On 90 Day Fiance Season 9, Episode 12, pressure is mounting upon the couples as deadlines approach.
Patrick tells his brother all about the Vegas trip, leading John to confront Thais about what she hasn’t told her dad.
Ariela is grappling with a pregnancy scare, which unearths more problems with Biniyam. Should they get married?
Shaeeda wants to ease the tension with Bilal after their tense trip to Atlanta.
After insulting Miona multiple times, Jibri seeks his badass grandmother’s wisdom to figure out what he really wants.
Kara can’t magically fix things for Guillermo after his brother’s death, but she can cheer him up — and compromise.
Finally, Mohamed does not respond well at all to Yvette’s bad news. He’s thinking about “another” sponsor. What?
Patrick Mendes and Thais Ramone
These two are back from Vegas, but Patrick is still reeling from two moments. One is when Thais revealed that her father has no idea that they’re going to get married. The other was when she tried to make everyone happy by trying to do a spontaneous wedding at a Vegas wedding chapel.
“Vegas was a lot”
Patrick tells his brother, John, and their friend, Wagner, about where things stand right now. Part of that is positive — now that Thais is no longer in Brazil, their relationship is much healthier. He can go out and drink with friends, because she knows where he is. Remember, Patrick hooked up with another girl, so Thais’ concerns about his fidelity were not based upon paranoia. Now, they are in a better place when it comes to trust.
But what happens in Vegas can’t stay there this time
Patrick explains how Thais “doesn’t want to disappoint her dad,” which is why she has not told him about their wedding plans. Patrick is adamant, for strangely gendered “man code” reasons, that he will not marry Thais until her dad knows.
Patrick thinks that Thais’ dad likes him, though
While viewers know that her dad has a low opinion of American men, and thinks that Patrick is basically doing sexual tourism with Thais, Patrick notes that they’ve had meals together, had beer together, and that he even got him something for Father’s Day. So while Thais’ revelation has given him pause, he thinks that things are basically cool.
Patrick assures them that he or Thais will tell her dad before they marry
Neither John nor Wagner seem to believe him, both predicting that he’s too dickmatized (if not in so many words) to have the “scrotal fortitude” to keep that boundary with his fiancee.
Thais is still hung up on Vegas, too. She’s at home, preparing a Brazilian chicken stroganoff. Now, Brazilian cuisine is infamous in an equal and opposite way to British food, so it’s bound to look a little different to us (look up Brazilian pizzas) but this recipe actually looks pretty good.
John confronts Thais
Either home already or home before Patrick, John comes into the kitchen and confronts his brother’s fiancee about not having told her dad. Clearly, like Patrick, he comes from a mindset where he can’t imagine keeping something like that to himself, even though we all know that different people can have wildly different relationships with their parents.
Dude, back off!
Thais laments to the confessional that John is all up in her space and distracting her while she is trying to prepare dinner, but she’s too polite to be this direct to John in the actual kitchen.
John, stop!
Overcome by a fear that the chicken might be overcooked, John turns off the burner and moves the pot without permission … to Thais’ astonishment and horror. Keep in mind that this is the same guy who flipped a whole steak onto the kitchen floor earlier this season.
Why did Patrick tell John their business?
Patrick shares things with his brother, and thinks that Thais should share more with her dad. Thais does not tell her dad certain things, and is baffled that Patrick tells his brother so much. Obviously, this is a difference in communication styles, and it is informed by so many things — personality, culture, age, trauma, and more.
An unhappy Thais excuses herself from the table
John then insults her cooking. Multiple times, he insisted that her food wasn’t good, though Patrick enjoyed it. We don’t know who’s right, but we know who’s being rude.
Thais did not go far
Knowing that she’s still being filmed, Thais loiters just out of their line of sight, because she knows what John thinks of her and the kinds of things that he says to Patrick. Frankly, she doesn’t know the half of it.
How about some strippers?
John suggests a wild bachelor party for Patrick. Patrick does not want one, which only eggs on John, who suggests a multitude of sex workers. Patrick is only interested in one woman: his bride-to-be.
Thais heard everything
Returning to the table, she tells John very directly that she heard what he was talking about.
Gross
John decides to insists that he either wasn’t saying anything bad OR that he doesn’t remember what he said, and then whispers to Patrick that Thais has no idea what they were talking about. Why … why is he like this.
But Patrick tells Thais that they were discussing a bachelor party
Of course he told her — she’s his fiancee and he loves her. Patrick also affirms in front of her that he has no desire for what John has in mind.
WHOA
Obviously, Thais is joking here, but she has strong feelings about bachelor parties — which, just for the record, can be totally tame if the groom wants and if his friends respect his wishes.
