[dramatic music]
- Love requires great risk.
So I’m willing to take that leap of faith.
- You better kiss your bride.
- Eight weeks ago, the experts
chose ten singles in Boston, Massachusetts,
to be married at first sight.
For one couple, their marital journey
quickly came to an end.
- I want a divorce.
♪ ♪
- Now the time has finally come for the remaining couples
to choose each other or choose a divorce.
- Definitely nervous. I don’t know
what our final answers are gonna be.
- This one decision has the power
to affect the rest of their lives,
for better or for worse.
- Everything is so perfect, but we still can’t hide
what our problems are.
- I feel like I don’t know you enough.
- Yeah.
- I need a 5- and 10-year plan from you, buddy.
- I don’t wanna feel like I’m just doing everything.
- Am I working on a friendship,
or am I working on a marriage and my wife?
- If I’m not feeling it, I’m not feeling it.
- And I just never feel that way with him.
- The last meal I had was not edible.
Katina doesn’t have that skill.
- I’m telling you how it makes me feel,
and it’s up for you to determine the next steps.
- I think...
♪ ♪
- Do you want to stay married or get a divorce?
♪ ♪
- [sniffling]
[upbeat music]
- ♪ It’s all or nothing ♪
- This is "Married at First Sight."
- ♪ There’s no other way ♪
♪ ♪
♪ It’s all or nothing ♪
- ♪ It was worth the wait ♪
♪ ♪
♪ Every second, every minute ♪
♪ Every hour of the day ♪
- It’s 5:00 in the morning. The time has come.
The day has finally arrived.
- Today is Decision Day.
- I didn’t get much sleep last night.
I had to wake up at 5:45 a.m. this morning,
get my makeup done,
’cause, you know, I gotta look nice.
Especially if I’m getting denied.
Definitely gotta have my face done.
- We hope this night away has given the couples time
to reflect on how far they’ve come in the last eight weeks
and whether or not they want their journey forward
to include one another.
- Last night, I was thinking a lot about all the things
that we still need to work on.
It makes me a little bit nervous.
- A bit fearful that,
you know, in the time we spent apart
Noi would-- were to get cold feet.
- I’m feeling content in my decision.
I-I’m also feeling just very anxious,
not knowing how everything’s gonna unfold,
not knowing what Jasmina’s answer is.
- Definitely nervous.
I don’t know what our final answers are gonna be.
Our marriage right now is a lot just as it is.
So now we’re taking in everything to consider
and traveling and maybe kids in the future and stuff.
This is--this is things that you gotta worry about.
So yeah, today should be definitely interesting.
- ♪ The time is now ♪
♪ The time is now ♪
♪ Some way, somehow ♪
♪ The time is now ♪
♪ It’s the time, it’s the time ♪
♪ The time is now ♪
♪ The time is now The time is now ♪
♪ ♪
- ♪ Although it’s hard to understand it now ♪
♪ ♪
- Jasmina and Mike, maybe a strong finish.
We’ll find out today.
- I want her to want him.
- I don’t know what’s going on.
- They haven’t done it,
and I didn’t expect that from these two.
- When you say it-- - You know what I mean.
They haven’t had sex.
- It’s okay, yeah.
I think that--I think that’s the key.
If she can show interest and attraction,
even if it’s a little bit.
- Honestly, it could go either way.
Jasmina and Michael are both highly compassionate people.
They both cherish their large families
and their shared morals.
But the one thing holding them back is intimacy.
Are they committed to married life,
or are they just friends?
I would hope that Jasmina and Michael
could be truly vulnerable with one another,
truly trust one another,
and become physically intimate with one another.
I think that would be
the trifecta that would bring them together.
♪ ♪
- When I first seen Jasmina, she was breathtaking.
Wow.
- ♪ As long as I’m here on this Earth ♪
- She is the woman that I asked the experts for.
- Well, you come here often? - [laughs]
She is intelligent,
and she is the epitome of a strong Black woman.
- If we have any questions, who do we go to?
The--which boss? The--
- The real boss. [laughter]
- When she laughs, it makes my heart smile.
- ♪ Loving you like I love you ♪
- And Jas really, she cares for me.
She’s really looking out for me.
Jasmina is beautiful, sophisticated.
- I’m sorry, can you give me one second, please?
- But she is opinionated.
- I expect you to talk to me respectfully.
You want me to apologize to you how you want me to.
I’m not going to do that.
- The beginning of our marriage was rocky.
- I don’t need to journal to Michael.
I don’t need to journal.
- I don’t need to journal either.
- I’m not done, Michael.
- I’m telling you to help me.
- Calm down. - I’m not--see?
You say calm down. - Or you can calm down.
- I’m just speaking passionately.
- You’re saying, "I’m telling you to help me."
- I felt hopeless when things weren’t working out
with me and Jasmina.
- It’s okay.
♪ ♪
- But the moment I let go is when magic happened.
- Aww.
- ♪ I’m feeling like I could love you forever ♪
- We started connecting in ways
that I never thought would happen before.
- Do you feel like--like you’re falling for her?
You are--look, you’re smiling.
- Although our marriage took a turn for the best,
the worst still scares me.
Regardless of how great of friends we are,
we didn’t come here to--
- Be friends. - To be friends.
♪ ♪
- I admire so many things about Michael.
- ♪ Peace, thanks ♪
- Let’s see if I can carve our names here.
- Michael is loyal, humble, kind,
and has a heart of gold.
Oh, my God. I love it.
Someone that’s just always gonna be there for you.
- Put your foot on the gas. - [laughs]
He is super silly.
Ew, did you really just eat those?
- These are really good though.
- He’s helped me realize
that I should listen before I speak.
And I didn’t cut you off at all.
- You need, like, a whole week of that.
- What is that?
- You’re corny as hell. - [laughs]
He has shown up in our marriage,
even when I thought he didn’t know how.
[laughs]
- We cook with feeling in Chef Morency’s kitchen.
- I didn’t know you had a girl roommate.
- Yeah.
[dramatic music]
- Sometimes Michael’s lack of accountability frustrates me
to the point where I don’t know
if I can continue on in this marriage.
And it’s not just one, it’s two women.
- What does that mean?
Like, what would I be trying to get away with?
- ♪ Who do you think that you are ♪
♪ You’re not the only one ♪
- When Mike and I are by ourselves,
the communication goes right out of the door.
- Are you done?
- I feel like it’s just his way or no way.
I can’t help but feel like this
is not how it should be in a marriage.
He used a tone with me that I didn’t like.
- Oh, no. You don’t like any tone.
- While I do enjoy spending time with Michael,
I’m not in a place where I have
romantic feelings for him yet.
- Any sort of hand-holding or hugs or kisses, cuddling?
- If I have no connection with you,
my vagina not getting wet for you.
I see Michael as my laughing partner and my friend,
but I don’t know if I see him as my husband.
♪ ♪
[soft music]
- Hey, there. - Hello.
- What’s up, young man?
- How are you doing? - How are you doing, man.
- Good to see you. - Good to see you too.
- Cool suit. - Thank you so much.
- I like it.
- Me and Jas have made a great connection, right?
This--I can easily say we’re friends,
but I didn’t come here just to get married to a friend.
I came for a wife. - Mm-hmm.
- Okay, suit. - Jesus.
- Okay, suit. Look at you. You look nice.
- You look good too. - How are you?
- You smell good. - Thank you.
- Uh-huh.
- I feel like I did everything that I should have done.
The sweat, the tears,
the--everything that’s gone into this,
it’s not an easy decision to make.
- It’s a big day. - Thank you.
- It’s Decision Day for you and Michael.
- Oh, my God, I’m so nervous.
- Don’t be, don’t be. We’re your friends.
- I mean, it is a big day, though.
- I don’t know how Michael is going to react to my decision.
You never know with how people are feeling last-minute
about things, but we’ll see how it goes.
- How has it been? Let’s say the last few weeks.
- Good. - Yeah?
- [laughs] - Tell me more.
- So I feel like me and Jas have made a lot of progress.
As y’all know, we started off rocky, like really rocky.
Being vulnerable isn’t something that comes
ridiculously easy for me.
Like, I came into this saying I was gonna be vulnerable,
but in practice, it’s still not that easy.
Like, I remember when I first opened up to you,
it was super uncomfortable
because we weren’t at a space where--
well, I wasn’t at a space where, like,
I feel like our connection was there
to where I wanted to open up to you in that way.
So it was super uncomfortable.
But now, like, I feel like now I’m at a space
where opening up to you isn’t uncomfortable anymore.
But there’s one piece in our relationship
that’s still been kind of stagnant,
which is, like, the--
the romance part of our relationship.
