Matt James

When Matt James broke up with Rachael Kirkconnell after presenting her with his final rose during the most recent Bachelor finale, most viewers seemed to support his decision to end the relationship.

They reasoned that Rachael had a lot to figure about herself and the society she lives in, to put it as mildly as we can.

Will they, won't they and... wait... did they really just do that?

Earlier this week, Matt James and Rachael Kirkconnell were spotted together in California, once again sparking rumors that they may get back together.

We think it's safe to say that Matt James' season of The Bachelor did not go according to plan.

James gave his final rose to Rachael Kirkconnell, but long before the finale aired, the season became a s--t show.

So much for that amicable break-up, huh?

Weeks after Rachael Kirkconnell and Matt James sat across from each other on ABC's After the Final Rose special -- both sounding sad that their romance was over, yet not bitter -- the gloves have seemingly come off. 

Last month, there were definite hints that Matt James was considering reconciliation with Rachael Kirkconnell.

The Bachelor stars were clearly head over heels for each other before Rachael's racism scandal was exposed.

Matt James was unwilling to hug Rachael Kirkconnell this past Monday on ABC's After the Final Rose special.

And yet:

Matt James is receiving support from an unlikely source:

The girlfriend is recently dumped.

Matt James is seemingly taking the first step on any path to any sort of recovery.

He's admitting that he needs help.

Rachael Kirkconnell had her past exposed on this season of The Bachelor.

Now, however, she's trying to look toward the future.

Following Monday night's Bachelor finale and After the Final Rose special, we know this much about Matt James:

He is not dating Rachael Kirkconnell.

Well, for better or worse, it was an After the Final Rose special unlike any that we've seen before.

Some viewers complained about the awkward silences, of which there several.

In the end -- following an unpredictable season that concluded with the temporary ousting of the only host the show has ever known -- The Bachelor ended in the most predictable fashion imaginable.

Matt James chose the woman everyone knew he would choose, almost since Day One.

We apologize for the spoiler in the headline of this article, but some matters are bigger than The Bachelor, and in order to discuss them properly, we need to delve into the "secrets" that have actually been public knowledge for several weeks now.

So yes, Rachael Kirkconnell will receive Matt's final rose during tonight's finale of The Bachelor.

This week's episode of The Bachelor showed Matt James in a painful talk with his father.

Matt's emotional sit-down with his father included tears more than once as he spoke about a lifetime of hurt feelings.

For several years now, Chris Harrison has been promising viewers that each Bachelor season finale will be the most dramatic in the show's history.

This year, he might actually be right -- but not in the way that he imagined.

Things got very personal for Matt James on The Bachelor.

And not just because he pondered whether or not to be intimate with his trio of remaining suitors.

There's something going on with Heather Martin.

During a surprising episode of The Bachelor, she showed up to the Nemacolin Resort unannounced and quarantined for two weeks just so she could be sent home by Matt James, who rightly pointed out that she arrived too late in the process.

The Bachelor went back in time a bit on Monday night.

A week before Matt James and his trio of finalists looked toward the future and the former really started to decide with whom he wanted to spend it, James gathered with a bunch of his exes to revisit the past.

There's been plenty of drama surrounding this season of The Bachelor, but most of it has had nothing to do with Matt James' quest to find a wife.

As you're probably aware, the competition has been overshadowed by a succession of scandals, most of them having to do with allegations of racial insensitivity.

Rachael Kirkconnell is smack dab in the middle of the biggest Bachelor scandal in show history.

And it has nothing to do with anything she said or did on the actual air.