Patrick will always choose Thais
These two genuinely love each other, but John still seems surprised by how loyal his brother is to his fiancee. Patrick does seem caught in the middle sometimes, but in this case, it’s over John pointlessly antagonizing Thais for no reason.
Let’s go to bed
There, Patrick and Thais have an awkward conversation about how much Patrick should or should not be sharing with his brother. It’s hard for Thais to be blindsided by John talking about her personal business, but Patrick considers this a part of marriage.
Ariela Weinberg and Biniyam Shibre
Leandro has come over to visit ahead of Ariela’s trip to go dress shopping. He’s her ex, but he’s also one of her best friends. Bini is still very insecure about Leandro. Part of it is cultural differences. Part of it is that, well, Biniyam has been accused of cheating by Ari and by multiple exes, and cheaters tend to view everyone else with suspicion. Anyway, Ari is not feeling up to shopping today, even though Leandro is leaving in a matter of hours.
She’s feeling nauseated?
Leandro cannot help but ask the obvious question: Could this be morning sickness? When was Ariela’s last period? Keep in mind that they are friends who were married for ten years, so it’s not as outlandish question as it might have been from someone else.
Oh no
Ariela and Biniyam do not yet have gainful employment — beyond whatever pitiful payout they’re getting for 90 Day Fiance. (Hey, this isn’t their first season, so maybe they’re getting more these days, but the show pays very little to its cast … infamously so). They also have major relationship issues to resolve before they even think about another kid.
Biniyam is excited, though
He suggests that Ari take a pregnancy test, but they don’t have any at home, and he can’t drive. Ariela isn’t feeling up to driving. Leandro volunteers, but specifically to drive Bini — he’s trying to make Biniyam as comfortable as possible while still being helpful.
Absolutely not
On the car ride, Biniyam admits that not only would he be happy if Ariela is pregnant, but he would ideally like “ten” children. He is already a father of two, even if he doesn’t see his firstborn anymore. Leandro is taken aback, and also knows perfectly well that Ariela would never want ten children.
Ariela is NOT pregnant!
We didn’t think that she was. We also didn’t think that she wanted ten children, something that she tells Biniyam, astonished that he’d even have to ask.
What a weird situation
Ari’s ex-husband knows her better than her current fiance … though, given Biniyam’s dismissive attitudes towards her versus how long she and Leandro were married, that’s not really a shocker.
Ariela and Biniyam are still learning about each other
They never talked about how many kids they’d have, apparently. They never talked about many things. Yes, she knew that he had a lot of siblings, but didn’t know that it was his plan — and he didn’t know that it wasn’t hers.
Leandro is heading out
In addition to a very precious goodbye from little Avi, Leandro admits to the camera that Ari and Bini are nowhere near ready for another kid, even if they both wanted the same thing. He’s right.
Later
Ari and Bini go for a drive, during which she shares a family anecdote about Albert Einstein (Biniyam is not impressed, because he does not know who that is), and then sit to discuss things. She tells him that she can’t, won’t have ten kids, and Bini claims that he was sure that she wanted more.
“How do you fix a problem if you don’t talk about it”
They talk about their compatibility issues and undecided topics, and how much more they need to explore before they marry. The clock is ticking, however.
Bilal Hazziez and Shaeeda Sween
Shaeeda has observed that Bilal is quiet and seems avoidant and unhappy since their return from Atlanta, so she’s going to try to liven things up, especially since the kids are there.
Yoga in the park!
Shaeeda is well known on social media for her yoga. She also had her own studio in Trinidad. She has led Bilal through yoga movements over video chat before. This time, it’s in person and the kids are there, too.
Not all poses are easy for all bodies
Spoken as someone with extremely uncooperative hamstrings, I know what it’s like to look like you’re not trying to do a pose while everyone else is assuming pretzel form. Bilal handled this with an uncharacteristic lack of defensiveness. It seemed to be what the family needed.
It’s progress
Shaeeda explains to the camera that she’s happy to see Bilal smiling again, and she’ll do what it takes to lighten the mood.
But …
Bilal admits that they’re not ready to marry. Not yet. They have more to work out.
And later …
Shaeeda and Shahidah, Bilal’s ex and the mother of his children, meet up to talk. They met before, at the mosque, but apparently have not hung out since. They sit down, and Shahidah very bluntly explains that she has a vested interest in what Shaeeda is like, because she’s protective of her kids — and of their futures. Yes, this is partially about the tentative prenup.
It’s a lot
Shaeeda is taken aback, but assures Shahidah that she is not after Bilal’s money or his children’s financial futures. She had a successful life in Trinidad that she built for herself.
Jibri Bell and Miona Bell
Jibri goes for a hike with his grandmother, Cheyne, who of course witnessed the difficult family dinner. Jibri and Miona are not in a good place after that debacle.