The physical intimacy is still just at a place
where it’s kinda at a standstill, and--
- You said kinda.
[tense music]
- It’s at a standstill.
♪ ♪
It just makes me wonder, am I working on a friendship,
or am I working on a marriage and my wife?
♪ ♪
- Would you agree with that?
- I mean, we aren’t, like, kissing or anything like that,
just because I’m not there yet.
If I’m not feeling it, I’m not feeling it.
And that’s just because I am just somebody
that just goes off of an emotional connection.
Sometimes people forget the first month
that we had together and that it wasn’t great
and that we didn’t speak.
And if I’m being honest, there’s been two times
that I was, like, ready for a divorce
or where, like, I thought about a divorce.
♪ ♪
- Look, every relationship has an adjustment period,
and so there’s no surprise
that your relationship had a rocky start.
- Yeah. - I-I’m not--I’m not
I don’t trip about that. - Yeah.
- But I look at the progression,
’cause you’re changing and he’s changing.
- I have this fear that I maybe won’t get there
romantically with him, but we hold hands.
You know, if we’re sitting next to each other,
I have my legs on him or I’m leaning on him.
I don’t ever snatch back my hand if he tries to, like...
- You cuddle? - Hold it.
You know, he did cuddle me the other day.
He--he touched my booty,
and I told him the next morning.
- What it a slap?
- No, like, I-I--he rolled over
and then, like, cuddled me, and then his hand was just--
- Palmed it.
- Just a palm on my butt. And I was like--
- Was that okay?
- Did you--did you tell him it was okay?
- I was just taken back.
Like, I woke up ’cause it was just like--like
it just randomly happened, but he was sleep.
- I was dead sleep. I swear.
- You were "asleep"? - I was sleep.
- And a pat on the booty is usually kind of fun.
So if you’re not feeling that way...
- I--when it happened, I wasn’t like, "Oh, hell no."
- Okay. So you were okay?
- Which is a step in the direct direction.
- Yeah, that’s a--yeah, it is.
Even though you were "unconscious."
- No, no quotations. I was sleep.
- You were asleep. Even though you were asleep.
Okay.
How did her reaction to that make you feel?
- Uh, she wasn’t really that taken back.
It was more just, like,
just let you know, this is what you did.
Wasn’t sure she wants to happen again.
It just was-- you know what I mean, like?
- Okay, but was it something that you felt,
like, was a mistake?
Like it should not happen again.
♪ ♪
- No, I didn’t think that far.
- Is that a correct feeling?
- Yeah, we joke-- we joked around about it.
- Okay, I know you joke-- you joke about everything,
but I’m not talking about joking.
But was is it okay... - Yeah.
- With her, if you touch-- is it okay with you
if he touches your booty?
That’s all I’m saying. I’m sorry.
- Okay, okay, - I totally wanna know.
I-I wanna know as well.
- We’re all on the booty train here.
- [laughs]
- The booty train. Thank you, Pepper.
I don’t wanna make a big issue of it,
but do you understand what I’m saying?
’Cause the deep-- the deeper meaning here is,
is it okay to put him
to initiate unsolicited acts
of affection or intimacy?
- I think you--you would know
if it’s a-- if you can do that or not.
- The thing is I haven’t known.
That’s why I haven’t acted on it.
- I guess what we’re all saying here is that the intimacy
is not far removed from your relationship.
- But I do think that it’s still something that is not
making us feel 100% in this marriage.
- You know, we’ve seen couples after couple after couple
talk about, "Well, we’re friends.
We’re friends, we’re friends."
And I think that somewhat-- sometimes in our mind,
we have this--this separation between friends-married,
friends-married, friends-lovers.
And we all three of us are married.
And are you friends with your spouse?
- Definitely, I can be friends with my spouse.
- Are you friends with yours?
- On a good day, yeah. - Yeah, yeah.
[laughter]
- Yeah, and for me, my wife is my best friend, okay?
And so I-I want you to know
that the friend-romantic person is not exclusive,
and sometimes people can get stuck into one of those places
and say, "This is--this is who we are.
And this is where we are."
You know, but no, it does merge.
Don’t separate in your mind the difference between, okay,
we’re--we’re friends and that’s all we can--
that’s--that’s crap.
- But it’s not us who makes the decision.
It’s you, guys.
- Oh, I like how she did that there.
- Nice segue.
- So the time has come, actually.
We thank you so much for sharing honestly, openly.
All of us are impressed with your commitment
to the process.
But the time has come for you to decide whether or not
you want to stay married or you want to get a divorce.
[suspenseful music]
♪ ♪
- We have come a long way.
- Understatement.
- I didn’t think that
in the last month of our marriage,
I would even want to be around you.
But at the end of the day, I feel like this just...
♪ ♪
I feel like I don’t-- I don’t know you enough.
- Yeah. - Um So...
♪ ♪
- So, you know...
I want to get to know you more and stay married.
- That was the longest yes I’ve ever heard of.
- What’d she say?
- She says she wants to stay married.
[laughter]
Got her answer. - Okay.
- And now...
♪ ♪
- Hi. - What’s up?
- Um...
I went into this marriage very serious.
I said I was gonna put 100% effort in.
And I feel like,
in this marriage, I’ve done everything I could.
And I think you have as well, and obviously,
we have one big elephant in the room in our marriage.
My biggest worry is, if we continue,
and what if we never get there?
That terrifies me,
but I’m not ready to walk away from this marriage.
[both chuckling]
That I feel like if we remove all of the cameras,
remove all the extra-ness that this situation puts us in,
I really feel like if we didn’t have
all the extra--extra ish,
this would probably be further along.
- I agree.
- So, Michael? - Yes.
- He hasn’t said it. Can you say it, please?
- Yes.
Yes, I wanna stay married to you.
both: Yes!
[laughter] - Yes, yes.
- Congratulations.
♪ ♪
- I’m relieved that he didn’t say no to me,
’cause I was gon’ flip the table.
[cheers]
Now we can just spend time by ourselves
and truly work on our connection
without having other people involved in our life.
That’s the true test.
I see the potential in Michael and where we are
and how far we’ve come in the last month.
- You guys weathered the storm.
You’ve gone through some challenges, some hard times,
and you found out just the beginning
of how beautiful marriage can be.
And I only wish you success from here on out.
It’s gonna be awesome. - Cheers.
- Cheers to that. - Cheers.
- Cheers to this. - Yay!
- I’m feeling really good about my decision.
We have too much progress that has been made
and we have too much of a great foundation
for us to say bye to each other.
Of course, we have things to work through,
but we’ve been on the up and up for the past month.
Next steps for me and Jasmina
is to continue on the trajectory
that we--we have been on.
This is like our new day one.
This is like the real first start of our marriage.
- Go be married.
- ♪ Ooh, love you till the wheels fall off ♪
♪ ♪
♪ Never, never fall off ♪
- ♪ Go too hard, too hype on the demo ♪
♪ Left foot slide ♪
♪ Right get it from the get-go ♪
♪ Bento box, get loose, good drum roll ♪
♪ Tempo, right, ring ring like hello ♪
- This is a marriage that both of them
seemed very committed to.
They’ve worked through issues.
They’ve got all the makings of it.
- They’re getting in trouble about their future,
not the present.
- Well, exactly. It sounds like an excuse.
I mean, look, married people go to school.
Married people travel.
There has to be mutual compromise
or else it’s not going to work.
- I think this is a power play.
It seems like he is setting an expectation and testing her.
And if she passes it, he finds something else.
Another hoop for her to jump in.
I feel like that’s gonna get old for her.
And then she’s gonna be feeling either stuck
or she’s gonna have to run.
- It’s--it’s really a question of
seeing how they put together a life.
- This is gonna be tough.
- Katina and Olajuwon were both ready
to throw in the towel on their single partying lifestyle.
They’re a great match because they both
have fun-loving personalities
but are ready to settle down for themselves
and for their future children.
But Olajuwon has been very critical of Katina sometimes,
and Katina has been slow to be vulnerable and open up,
but growing trust and vulnerability
has brought them back together.
So I am hoping that they will continue along that path
and become the great couple
we always thought they could be.
- ♪ I didn’t know how hard I’d been hit ♪
♪ ♪
- You are beautiful. - Thank you.
My first impression of Olajuwon
was that he’s very handsome and he has a nice smile,
but also, he has a nice body.
- ♪ I feel when something comes easy ♪
- I enjoy spending time with the Olajuwon
because we speak our own language.
- You look sexy.
[both laughing]
- Do you want kids?
- Yeah, in the future, in the future.
- Olajuwon is very big on family,
and I really like that about him.
