3. The Magic Touch
It was time for the group date in Budapest on The Bachelor Season 27. The four women on this date, Kat, Ariel, Charity, and Gabi, found their way to an old theatre in Budapest. They met a magician who went through some magic tricks with the group and initially showed that Zach and Gabi have the truest connection via a drawn heart transferred from Zach’s hand to Gabi’s.
Next, the magician became a mentalist and sought to read their minds. He had Gabi picture a cube in a desert and asked what it was made of. Because she chose glass, the magician revealed that this meant that people could see through her but that she also confused people. For his next trick, the mentalist guessed both of the words Gabi thought of when thinking about her relationship with Zach, safety, and comfort.
Ariel had her turn in the hot seat. The mentalist revealed that Ariel was putting up walls or layers to protect her heart. He asked her a similar question describing why she builds layers in one word. He, of course, guessed it correctly, heartbreak. Charity had her turn and was asked to describe, in a word, why her previous relationship didn’t work. Her word was infidelity, and the mentalist guessed it immediately. This brought up some difficult feelings for Charity, but she and Zach worked through it.
The final participant, Kat, was asked if she was ready to have Zach meet her family. She initially said yes but then countered with I think so. After more silence, she started to cry. Then the mentalist asked some tough questions, like if she had ever thought about walking away from this and why she was so emotional. She still believed she was the right person for Zach and reiterated that as much as she had had thoughts about leaving, she had another, stronger feeling encouraging her to stay.
Mind you, this was all brought up in front of the other three women. Ariel and Gabi said this was one of the toughest group dates of The Bachelor Season 27 yet, as it made the women and Zach think about their thoughts and emotions and where they stood at this point in the process.
4. For Now and Forever
While the women prepared for the after-party, they were still shaken up by the emotions brought out during the group date. Charity had a moment before Zach arrived and voiced her frustrations with the date. Zach joined the group and appreciated their honesty and openness during the difficult date. He reiterated that receiving the rose tonight meant that he was confident in that person meeting his family and was confident in meeting theirs.
Zach pulled Ariel first, and the two started to talk about their families, starting with their mothers. Ariel also brought up her father, who thought The Bachelor forced people to participate in orgies. She reiterated that Zach made her feel comfortable sharing her true self and never felt anxious during the date because of his presence. Their relationship seems to be on an upward trajectory.
Charity was next and talked about how impactful the date was to her. While she still had fears of infidelity and wasn’t healed from her previous relationship, she is ready for the next step and understands the risks of this process. Zach reassured her, and the two sealed their conversation with a kiss.
Gabi seemed in her head as she waited to talk to Zach. She struggled with the emotions brought up during the date and wasn’t sure how to communicate her feelings to Zach. She met with Zach and tried to explain to him what was happening in her head and how sometimes it was hard to juggle her thoughts and make sense of them. They seemed to understand each other fully and grow their relationship further.
Last, and maybe least, was Kat, who was hoping her comments during the date about leaving wouldn’t come back to haunt her. Zach noted that something was off between the two last week, and she hoped this date didn’t further the gap. He said it added more confusion, with Kat saying she wasn’t sure if she wanted him to meet her family and that she had thought about leaving.
She doubled down and said that she was here for Zach, and he was the reason she kept through the process because she could see a future with him. He felt the same in return. They seemed to have narrowed the gap between them. However, in the end, Zach gave the group date rose to Gabi solidifying her hometown date. Kat started to feel unwanted after opening up and not receiving a one-on-one date or a rose.