of commitment and relationship than he was."
Annaliese also told E! News that between the breakup and losing her father in the last year, her perspective on life changed. She has a clearer idea of who and what she wants. "I think I just had a different mindset all together going into Paradise [season 6]," she said. "I think I had a different perspective on what I was looking for, what I needed and what was important to me in life and I think that was a really good thing going back into it."
Season 6 has just started, so it's unclear as of yet where Annaliese's romantic journey might take her this time around. But it sounds like she has a clear idea of what she's looking for, and who won't cut it. Hopefully that will mean she finds love this time around, rather than a guy who is willing to surprise dump her on TV.