Aww!
- I want you to know that this is real.
- He is attentive and thoughtful.
- And I hope this truly is a lifetime.
- Thank you.
I told the experts I didn’t want a passive man,
but I think I got more than I bargained for.
This is old. - The fact that
it’s still there on your phone, it’s spit in my face.
- Being married is more work than I thought.
- How much more do you have left in school?
- Two years.
- So how you gonna have kids in two years
if you’re just coming out of school?
- Olajuwon doesn’t think I can go to school
and be a wife, but I know what I’m capable of.
I can do it all, and if Olajuwon doesn’t believe that,
maybe he’s not the man for me.
This makes me feel like I’m not, like--
like I’m not good enough.
But at the end of the day, Olajuwon is a good man.
And you got me roses.
He has a really big heart.
I know Olajuwon cares for me.
- I don’t think anybody could have made me feel
the way you made me feel or made me learn about myself.
So I see why the experts chose you.
- You gonna make me shed a tear.
- It’s true. For real.
For a new chapter, for love.
- [indistinct cheer]
- I wanted to get married
because I was tired of being a playboy
and giving my body to just anyone.
- ♪ Bottle, bottle, baby, bottle, bottle, baby ♪
- When I first saw Katina,
my initial reaction is, "Wow, she’s beautiful."
You ready?
- Yeah. - Ooh.
- Mm-hmm. Thank you. - No problem.
Our chemistry is so easy.
It’s natural. She’s funny.
But I want a traditional wife.
Someone who enjoys cooking and cleaning.
When we talk about a wife level--
- I know, and I un--
- I need to see where you are as a woman.
I can’t settle with somebody
if I think they don’t have a base on just being a adult.
- You know what? I-I need a break.
- She’s getting better.
Morning. - Morning.
- But she’s not fully there yet.
- You’ve been saying like, "I wanna travel.
I wanna travel."
This makes it feel like we’re away from home.
- Katina wants to travel, become a mom,
and finish school.
But if she’s doing all those things, how can I be sure
that she is going to make me happy every single day?
When you start going to school and all that stuff,
you have to put it to the light that it will be tough.
I really care for Katina,
but if we can’t get on the same page,
we’re gonna have to end this chapter.
This is our lives.
We gotta make our own decisions,
based off what we think is best for us.
- ♪ Breathing, keep breathing, oh ♪
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
- Hey, there. Hello. - How are you doing?
- All right. - What’s up young man?
- How you doing, brother?
- Good to see you, man. - How are you doing?
- I’m good. - Yeah.
- Gosh, you’re all so well-dressed.
- I know. You look so lovely.
- Hello, there. - Hi.
- Wow. - Have a seat.
- All right. - Well, look at you.
You--you changed your hairstyle since--
- Yeah, a lot. - I like it.
- Yeah, I know.
This whole process changed me. For real.
- It’s great place to start. - Welcome to marriage.
- Yeah. - Yeah.
- Hey, there she is. You better--you better walk.
- Yeah. - Look at that smile.
- Looking pretty good, huh?
- She brought it. - Hey. How are you?
Within the past eight weeks,
I’ve definitely grown closer to Olajuwon.
I feel like our relationship is on a incline.
Wait, incline? Is that--okay.
On a incline,
but I’m concerned
just maybe the differences in where we are in life
might be a deal-breaker.
- This is Decision Day, and I know it’s been a long journey.
So how you feeling today?
[soft music]
- This is the longest I’ve been away from you...
- Yeah. - Since we’ve been married.
- Yeah, yeah.
- Did you find yourself missing him?
- Mm... - You can be honest with her.
- Yeah. - How does it feel to see her?
- It feels good. It feels good.
It’s always good to see you.
I always smile when I see you. You know that.
- Mm-hmm.
♪ ♪
- I love that. That’s awesome.
What have been some of the best things
that you’ve experienced in this marriage?
- Just, like, the time that we spend together,
the way that we laugh with each other,
and how you get me out of my comfort zone.
For me, it was like the--when we did the horse-riding,
that was, like, all over the place,
but then when we did it--
something else with the animals,
I got to see, like, my growth and, like,
it was more of, like, a fun experience.
And then I would say the gondola ride that we had.
- The "gonjola" ride was definitely--was--was amazing.
It was amazing. I told her I like to travel,
and I never did a "gonjola" ride.
Surprised I’m saying that right.
[laughs] - Oh.
- And she brought Italy to Boston.
- Wow, that’s very cool.
- Yeah. - Love it.
- Very cool. - Yeah, that’s deep.
- And what have been some of the tougher moments?
- Some of the tougher moments I would definitely say
was when I felt embarrassment,
because he saw an app on my phone.
You know, I feel like that was, like, one of,
like, our bigger arguments that we got into.
- I think that would be it.
I mean, it was definitely the app.
Definitely that situation, but also it showed us that
there’s growth from it too.
I mean, she got to see
that she has a husband that cares.
I think that might’ve been a test.
I think everything happens for a reason, right?
- Absolutely.
- But it showed that anything can be fixed.
- I’m glad you said that. Anything can be fixed.
- Some things. [laughter]
- He said--remember that line.
- No, no, no.
Those situations can be fixed.
- I was gonna do "Married at First Sight" t-shirts.
"Anything can be fixed." I like that.
- Hey, you know, that was--that was fixed.
It was crazy. - You--you said it.
- Have you felt like the closeness
between the two of you has grown?
- Absolutely.
Our connection definitely has grown.
Our connection is very genuine,
it’s beautiful, and it’s real.
Because the chemistry is there--our chemistry--
you ask me, I think we have one of the strongest chemistry.
- But from what I’ve gathered,
you have held off with your physical intimacy.
What do you think that’s about, and how has it--
how do you think it’s affected your marriage?
- I honestly think it--it made our marriage stronger.
You know, you-- you give yourself away
and you stop caring about who you are as a person.
But I’m pretty sure that she wanted to.
That’s why, you know,
we had our--I was in the shower, I let her,
she just looked at me and things like that.
And it’s okay, ’cause that’s my wife.
[laughter]
And I--so I know the desire was there,
she knows my desire was there,
but at--there’s a point where I--for myself,
I just felt like, do something you’ve never, never done.
Meet this girl on a spiritual, mental level.
And you can’t do that if I just give my body.
I’m just being honest with you guys.
I know myself, and if I’d done it,
we wouldn’t have this type of chemistry.
It wouldn’t have been there. I know it sounds crazy--
- No. - No.
- But I know myself.
I have to--I have to care about this person
before I-I start touching this person.
- That’s perfectly okay.
- I think that we’re definitely at the point
where, like, it would-- it could happen.
We still--we made it to the end, but if we say yes
then I’m sure, next time you guys see me,
I’ll be like, "Hey."
[laughter]
- This is all great.
I’m just curious, when I visited you last week,
there seemed to be a serious stumbling block
about timing schedules between having a child,
traveling, and finishing your education.
Have you made any progress?
- I definitely wouldn’t compromise on my education.
I can still travel with you,
but it might not be twice a month like you want.
And then children, I want children in two years,
but I’m not pressed to have a child within two years.
I’m more so saying like, okay, two years,
see what life is like,
and then if it fits in, then, okay,
I’d be willing to have a child.
And if it doesn’t and then we have to wait a year,
like, okay.
♪ ♪
- All this is in the future, right?
So we can’t really say how things are gonna be perfect.
It’s not gonna be perfect, but these are the things
that we got to figure out.
- How have you guys been doing?
I mean, have you guys started to define your own roles
and your own place in the relationship?
Do you feel comfortable?
- He’s definitely is, like, a traditional man
where he wants, like, his wife to cook and clean.
- We struggled on that because I have to make sure
when I come home, my kids could eat,
I could eat, and we could go to bed.
But that’s a big sacrifice for me,
’cause Katina doesn’t have that skill.
- What do you mean? - She doesn’t cook?
- No, as in like-- - ’Cause she can’t cook.
- Yeah, she can’t cook. - That’s not true.
- When you say she can’t cook, do you mean
she can’t cook well?
- No, like it’s--it has to be edible.
- I’m no chef, but my food is edible.
♪ ♪
- The last meal I had was not edible.
- Olajuwon, I want you
to choose your words very carefully, okay?
- ♪ I’m lying to myself ♪
♪ If I say I know where this is going ♪
♪ ♪
- [chuckling] Olajuwon, I want you
to choose your words very carefully.
- ’Cause I know this is important to you--
- No, important to me.
- You know, so I’m not minimizing it.
- Yes, I’m not--yeah.
- But I’m saying it’s solvable.
