The Bachelorette Season 12 Episode 9 Recap, JoJo Fletcher

It’s week 9 on The Bachelorette, and it’s safe to say that this week’s episode is [initiate Chris Harrison voice“] the most dramatic yet.

JoJo and her top three guys are jetting off to Thailand – but not before finishing off last week’s rose ceremony stateside.

THE REST OF LAST WEEK’S ROSE CEREMONY

We pick up right where we left off last week, with Luke asking JoJo for a private moment alone and telling her he was in love with her because apparently Luke was really not here to make friends. Swooping in right as she’s about to hand out the roses? A surefire way to tick off fellow Bachelorette contestants if we’ve ever seen one.

The guys were confused (“That was weird,” as Jordan put it,) as was JoJo spending a few minutes wandering around the hangar in her blue dress, crying, because she was going to send Luke home and, now that he told her he loves her, she was questioning her choice – as she should have, because Luke is dreamy.

As it turns out, Luke’s last-minute declaration of love was all for naught, and JoJo gave the last rose to Chase, a move that has Bachelorette fans everywhere scratching our heads. Wasn’t it just a few weeks ago that JoJo was discussing her and Luke’s crazy chemistry? Wasn’t it Luke’s hometown date that she was crying on as she said goodbye? Has JoJo ever really showed more than a fleeting interest in Chase?

Walking Luke out, JoJo seemed to be a little confused that she was the one doing the dumping, telling Luke that this was “so hard for her,” which is ironic, because if it’s that hard, wouldn’t she just have not sent him home? “You don’t want me anymore,” Luke said, to which JoJo replied, “No, it’s not that.”

JoJo, it’s actually exactly that.

ONE-ON-ONE WITH ROBBY

Robby was the first one to tell JoJo he loved her, so you know he’s a front-runner.

The first part of their date was rather uneventful: The two went exploring in a Thai market and then got massages (and made out). Of course, they discussed their hometown date and his declaration of love, which JoJo said she was glad he said (duh).

Robby also called JoJo “Joelle” multiple times – the ultimate sign he’s taking this seriously.

Then comes the dinner portion of the date, where the two basically did exactly what they did earlier: Robby told JoJo how much he loves her, she said how good that makes her feel. And again. And again. And though they touched on the subject of his ex, it wasn’t cause for much drama – especially after Robby’s latest revelation.

Turns out, Robby’s dad gave him a note reminding him not to sweat the “small stuff” (i.e. the ex-girlfriend’s roommate who had been trying to sabotage his relationship with JoJo). It seemed like this move was what gave JoJo the confidence she needed to give Robby what he really wants – an invitation to The Fantasy Suite.

“Now I don’t have to dream about JoJo,” Robby said. “I get to dream with JoJo.”

That’s not really how dreams work, Robby, but we’ll give you points for trying.

ONE-ON-ONE WITH JORDAN

Going into her date with Jordan, JoJo was worried she’d get in trouble because she’s “goo-goo-ga-ga over” all three of her remaining guys (yes, that’s an exact quote). She didn’t stay worried for too long, though, after Jordan showed up. (I mean, looking into those eyes, how worried can you be?)

The two were doing a “steep, challenging” hike, which was all fun and good for them, but you couldn’t have picked an easier task for the equipment-lugging camera crew that has to follow you up there, JoJo?

In the midst of their hike, they entered a temple where there’s no kissing allowed, a.k.a. aBachelorette death wish. Inside, they spent most of their time talking about how they couldn’t kiss each other before chatting about JoJo’s family because – let’s face it – we all know Jordan is making the final two. When she described her family, JoJo said her mom is “crazy and fun” – I mean, has Jordan seen her mom take a bottle to the face? JoJo also described her brothers as “protective,” which, if you ask Ben, was the understatement of the year.

At dinner, JoJo asked Jordan about the future, and when he says that he “doesn’t know” what the next year is going to be like, she went into low-key panic mode, questioning whether he would just “peace out” after six months.

To reassure her, Jordan told JoJo he wants to spend the rest of his life with her. But that didn’t do too much, as she said: “Eh, that’s what Ben said.” (Burn!)

It only took about 30 more seconds of screen time for JoJo to get over her fears and get into the Fantasy Suite with Jordan. The next morning, we got an extended look at Jordan’s abs (finally) as he told us that they “took a big step last night in a really exciting direction” and it was “exactly everything I needed.”

We get it, you had sex.

ONE-ON-ONE WITH CHASE

Chase and JoJo’s one-on-one was a day on the water, starting out with some awkward fish kisses (yes, we mean literally kissing dead fish) before they headed out on a boat and started – what else? – making out.

They did a little more making out on the beach, in the water … pretty much everywhere. JoJo said she “doesn’t want the day to end” – but that feeling didn’t last much longer.

First, JoJo was distracted by Robby paying a visit in the downtime between her day date and dinner date with Chase (who knew they had downtime?!) to tell her, yet again, that he was ready to propose. At this point, we’ve heard Robby’s confession of love so many times we have to imagine even JoJo’s a little sick of it.

After Robby left, JoJo headed back out on for dinner with Chase, where he admitted the obvious – that JoJo was further along in her relationships with Robby and Jordan than she is with him. Perhaps with the hope of speeding things up between them, he accepted the Fantasy Suite invite and, once inside, told JoJo he loved her.

What happened next is quite literally, painfully awkward to watch. Pretty much instantly, JoJo seemed to realize what the rest of us have been yelling at our TVs for the past few weeks: She’s just not that into him. After taking some time to herself, JoJo came back and told Chase as much, which predictably pissed him off.

“So now love equals ‘Get the f— out?’ ” Chase said … which, you know, good point.

JoJo tried to explain that she didn’t think spending the night together would change anything and that she would rather end it before they got in too deep, which you have to give the girl kudos for. In the moment, however, it didn’t do much for Chase’s mood – although he did give her a hug while she cried, a move that is becoming a pattern when JoJo dumps someone. She then implored him to forgive her and have them part on good terms, but he was not having it and left.

On the ride home, Chase eloquently summed up the experience: “It’s like I pulled my pants down and you kick me in the nuts.”

ROSE CEREMONY

JoJo decided to continue on with the rose ceremony so Jordan and Robby could still accept their roses. They both walked in confident, especially after she told them that Chase wouldn’t be showing up. And then he did show up and asked for a moment alone with JoJo. And at the second rose ceremony in a row where this has happened, Jordan and Robby looked more than a little peeved.

Robby even asked, “Does that happen? People get sent home and then come back from the dead?” Robby, dude, there is life after The Bachelorette.

Nothing to sweat about, guys. Chase wasn’t here for a second chance, he was there to apologize for being so angry the previous night. Honestly, he made quite the 180, telling JoJo that he admired her and was proud of her. Was this Chase’s way of endearing himself to America for hopes at securing next year’s Bachelor spot?

Chase left, JoJo cried a little more and then finally handed out the last two roses to Jordan and Robby. She said she was feeling a little sick to her stomach, knowing she’s in love with two guys.

We’ve heard this somewhere before, haven’t we? Haven’t we?

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If next week’s preview is any indication, there’s plenty more drama to come: Questions over proposals, panic attacks and the return of JoJo’s wine-guzzling mom. And before that, it’s the Men Tell All special – and lots of Chad confrontations.

The Bachelorette: Men Tell All airs Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET, and The Bachelorette‘s finale airs Monday at 8 p.m. ET, both on ABC.