Alexis Waters Reveals Her True Thoughts Behind Love At First Sight On The Bachelor - Exclusive

Anyone who's ever watched "The Bachelor" knows that contestants seemingly fall in love at first sight. Only occasionally is there a crack in the show's rose-colored façade (think: that time a contestant allegedly had a secret fling with a producer or when Serena Pitt broke up with bachelor Matt James in Season 25). Mostly, the contestants on the series seem to develop strong feelings, and fast. That's the magic of television. Tears sell, right?

In the real world, love at first sight is a debatable concept (though there's at least a little scientific evidence proving it's possible). In Bachelor Nation, however, it's practically written into the constitution. Fans have come up with a number of theories as to how it happens: It's careful editing. The women are directed to say they're falling in love. It's some sort of weird form of Stockholm syndrome triggered by being locked in a mansion with dozens of women, one man, and a myriad of producers watching your every move. That's all plausible, but we haven't gotten to the bottom of it — until now.

In an exclusive interview with Nicki Swift, Season 21 contestant Alexis Waters opened up about how love at first sight actually happens on "The Bachelor."

Like most of us watching, Waters was shocked when her fellow contestants started developing real feelings for bachelor Nick Viall before they even got to know the man they were all simultaneously dating.

"I remember getting really uncomfortable when the girls were saying that they liked him after like the second day," she tells Nicki Swift. " ... It kind of creeped me out — like something's loose in the head with this girl because we've literally talked to [him for two seconds]."

Then, it started happening to her — but only after she got swept away in "the process" (as "Bachelor" fans know, you must always trust the process).

"I feel like ... they take everything away from you. I forgot I had a family at one point," Waters says. "That's where my brain was. I forgot I had a sister. I saw my sister when I got back. I was like, 'I forgot about you. I forgot your existence.' I forgot I had a dog ... Then I started to like [Viall] in my head, and then I was like, 'No, you don't Alexis.'" 

At the end of the day, Waters is still a believer even though she wasn't head-over-heels for Viall. It's "fast and short," she admits, but she witnessed contestants falling in love "with [her] own eyes" — editing be darned.  

You can catch Alexis Waters on her podcast Girls Night With Alexis Waters or on S'more TV.