When I’m thinking of marriages, I think,
what’s solvable and what isn’t?
- This is something that I gotta make a decision on
myself, but there’s-- there’s nobody
who could tell me anything.
If my mind’s met, it’s met, it doesn’t, you know--
if it hurts people’s feelings, it is what it is.
We have respect for each other,
but we’re just not being met with each other right now.
That sound harsh?
- If you value and respect each other,
whenever you have a problem,
don’t attach the problem to the person.
How have you guys been doing as far as,
I know you talked about the cooking and everything,
but as far as, you know, how you fit into the marriage
as--as a wife?
- I was looking forward to doing,
like, traditional things.
At the same time, it is, like, a 50-50 relationship
where, you know, I don’t need to cook every day.
Like, I know what I’m capable of and that’s all
I can--I feel like that’s all I can really say.
- I-I guess I’m more traditional
than I thought I was.
We made sacrifices in--
in certain areas, but it’s still up in the air
as if, was the sacrifice big enough?
- It’s up to you guys to decide your future.
- We hope everything you’ve learned has led you
to make the right decision.
Do you want to stay married or get a divorce?
[suspenseful music]
- So, you know, I enjoy my time with you,
and I feel a bond with you, and even though
you feel like our timelines aren’t matching up,
I feel like it’s not--for me, it’s not a deal-breaker.
[soft music]
So my decision is, you know, I wanna stay married to you,
because I feel like our marriage needs more time
than just the eight weeks.
- Hmm. - Wow.
- Olajuwon.
- [clears throat]
Hope you take this the right way.
- Okay.
- Um, when I came into this marriage,
I asked for a woman who’s more established in life,
and those are the reasons why I would say no today.
♪ ♪
But I will say this.
I love our chemistry,
I love who you are as a person,
I love to be around you,
and your effort is what made me overlook all those things.
My dad used to always tell me
you don’t always need to know what’s next for you.
Sometimes you need to live in the moment
and enjoy the people around you.
And I said this before I got married.
I think my dad have--
has made me go through this process,
and he has chosen the woman for me.
I don’t think any of you guys know,
today’s my dad’s birthday.
[somber music]
♪ ♪
- Yeah, me too. - Thank you. Thank you.
- There’s no way I could ignore your effort.
I would rather have a girl
who--who doesn’t have anything,
who will try to make everything
than to be with somebody who has everything
and doesn’t show any effort.
And my respect level is so high for you,
it’s like, why would I walk away
and give it to somebody else?
Why would I let you walk away?
So it means a lot to me to say
that I would love to continue my marriage with you.
♪ ♪
- Man, you mess--
you--you mess me up.
- You had me scared.
I was like, "Oh, [bleep], here it comes."
For this to be the Decision Day
and also his father’s birthday,
it just feels right.
So I’m like, I was a wife before,
but now I’m really a wife.
It’s the beginning of a new story,
a new chapter in my life.
[laughter]
- You know, we’re over the hump.
We both made our decision. It’s finalized.
I got a ring on at the end of this day.
Katina still continues with her ring.
- Whoo! - Yeah, man.
It’s time to reach the next level with Katina.
Get the bottle, baby. We on, we going.
[laughs]
- ♪ We’re getting closer, oh, oh ♪
- The fact that you came here today and chose this love,
this lifetime together, I’m just so happy for you,
but also, I just feel like you’ve earned it.
- Oh, yeah.
- You earned this love, so congrats.
- ♪ To know that I was capable ♪
all: Cheers!
- ♪ Unmistakable love ♪
♪ ♪
- Congratulations, guys.
You guys look so good together.
It’s awesome.
Well, look, guys. Here, take this with you.
- I was gonna say, can we take that?
- And here’s the cork.
- Thank you. - All right, guys.
- Here’s the cork. - Yes, thank you.
- So long. - Oh, my gosh.
Go do what married folk do.
- Yes. - Yes.
- ♪ I fell in love, yeah ♪
- ♪ You’re one of a kind ♪
♪ One of a kind ♪
- Noi and Steven, they have struggled.
Because he wasn’t working,
she felt he should do all of the housework.
- Yeah, for him to step in there
and not have a plan, a financial plan,
was kind of freaking her out. I think that’s been
the biggest struggle in their relationship.
- I don’t blame her.
- No, I don’t either. I don’t either. No.
- And I think it is up to him to reassure her with plans.
- She told him, "I need to see you working."
That never happened, so now resentment and fear
and anxiety about Decision Day are all rolled into one.
♪ ♪
We matched fellow romantics Noi and Steve
because they both come from close-knit families
with a strong desire to have children.
They have the foundation for a long-lasting marriage,
but only if they can work through
their financial issues
and can both feel secure with trusting each other.
- ♪ One of a kind ♪
- Here we go.
- We’re going out into the water now
with a ton of sushi-- I love my life.
- I’m in love with Noi for so many reasons.
- ♪ Come together now ♪
- Can we jump on the bed?
- ♪ Scream and shout ♪
- I love her playful, bubbly, and fun-loving personality.
- We should have sex in a public place.
[both laughing]
Ahh!
Her laugh is infectious.
Come here.
She’s beautiful, and I’m proud to be her husband.
- Cheese.
- Noi wears her heart on her sleeve
and her emotions on her face.
- He doesn’t know, like,
the full extent of, like, how I grew up.
- She comes from humble beginnings.
- I don’t want my kids to worry about money.
I was always scared of expressing myself as a child.
- And I’m constantly learning more and more about her.
- I would like to be in a relationship
where we’re both contributing financially.
- Your doubt that I’m capable of making money?
Sometimes I feel like Noi
may not think I’m good enough for her.
Just because I don’t fit a standard definition
of employed
doesn’t mean that I don’t take care of my priorities.
- The bathrooms need to get cleaned.
- How about we split tasks?
You do the one, I do the other.
Pleasure doing business with you.
- I’m tired of having to prove myself.
Just because we’re married,
it doesn’t mean it’s gonna work.
Something has to change
because this isn’t sustainable.
- Oh, my God. [laughs]
The moment I saw Steve, I was so relieved.
- I’m going into this with an open heart,
an open mind, and with the highest of hopes.
- ♪ Committed, I wonder if I want you ♪
- Steve is a dreamer,
adventurous, and a free spirit.
I admire how he is able
to live his life on his own terms.
- Everyone’s always concerned.
What if you don’t get along? What if this and that?
I was like, what if I have to poop for the first time?
- That’s what I thought! [both laughing]
He knows how to make me laugh and brings out my inner child.
- I’m finally ready
to let you know that I love you.
- You do?
- ♪ Oh ♪
- I love that he will sing and dance with me.
- ♪ I’m so glad you got down on that knee ♪
- Come here, we’re gonna put you on this ramp.
- Seeing him interact with Sushi truly warms my heart.
- Is this dog currently house trained?
- We do need to pick up his poop.
- Yeah.
- But I worry that Steve
may not be able to contribute financially.
I don’t wanna be the sole breadwinner in my marriage.
- If it’s so important for me to get a job,
this place is not gonna be as clean
and the food’s not gonna be as good.
- To me, it just sounds like excuses.
I wonder if he will ever trust me unconditionally.
- You posted you deserve better.
- It wasn’t about you, but you can just--
whatever keep thinking it’s about you.
- Do I trust her with my emotions?
Do I trust her to keep my secrets?
It’s constantly fluctuating.
- You just prefer that I handle conflict
the exact way that you do, and I’m not you.
I know for a fact, if we don’t address
these issues, like, we’re just doomed to fail.
Think I’m, like, scared, too, you know.
- Do really want to be married to me?
♪ ♪
- ♪ You won’t find your throne in me ♪
♪ ♪
- Hi. - Hello.
- Hi, everyone. - Ms. Noi.
- How are you guys doing?
- Oh, pretty in pink. - I know. You look gorgeous.
- Hi, sweetie. It’s good to see you.
- I just wish that we had a little more time together
before we had to make this decision.
- Aw, Mr. Romantic.
- We probably could have ironed out some of the issues
that we were struggling with.
- We know they’re not for us, but--
- No, they’re not.
- Okay. - Oh, they are?
- Feeling a bit nervous.
I definitely have a little bit of butterflies
when I start to think about my decision.
No matter how today goes, I just want Noi to know
that I care about her deeply,
and I wish her the best, no matter what.
- So this is Decision Day.
I know you’ve been separated for a day.
Did you miss each other?
- Yeah.
- Yeah, it was hard being away from him.
Um...
- How’d it go?
- I-I made it through, but like--
- No, I mean, just how’d everything--
I mean, just in general--
[laughter] Not about us being apart.
