Love Is Blind: Viewers Debate Patrick's Decision to Return Engagement Ring to Kacie

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Among the many dramatic twists of Love Is Blind Season 9, few could rival the tension that erupted immediately after the couples’ in-person meetings. Patrick and Kacie, who had taken the bold step of getting engaged without having seen each other, found themselves at the center of this storm. Upon finally meeting Patrick face-to-face, Kacie’s enthusiasm appeared to wane.

In what must be one of the most uncomfortable encounters in the show’s history, Kacie decided to break things off. She candidly informed Patrick that she no longer wished to continue filming. To the production team, she confessed her lack of physical attraction to him. Departing the show, Kacie left with the engagement ring Patrick had given her. This ring became a point of contention, changing hands several times during the reunion episode.

During the reunion, Patrick and Kacie were provided an opportunity to discuss their brief engagement. Patrick suggested that Kacie apologize for the abrupt manner in which she ended their relationship. He emphasized that his request was not about seeking personal closure, but rather about shielding Kacie from potential online backlash. Furthermore, he reiterated his request for the engagement ring’s return. After some reluctance, Kacie eventually handed the ring back to him.

Kacie Initially Returned The Ring During The Reunion

When the exes were given a chance to talk during the reunion, Patrick encouraged Kacie to apologize for ending things poorly as she had, saying that it was less about closure for him and more about trying to protect her from receiving online hate. He also said it would be nice for her to return the engagement ring like he had initially asked, and, after some hesitation, Kacie did hand it over.

However, there was another twist when NBA player Chris Paul appeared as a surprise guest at the reunion and had Kacie and Patrick do a shoot off. When in the pods, Kacie had bested Patrick at making baskets, and so it was supposed to be a playful rematch. When Kacie made more baskets once again, Chris told Patrick that he should give the ring back to Kacie as her prize, and the rings changed hands yet again.

In a Reddit thread discussing the awkward moment, fans pointed out how disappointed Patrick seemed by being pressured to give the ring back. The thread kicked off with a joking description of why Patrick looked so downtrodden:

When you wait a year and a half to get a $5k engagement ring back and two multimillionaires make you return it five minutes later for missing a free throw.

Fans Don’t Think The Ring Exchange Was Fair

Others in the thread agreed that Patrick seemed to be forced to return the ring back just minutes after it had been returned to him. Another commenter pointed out that the hosts seemed to add additional pressure on Patrick during the moment:

Dude literally got peer pressured into doing it. My girlfriend pointed out that it started with Chris Paul initiating the bet (so 3 millionaires lmao). Worst part was at the end when Vanessa was like “give that ring back since you lost” and Patrick tried to brush it off with a joke and said “I’ll give it back to you in Denver.” Then she goes “We wanna see it NOW”.

Nick and Vanessa Lachey from Love Is Blind

Netflix

Worse still, when it was Kacie’s turn to be interviewed, she revealed that, after filming concluded, she’d been on dates with another one of Patrick’s pod squad, Joe. “Kacie is a manipulative person who takes no accountability for her behavior of how she couldn’t be honest with Patrick about ending things,” wrote one dissatisfied fan. “Patrick needed to stand up for himself at the tell-all and say he felt hurt that Kacie lied to him about her true feelings,” they added.