She doesn’t see Jibri as being very happy
This is the same observation that his parents have made. Jibri hasn’t seemed as full of life recently, and they feel that Miona may be partially to blame.
Jibri lists Miona’s many good qualities
He talks about how many things about her are exactly what he wants in a wife, emphasizing how there’s more than just love and attraction — he can see a future for the two of them, and it excites him.
Huh
Cheyne notes that, after what she saw at dinner, she was ready to write off the relationship. Jibri’s pro-Miona speech, however, makes her wonder if they’ll make it after all. She just wants her grandson to be happy and to thrive.
Date night twins!
Things are still awkward, and Miona acknowledges that tension with Jibri is extra agonizing because he’s the only person she has here. If he’s not talking to her, he can still talk to his parents. If she’s not talking to him, she only has her phone. But at least they’re talking — going on a date night, and in matching outfits.
Miona tries her first root beer float
Jibri suggests that this is somehow a cornerstone of American culture, but … he does not speak for all of us. Many of us would make the same facial expression if forced to imbibe root beer. But, as Jibri says, more root beer for him.
Jibri wants space
While this isn’t feasible yet, because of the K-1 visa and Miona’s relative isolation, he wants to know that he can spend 12 hours at the recording studio making music without Miona demanding that he come see her. Miona finds that this is mostly fair, but this isn’t really possible in Rapid City, where she’s stuck at home. Honestly, this is another great reminder that more of these folks need solitary, indoor hobbies.
About that wedding …
Jibri has been repeatedly insulting Miona, even to the point of upsetting his mom, and Miona wants to point out that she’s not being a “princess” as he describes — but the current situation isn’t working. Also, yes, she wants that beach wedding. Hey, Cheyne might officiate!
Kara Bass and Guillermo Rojer
Days after his brother’s death, Kara has come up with an activity to get Guillermo out of the house. They go to a very rural event — with Guillermo quipping that it’s “not his first rodeo” because he has been to similar events in Venezuela. He really likes the cultural aspects of the very rural food orders (including hot dogs).
But yes, this is hard
It’s not just that his brother passed away — it’s that he couldn’t be there for him or for other family. This is part of the burden of immigration — the K-1 visa will not allow him to travel and come back, so he can’t be with his surviving brother or with his mother at this time. He can only take comfort in his late brother’s endorsement of his relationship with Kara.
Good news
Totally out of sympathy for Guillermo’s sadness, Kara suggests a wedding compromise. She wanted a simple courthouse wedding and a real ceremony in a year or so, Guillermo wanted a big ceremony … until he found out the price tag. Kara suggests throwing caution to the wind and working out a budget for a medium-sized wedding so that this will work for both of them. It is, after all, a wedding for both of them.
Internally screaming
That said, Kara is very careful about her budgeting and is admittedly panicking a bit about the financial realities of this. Worth it, though.
Yvette Arellano and Mohamed Abdelhamed
The two are out at Tharan’s ninja class, where Mohamed appears to be having a good time.
Hey, you know that wedding date?
Yve tells Mohamed that they may need to push it back a month — dangerously close to their K-1 visa deadline — because venues are just filling up, and she was one particular place in mind.
“Are you kidding me?”
Instead of a much more normal reaction, Mohamed responds by whining about how this is disappointing to him and interferes with his plans, but it’s a rude and out of proportion response.
Mohamed wants his green card
Only after he gets his documents can he do things like travel internationally and work in America. The process to get them starts when he marries Yve, and will take more than half a year — at best.
Why can’t they just marry at the courthouse or the backyard?
Yve doesn’t want to marry him more than once, and given that her yard is dirt, it would be the last place where she would want to wear a wedding gown.
This should not be a surprise
Even before Mohamed came to the US, Yve had sent him photos of the venue. They talked about this. But he can’t help but ask if she’s using this as an excuse to not marry him. Basically, they’re both being cranky with each other.
Later, Mohamed goes on a bike ride
He can’t drive or work yet, so he uses a bicycle to get to places like the mosque. In this case, he goes to a coffee shop to meet up with a friend whom he met at the mosque.
Mohamed says that he feels like Yve is “holding this paperwork” over his head
Accusing her of being selfish, Mohamed tells his friend that he wants to be able to work and travel as soon as possible.
“I have dreams and I have family”
Mohamed tears up when he talks about missing his mother. There is a lot of codependence going on with them, but missing her is very valid.
But … what?
Mohamed then suggests the idea of “another sponsor” if things don’t work out with Yve. He says that he doesn’t mean another wife, but it sounds a little like he is suggesting “just an idea” if things fizzle out with Yvette. That doesn’t sound like the right priority. Maybe it’s really twisted editing, but … Mohamed is not looking good.