- She made it through. - Yeah.
[laughter]
[soft music]
- What do you remember about the wedding?
What was that like for you?
- We had an incredible wedding.
- Yeah, I think, I mean, it was just really comforting
and nice to just instantly hit it off.
- Yeah, like, you know, we had a lot of fun times
during the honeymoon, and I told him right away,
I think it was maybe day two or three where I felt like
I was developing real feelings for him.
- Wow. - Yeah, I did use the L word.
I said, "I feel like
I’m slowly falling in love with you," so...
- That’s very cool. - Yeah.
- How’ve you been feeling leading up to this day, though?
Leading up to Decision Day? How’ve you been feeling?
- I’ve been feeling pretty good
for the last few weeks.
I think things are really well
and we’re, you know, just in a really great place
and--and enjoying each other’s company.
It’s just like, okay, this feels right, you know?
♪ ♪
- Yeah, I mean, I just love how in the middle
of an argument or when we’re really having a rough time
and you look after me in those moments.
So even when I’m upset
and it’s probably not the most fun time for you,
you are so wonderful at comforting me
and holding me when I’m upset.
And I know that I’m safe with you.
♪ ♪
And so thank you for doing that.
- Come here.
♪ ♪
- Thank you.
♪ ♪
- Why--why does that touch you so much?
The fact that he comforts you or he makes you feel safe?
Why--why is that so important?
- I think I haven’t really felt, like,
safe to express these emotions and really, like,
open up in this way in my past relationships.
I didn’t feel safe in those moments, you know?
Like, I’d be like, "Oh, I don’t know
"if this person is judging me or they think I’m crazy
for being emotional or whatever."
And I just never feel that way with him.
Like, I don’t ever feel like he’s ever judging me
for, you know, thinking any less of me.
And it just makes me emotional because, I mean,
I just haven’t felt that in a long time.
♪ ♪
But despite all that,
I feel like we still have things we need to work out.
[tense music]
We’re very similar people in that our values
are very similar.
You know, family means a lot to the both of us.
We’re both very playful
and kind of free-spirited people,
but we also butt heads about doing things in the house.
Like him feeling like if I’m doing, you know,
all this stuff in the house, like,
I should be able to ask you
to do stuff too, so we can be fair.
- Yeah, okay.
- And like, that’s not realistic.
It’s never gonna be 50/50, right?
♪ ♪
- So I understand that.
But I’m cooking.
I’m gonna have to clean. I am doing all these things.
It would be nice if you did something too, you know,
to contribute to the things that we need to do.
It shouldn’t be too much to ask.
You know, I should be able to freely ask you for help
just as you do for me.
- When you’re with someone, I feel like
you should give freely and do things without even,
you know, really thinking twice about it.
And I feel like, for you,
it’s really important that you count these things
and you bring it to my attention,
whereas, like, when I do things for you,
I don’t necessarily do that,
but I just do it because, like, I love you.
- I do need some type of balance, right?
I don’t wanna feel like I’m just doing everything.
- ♪ And can you promise me ♪
♪ And tell me where I’ll come ♪
♪ In the end ♪
If this is how it is now, what happens
when we have children when there are more tasks at hand?
It feels like I will have to be responsible
for taking a significant load,
and it sorta makes me afraid that that’s how it will be.
♪ ♪
- You just have to trust that where
I can pick up the slack, I will.
And, you know, and also do that for me.
♪ ♪
Especially since you’re still not working.
♪ ♪
- Does it ever hurt your feelings, Steve,
when Noi makes comments or references
about you not having a job?
♪ ♪
- It has been challenging.
It was just-- it’s a sensitive area
because it’s like, I’m sure of myself
and I know, you know, what I’m capable of,
but it’s--it’s, you know, sometimes it feels like
she may be giving off the impression
that she doesn’t either believe what I’m capable of
or that I am incapable.
And, you know, that’s not-- that--
that doesn’t sit right with me.
♪ ♪
- When my wife met me, when we met,
I was "between jobs."
But I had mad skills and a lot going on
and, you know, it was kinda like where you are.
That’s probably why I connected with this guy
so well, because I saw that, and I said,
"Wow, I see myself in him,"
you know, somewhat, because I believe
that he’s on his way to stratospheric heights.
♪ ♪
Noi, just because Steve doesn’t have a job now
doesn’t mean he won’t be able to provide
for your family later on.
These eight weeks are only a snippet
of what your marriage can be.
♪ ♪
- We appreciate you having been
open and honest with us today,
but the time has come for you to decide whether or not
you want to stay married or you want to get a divorce.
[suspenseful music]
♪ ♪
- Noi, when we talk about our future
and when we make these dreams and we just stay up
all hours of the night getting to know each other
and, you know, feeling so comfortable around each other,
never feeling judged, it makes me feel really special.
And can’t think of anyone else I’d rather do this with.
Build a family with and have arguably three children with,
maybe two or three, hopefully.
Two. [laughs]
But yes, my answer is absolutely yes.
- Noi?
[soft music]
♪ ♪
- Um...
♪ ♪
Before coming into this day,
we were talking about some of our issues
and how we haven’t come to a resolution,
and I feel like
there’s maybe still some trust issues there.
♪ ♪
We couldn’t get to a place
where you could really trust me.
I think you’re, like, still learning how to do that.
But, like, you at least trust me enough
to take the next step.
So...
I would love to stay married with you.
♪ ♪
In a very short amount of time,
you have taught me what it means to be vulnerable.
You’ve opened up a part of me
that has been dormant for so long.
I feel like I can be my true self around you.
And I feel like you love and accept me
for all that I am.
♪ ♪
- Aww.
[uplifting music]
♪ ♪
- Congratulations. - Yes.
You got us in pieces here.
- I can’t even shed a man tear.
Y’all got me over here blubbering.
- I’m still a married man, and it feels great.
- Whoo! - Hey!
This is the outcome that I was hoping for.
It just felt really good to officially hear it
and know that we finally have our decision.
- You guys have had an incredible journey,
and you--you made this look easy,
and I know it’s not.
Cheers to you for better, for worse.
For richer, for richer. In sickness and in health.
Forsaking all others till death do you part.
You’re in this now, and we’re gonna make it work.
- Yes. - Thanks.
- I’ll say cheers-- cheers to that.
- ♪ It is a fairy tale ♪
♪ You are my fairy tale ♪
- I am so relieved.
I feel really happy and excited
because there’s so much here to fight for.
I know that the love that we’ve built together
will really kind of pull us
through any storms that we’ll go through.
I know that I made the right decision.
- Wow. - You feel good?
- I feel great. - Oh, my gosh.
The way y’all look at each other.
- I know. It’s--it’s ridiculous.
It’s ridiculous. - It’s wonderful.
- It’s just amazing.
- You guys are a beautiful couple.
- I hope you always look at each other like that.
[laughter] - Yeah.
- I am now a married woman forever.
[laughs]
- ♪ Now I know ♪
♪ Now it’s a happy ending ♪
♪ It’s a happy ending ♪
- ♪ Driving me, driving me, driving me crazy ♪
♪ Crazy ♪
- There is no couple more rollercoaster
than Lindsey and Mark.
- Yeah.
- There’s a lot of love, obviously,
but then they are jabbing
and sticking and pushing buttons.
- And then they make up. And then they’re okay again.
They have very unique personalities.
Each of them do.
I think that they are--they are matched well.
As long as they don’t become accustomed to misery.
They just have such a volatile marriage, up and down.
I don’t know where they are today.
They could have been great yesterday.
And then on the ride here...
- ♪ Yeah ♪
- Lindsey and Mark are a natural match
because they’re both high-energy,
outgoing personalities
who also have a deep caring side.
They both strive for a future and family together,
but explosive fights and difficult communication
has been their downfall.
- ♪ Crazy ♪
- ♪ Oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh ♪
- I’m Lindsey. - Nice to meet you. I’m Mark.
- What’s your name? - Mark.
- What’s your last name? - Maher.
- Oh, nice. An easy one.
- Yeah. - I was hoping for that!
[laughter] Yeah!
- I took a leap of faith
and came into this marriage wicked committed.
- If I get dairy by accident,
I projectile vomit for 12 hours.
I’m ready for the honeymoon.
- Lindsey is one of a kind.
- That’s what you have to look forward to.
- I can’t wait. - [laughs]
- ♪ We’re living the dream ♪
- Lindsey’s laugh can be real infectious...
[laughter]
But it can also scare you to death.
[laughter]
- If I get bedbug bites,
I’m gonna want so much TLC from you.
- Lindsey is always thinking about me first.
I’ve always appreciated you. If I don’t say it a lot.
- Well, I’m feeling it tonight, and I’m hearing it,
so tha--so thank you.
- Lindsey is kind and genuine.
- I’m a little bit of a mama bear.
- Okay. - I don’t like what I’ve seen.
- But will tell you how it is whether you like it or not.
- You’re [bleep] clueless, is what makes me so mad.
- I wish Lindsey was more empathetic towards me.
- Your life is in chaos and you’re always complaining.
- It’s really not.
Sometimes I feel like
a punching bag in this marriage.
I tell her stop. Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop.
- And--and you don’t stop?
- Stop, stop, stop. Stop. Stop.
I’m not the things that you wanted in a husband,
and I’m sorry.
I’d rather be alone
than fight with someone every single day.
- I’m done with you. - Cool. Okay.
♪ ♪
Oh.
- It happens a lot too.
- This is gonna be-- this gonna be a wild time.
- For sure. - I can tell.
- From day one, I knew
why I was matched with Mark.
- ♪ Are you listening? ♪
♪ With your ear upon my chest ♪
- I like how kind and caring you are
to everybody in every situation.
Mark makes me laugh harder than anybody
I’ve ever been with.
- Looking like I still got stuff in the tank.
Don’t have to go get a refill.
- You got the dad jokes lined up.
I know one day that Mark will be a good dad.
He’s so supportive and caring and nurturing.
- If I didn’t see enough good in you, I wouldn’t be here.
- But I wish Mark would show how he appreciates me more.
- You are very here with just saying something.
Just, no matter what.
- I can slow back, but I pull way back.
Come on, dude. You’re so stupid.
There’s a difference between pulling back and pulling out.
And I’m telling you, I feel like you’ve pulled out.
Mark’s worst habit is the social media use.
I just can’t get his attention even for five seconds.
In my vows, I said,
"I’m always gonna consider you first."
I haven’t really gotten any of that from you.
He is falling short in every way.
I am furious, and he is clueless.
All I asked for was consistency.
- When we’re together, it makes me feel
uncomfortable when you do that.
Don’t do that. - But you know what?
I don’t like to brush things under the rug.
- Have another drink. I can’t do this anymore.
- Any time we have a conversation
about of our honeymoon-- - Stop, stop, stop. Stop.
You don’t have to, like, grip me like that.
- I’m done.
He’s definitely gonna be my first husband.
He might not be my last.
- ♪ It’s you ♪
♪ ♪
- What’s up, man? - What’s up?
- Look at you. Looking good, dude.
- Thank you. - How you doing, buddy?
- Good. How you doing?
It has been such a roller coaster marriage
for both of us, I would say.
We’ve argued a lot in this marriage,
and I’m pretty confident in which direction
I have to go today.
I am curious to see if we are on the same page,
but I am ready, in a matter of minutes,
to make one of the biggest decisions of my life.
And I hope it’s the right one.
- Hello, hello. - Hi, there.
- It’s been a lot of hard hits for Mark in these eight weeks.
I feel like I’m dodging
and diving through all of his life hurdles.
Oh, you look pretty good.
- Oh. - Look at y’all.
- You look nice. - You look nice.
- Is that something I wanna buckle up for?
Is that his normal? Because I’m not sure
I wanna do that for the rest of my life.
- I know you two didn’t talk together,
but you look well matched.
- I know, look at this.
- Aw. - You little cutie.
- Aw. - Thanks. You look nice.
- Thanks. You look pretty good too.
- How have you been feeling leading up to Decision Day?
How have you been feeling?
- Uh, for me, the last two weeks
have been pretty healthy.
A lot of things have happened where we have shown up
for each other, been helpful, been supportive.
I think if it was like week four,
week five, I’d be more anxious.
- I think for me, I--I’d be lying if I were saying like,
"Yeah, the last two weeks have been great for me."
No. The last week has been great for me.
I’ve had his focus this week, I would say.
- What has given you joy with one another?
Each one of you tell me.
- I liked that, you know, more so in the last
fewer weeks, things I like to eat.
I mean, those are the things that...
- Basically, what we’re learning here
is that the heart of a man is through his stomach.
- Yeah, yeah. - I’ve heard that.
- Goldfish and sushi. - Yeah.
- You’re the shark. - Yeah, yeah.
So I think there was just a night where you were like,
"I wanna put on a movie, eat some food,
throw on sweats, and hop on the couch."
And I was like, "Okay."
[laughter] "We can do that."
Those are the little moments that I look forward to
where I feel a connection with you that’s really warm.
- When I think about the really good times with Mark,
it’s just being stupid together.
What were we laughing about the other night?
- Nothing.
- I didn’t think it was anything.
- You--I did a fake laugh. You did your--
- I made a joke, and you made a laugh.
- And then your laugh-- - Oh, it was a fake laugh, now?
- Well, it’s aggressive.
- [laughing] - It’s a little scary.
[laughter]
- Like that one? - Like that one?
- It’s very, like, Cruella.
It’s like, "I’m gonna kill you."
- Yeah. [laughter]
- Okay, well...
- You’re not gonna wake up tomorrow.
[laughs]
- Y’all--but y’all have--
it’s weird, because you sprinkle in--
okay, you have a lot of fun,
and you’ve got, like, this childlike energy at times.
And then y’all deal with really big adult stuff.
You did a fertility test.
- Sure. I’m at that age
where I think that it would be important information.
And I have always imagined
traveling the world with my husband.
Bringing the baby in the backpack, you know,
to Dubai, like nothing is gonna hold me back.
Even if I have a small child, we’ll still go to Africa
or Australia.
And I think that that’s not for everyone.
Some people want a house with the picket fence
and see the neighbors on their bikes.
And I think that that’s Mark at his core.
And Mark has such a hard time
talking about the future, and I’m like,
"I need a 5- and 10-year plan from you, buddy."
And he is so eager to live moment by moment.
Sometimes he’s just looking at his phone
instead of the path in front of him.
Mark was on his phone on social media a lot.
It drove me nuts.
And I’ve been thinking about this a lot.
Social media, to me,
is a filter that adds negativity.
It is immature to post selfies with filters
and, like, screenshots or, like--
- So is he doing that?
- Yeah, and I know a lot of times
you kinda doomsday things too.
Like, "Oh, it’s a lot. She’s a lot." It’s negative.
And I think--
- Are you saying he posts that?
- He sends messages like that, yeah.
And I’m like, you may think it’s nothing,
but there’s receipts everywhere in the world today.
So what you say about me, they will never--
I will never not know.
Let’s just be very clear about that.
Whatever you say about me on social media
will 100% end up in my hands, and I think that
that’s something you need to consider going forward.
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
[tense music]
♪ ♪
- I-I would never wanna feel,
like, controlled, in a sense.
- I’m never gonna tell you to do something.
I’m telling you how it makes me feel,
and it’s up for you to determine the next steps.
- So what I think is, there’s a problem here.
And there’s some feelings here.
You both want happiness.
And to me, I feel like behind your comments
is there’s unfinished business about loyalty...
- Yeah - And trust...
- Absolutely. - And--and feeling secure.
And--and that’s what we have to work on to make sure
that you feel like your husband’s there for you
in--in those ways.
- Well, if you wanna shut something down
without knowing the likes about it,
that would be a concern.
If you don’t know the good things I enjoy about it,
versus the things that just immediately frustrate you.
- What do you enjoy about it?
- I enjoy--when I think with social media
is the more out there you are,
the more connections you have, you need something,
you can get it faster than not even being on the internet.
- So networking? - The network, yeah.
- See, there’s a lot to learn here.
- Yeah, for me, I just look at it like attention.
- Well... - Like, if I’m in a bad mood,
I’m gonna post a picture of myself
so I get a bunch of messages saying, "You look good."
- Can I say something here? - Sure.
- Especially for you, Mark.
There--there’s something that I tell guys in marriage.
Sometimes you have to take an L, okay?
You know what that means, right?
- Mm-hmm.
- Take a loss. - Mm-hmm.
- Because if my wife tells me I’m not comfortable with this,
my job is to make her comfortable.
- Right. - Now, of course,
ultimately, you make your own decision.
I’m just giving you my, you know,
my--my two cents here. - Sure, sure.
- But I-I do think that there are times
when it’s okay, and on the other side,
there are times when it’s okay if he does it.
♪ ♪
Now, with that said, the time is here for you to decide.
Do you want to stay married or get a divorce?
[suspenseful music]
♪ ♪
- Through this marriage,
you have pushed me
more than people have pushed me before.
And...
♪ ♪
I think I wouldn’t have grown as much in just eight weeks
had you not been selected as my wife.
And I think that you’re worth it
to say yes and continue
and see where life takes us together.
So my answer is yes, I wanna stay married.
I feel that we have a good foundation
of the things that are important to us
to continue moving forward and see how it develops.
There’s always gonna be some difficult times,
but I think we have figured out a way to navigate it.
- Thanks. - Sure.
[laughter]
Now what’s your answer?
- Can I get back to you in 24-48 hours?
[laughter]
- You gotta make a decision.
- Okay, I’ve thought about it long and hard.
- That was--oh, jeez.
- Oh, there’s a button in here.
[tense music]
Do you know what color it is?
- If it’s not green,
I’m gonna let go of your hand and leave fast.
♪ ♪
- Mark...
♪ ♪
You may not be what I envisioned
as far as, like, adventure and food palate,
but I feel as though you are genuinely
good and kind, and...
♪ ♪
- Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
[laughter] - Whoo!
- Now we got your answer. - Okay.
- Aw, congratulations.
- Thank you. - Awesome, thank you.
- Are we ready for champagne?
- Yes!
[laughter] - Yay!
- Congratulations. Mark, you did it, my man.
- Thank you. - Congratulations.
- Mark was not everything I asked for,
but he’s everything I need.
- Oh, my gosh.
- We have a big yes here today.
I think Mark and I have had a meeting of the minds
and we’re ready to grow old and die together.
- ♪ We took some wrong turns, but we’ll be all right ♪
- He’s not leaving me before death.
Till death do us part.
- Oh! - All right.
- Hey. - Dramatic.
- I feel, for where I’m at today,
I made the right decision.
Think we’ve gone through some hurdles,
and I think we’re in a good place to move forward,
and I think now it’s up to us to continue the momentum
and take the tools we learn,
and we can grow together and make more memories.
♪ ♪
- Buckle up, baby.
You’re going on a twisty-turny upside-down rollercoaster.
Hang on for dear life.
To the Mahers. - Congratulations.
The Mahers. - The Mahers.
- ♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪
♪ Be all right ♪
♪ I wanna be the one that makes you feel that way ♪
♪ Feel that way, feel that way ♪
♪ The one that makes you feel ♪
- Packing day.
- With Decision Day now in the past,
it’s time for our couples
to start looking ahead to the future.
We’ve all helped them up to this point,
but now it’s up to them
with how they wanna shape their marriage.
- It’s good to see you smiling now.
- Yeah, I was stressed.
- I am happy that, you know, we came to our answers.
I feel so much more relaxed. - Mm-hmm.
- You start packing while we--while we gossip,
’cause I know you could talk all day and night.
I’m excited Katina, my pain in the butt,
is officially Mrs. Dickerson.
It’s not too much stuff we got left in here.
You know, this is a lifetime dream to find love.
I’m excited to see what the future holds for us.
You gonna cry when you’re not here no more?
- Maybe.
- Next chapter for me and my wife
is to travel.
We’re gonna live life.
You better not cry as we leave this apartment.
And then after she finishes school,
hopefully, we’ll start planning on babies
and life and kids and things like that.
- Can’t forget this, our photo album.
What the future holds for the Dickersons,
I don’t even know.
A lot of traveling,
just living,
creating a new everyday life with each other.
Give me one more kiss in our apartment.
I’m so happy that I finished this journey
and I get to leave here with my husband by my side.
- I have enough faith in us
that we could develop this energy anywhere.
- ’Cause we’re the ones who make it a home.
- Exactly. So it’s been real. - Bye.
- There’s a lot more memories to go.
Goodbye, apartment.
This is really a dream come true.
This is a fairy tale.
- ♪ Ooh ♪
♪ Ooh ♪
- Are you kinda sad? I’m kinda sad.
- Yeah, I’m sad to have to leave the beach.
- Before I move in, do you want to, like, spruce up the place?
Get it, like, ready? Like, wife-ready?
Probably get rid of that couch,
’cause I don’t like the way it looks.
- [laughing quietly] Sure.
- We kind of need to be living in the same place
if we’re going to have a child, I think.
- Oh, wow, okay.
So--so you see the benefits of living together, interesting.
I mean, you’ve come a long way in these last few weeks.
- I really have. Aren’t you proud of me?
- Yeah, good job. - [laughs]
We’re both just excited to start planning our future.
And I think travel’s gonna be on our calendars.
We might get another dog.
I’m trying to talk him into it, but I don’t know yet.
- Are you gonna post all about it on social media?
- I will post, but I will ask my husband
if he’s okay with it.
Then I will post it.
- ♪ Give you my love ♪
♪ Say, say love, give you my love ♪
[upbeat music]
♪ ♪
- This is like a party-size,
family-size coffee, not finished.
- Coffee is not good for you.
- You just made that up.
- You never got told growing up that coffee
makes you stop growing?
You never got told that? - No.
That would make a lot of sense, though.
[both laughing]
Leaving this apartment, it’s definitely bittersweet.
Me and Jasmina had a lot of good times here,
but we aren’t moving in with each other immediately.
This is my least favorite part of the process.
There’s been so much other pressures on our marriage.
The hope is once the cameras and extra-ness goes away,
that me and Jasmina’s marriage will flourish going forward.
♪ ♪
So being that we’re not living together immediately,
I think putting, like, a specific number on it
is probably gonna put more pressure on us than we need.
- Mm-hmm.
- Then we should just take it day by day
and then when it make sense to move in together...
- Yeah. - We’ll make that decision.
- No, I agree.
Even though we decided to live separately,
I’m really looking forward to seeing, you know,
how things end up with us.
So we’re definitely gonna use this time to work on things,
you know, on our own time to see
if we can get there romantically.
Why is it that I have way more stuff
but I’m done packing before you?
- Trying to spend as much time with you as possible.
Not knowing how things are gonna unfold
is anxiety-inducing.
We’ve made a lot of progress,
but we also have a lot of work to do,
and it’s not gonna be easy.
- Oh, my God.
- This is nothing like I pictured,
but at the end of the day, I felt ready,
and I felt like I made the right decision.
So now it’s just up to me and her,
and I’m looking forward to it.
- ♪ Feels so right ♪
♪ ♪
[upbeat music]
- Ahh!
♪ ♪
Ahh! - [laughs]
- In the throat.
[laughter]
Oh!
Okay, you win.
- Okay.
- Are you excited
to be packing up our first place?
- Kind of. - Yeah.
Lindsey and I are moving in together.
I do have a surprise for you, though.
- Okay.
♪ ♪
- What are these? - Keys to our place.
- Okay, we got a place. - Yeah.
Awesome. - Thanks, love.
- Oh, my gosh!
- Redoing my grandmother’s house,
and who knows what’s gonna be in store after that?
But that’s one big project
that we’re both gonna do together.
- I’m a little nervous-- all the work it needs.
- Well, that’s the fun part.
We get to have fun in doing that.
- If you could be a fly on the wall
during the renovations-- whew, buckle up.
- Hey, watch--
- Hey, respect my knife.
There’s ER visits in our future, guys.
- How are we gonna pack all this up?
- I don’t know. That’s why I got a husband.
- Oh.
- We’ve gone through so much
and still not murdered each other.
- [grunting]
- So I think that this is just the beginning
for Mark and Lindsey.
I think these are ours.
And I think that we are going to surprise you.
- ♪ Say it to me, love you ♪
- ♪ Watch out, I’m coming through ♪
♪ Stacking up my Ws ♪
♪ On the go, it’s nothing new ♪
♪ ♪
all: Hi - Hey.
- Hey, guys. - Hey.
- Look at you. - Hey, friends.
- What’s going on? - Hi.
- I’m really excited to see all the couples
and hear their decisions.
The past eight weeks have been
a lot of learning and growth for everyone.
So, like, who knows what to expect with these people?
[laughs]
♪ ♪
- Oh. - Ooh.
[all exclaiming]
- Chris is in the building.
- Look at you go.
- Wow. - Looking sharp.
- It is very, very good to see everybody.
I’m excited to be back. I’m excited to be here.
[all exclaiming]
- Look at you. - Hey.
- I’m not really excited to see Alyssa,
but I just want to hear the updates
from everybody else and to put a big,
beautiful bow on this whole process.
- Hi. - Hi. How are you?
- Good. How are you? - Good.
- I have not spoken to Chris at all.
I think the last time that I saw everyone was at bowling
when we told everyone our decision.
- When Pastor Cal came,
it was a tough conversation for both of us.
And we landed on getting divorced.
♪ ♪
- You know, I feel like I’ve gotten past that, and...
I just hope that everyone’s marriage
lasted a little longer than mine.
[laughs]
- I love this dress, Alyssa.
- Thank you. - I know.
- The sparkle. - It’s sparkling.
- You know, hits the sun the right way.
- Alyssa walks in like it was her ex-husband’s funeral.
[both laughing]
That’s how you look when you about to see your ex-husband.
- And she came last, and she came last.
- Ooh. - Walking in fashionably late.
♪ ♪
- How have you been, Alyssa?
- Yeah, give us a update.
- I’ve been good.
This wasn’t the easiest process for me.
And, you know, I’m disappointed
it didn’t go the way that I hoped,
but I’ve just been having a really good summer.
What has everyone else been up to?
- Life has been calmer.
I don’t quite have that stress or anxiety all day of feeling
like you’re having to push through things,
but things have been really, really good.
And I have since started dating again.
[cheers] - Yay.
- Back on the field.
- Chin-chin, my friend.
- Appreciate it.
- That’s amazing.
- Chris is thriving.
I mean, it sounds like after going through this process
he realized how great he is and what he brings
to the table and what he doesn’t want.
I think Alyssa is gonna be doing
the same thing for a while.
I don’t see any growth or change from her,
so...hopefully one day.
- I’m in a good place, and I’m happy,
and I’m happy I did it.
I’m excited to hear what’s going on with all of you guys.
- We decided that we are gonna stay married.
- Yay! - Yeah!
- Whoo!
- Consummated. - Well...
- After Decision Day,
I had to let loose and go home with my wife.
[laughter] - Hey!
[cheers and applause]
- Just wanna let you know it was well worth the wait.
[laughter]
♪ ♪
- After Decision Day, the night was young.
It was hot.
We laid in the bed expressing how we felt
about each other and the growth we had,
and then Katina and I finally consummated our marriage,
and it means so much to me, because we’re over the hump.
We both made our decision.
It’s finalized.
It was beautiful. It was great.
- I’m happy that you chose to, you know,
lead with your emotions before your penis...
- Yeah. - Because, you know,
you also mentioned that when you
usually get that from a woman, like,
you--you don’t really care afterwards,
and so, you know, I’m glad that you--
- He care now. - You waited.
- You hear that, ladies? He care now.
[laughter]
- I-I think that the dopest thing is he’s had
the life of, you know, dating around and, you know--
- Hoeing.
- I was trying to figure out
a nicer way to say it. - [laughs]
- He wanted this to be different.
He didn’t want to make the same mistakes.
- Happy for my sis. [laughs]
Sis looks like she happy too.
[both laughing]
- It was intense. It was very intense. [laughs]
- So, Mike and Lindsey, can we get a answer?
- It was a very interesting marriage.
Lots of ups and downs and laughs, but...
- [laughing]
[laughter]
[quirky music]
- It was a lot of ups and downs.
A lot of life hurdles.
[laughing]
- But we said yes. - Yeah!
[cheers and applause]
- I’m not surprised
that Mark and Lindsey stayed together, honestly.
I mean, they’ve had major blowups, major blowups,
but they’re honestly like two peas in a pod.
I mean, they can definitely make it work
if they don’t give up on each other.
- Jasmina and Mike? - Oh, yeah, Jasmina and Mike.
- Yeah, yeah, what’s going on over there?
♪ ♪
Um...
I mean, you guys know Mike and I had a not-so-good start.
- Yeah. - And...
Oh--mm.
♪ ♪
- Oh, my God, don’t break my heart.
- But we decided we need more time, and we stayed married.
[all cheering]
- I’m so excited! - Oh, my God.
She--she thought they were gonna say no.
[indistinct chatter] - Ah!
I knew it!
Mike and Jasmina, staying together.
I think if anybody out of these couples
was gonna stand the test of longevity,
besides Mark and I,
if any other couple is gonna make it forever,
it’s them.
- So really why we said yes is we feel like
without, you know, all the cameras,
things will flow better,
and we’re just hoping that, you know,
we can just take it day by day and not put
all the pressure that this puts on us.
- Yeah, and I always said that I would never
leave any type of relationship
if I felt like I didn’t give 100%,
and I can’t say that I gave 100%
if I don’t try after--after this.
So we’re gonna see how it goes.
♪ ♪
- Steve and Noi, it’s on to you guys.
- So we decided...
to stay married.
- Oh, yes!
Most successful.
- Like, we didn’t know.
- I know. - Cheers.
- Four out of five couples stayed together.
It’s just great to see that,
through everyone’s tough times,
they were able to get back to a place
of why you got married
and why your wife or husband is good for you
if you really think about it.
- So me and Noi had a bit of a tradition.
On our wedding day, I gave her a ring pop,
and I just wanted to do it one--one last time.
all: Aw.
- Oh, my God. - No.
- Wait, are you doing this right now?
- It’s--yeah, it’s blue.
- Whoo! - Don’t eat it now,
’cause you know what happens to your lips
after you eat the blue one.
I just wanted, you know, do it one last time
when I ask you, will you be mine?
- Aw. - Yes. Thanks, honey.
It’s beautiful. It’s just the size I wanted.
[laughter]
- Same. - That’s so sweet.
- And, you know, in--
in that same respect, to our wedding,
I also wanted to let you know that I got you a second ring.
- Wait, what? - Just in case you didn’t--
[all exclaiming] - That’s how you do it.
- No, no, I’m gonna cry. - What?
- I wanted to ask you if you’d be my adventure buddy,
my Sushi father,
and my partner in life.
- [sobbing]
♪ ♪
Wait, what? I get two rings?
- [laughing] Yes.
Will you accept this one?
- It’s so beautiful. - It’s so beautiful.
- I’m sorry. I’m still crying.
Oh, my God, yeah.
- ♪ La la la la la la la la la la la la la ♪
♪ La la la la la la la la la la la ♪
♪ You got me speechless ♪
- That’s how you do it. Cheers, you guys.
- Cheers. Try it on.
- Okay. Do you know my size?
- I think it’s the only thing
I knew about you before this process.
- Oh, it’s beautiful.
- ♪ La la la la la, you got me speechless ♪
♪ Speechless ♪
- Oh, my God, it’s so pretty. [sobs]
- Don’t ugly cry, girl. You look so pretty.
- I can’t help it.
- That’s so pretty.
♪ ♪
[cheers and applause]
- Are we invited to the wedding?
[laughter]
- Of course. Oh, my God.
I am so obsessed with my new engagement ring.
It’s so cute.
Getting married at first sight, you know,
you’re already making a commitment to being married,
but for my husband to actually ask again,
it was really special.
I feel like we’re both
just excited to enjoy our new life together.
- ♪ I need you ♪
- I’m glad I did this.
I’m glad that Lindsey was there for me through a lot
of the tough times in this process.
I’m glad I met everyone here.
Everyone was very helpful
to the difficulties in this marriage
and the good times in this marriage.
And I definitely consider everyone here
friends for life.
I’d do it again.
- I’m so happy that we all decided to stay married.
I feel like it’s like a dream come true.
And I can’t wait to start
this new chapter of my life with Olajuwon.
- ♪ Only, only, if it comes to you ♪
- It’s kind of, like, sad to think about the end of this
because these are people that I truly consider family.
And I’m glad that we went through this together.
[laughter]
- ♪ Oh ♪
- It has been a great journey together.
So many memories,
so many things I wouldn’t change for a second.
I’m just really grateful that I got selected
to find a wife and go through this,
and the future looks so bright from here.
I think it’s gonna be a good life ahead.
♪ ♪
- "Marriage is hard" on three.
all: One, two, three, marriage is hard!
- ♪ Come together now ♪
♪ ♪
- Next time on the "Married at First Sight"
Boston reunion...
[laughter] - The cats!
- The couples are back...
- I thought everything was perfect.
- And ready to reveal everything.
- You were sending messages to my husband
privately on Instagram.
- Mark is full of [bleep].
Why have sex with her?
- Mike and I got into a very nasty argument.
- Oh, okay.
- The job search-- are you looking or no?
- Um...
- He said your food was inedible.
- It hurt my feelings.
- How do you feel about how he’s responding?
- If I’m being very honest--
- I--well-- - No. No, no, no, no, no.
- Viv, you’re cutting me off.
- There will be more secrets to reveal.
- Like, that freaked me out.
- More unsettled issues to resolve.
- None of that [bleep] matters.
- And more healing to be done.
- I know this is like a running joke,
but I am a good person.
- You’re just not worth my time.
- Dude, you sound like an ass.
- That was really uncalled for.
- Mike slammed the door on me.
- I don’t know what to believe.
- Next time on the "Married at First Sight"
Boston reunion.
You’re still happily married, right?
- About that, Kevin...
♪ ♪