Big Brother's houseguests evicted Natalie Negrotti from the house during Thursday night's live episode on CBS.

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Natalie, a 26-year-old event coordinator who currently resides in Franklin Park, NJ, was evicted through a 3-0 vote instead of her showmance partner and best friend James Huling, a 32-year-old staff recruiter from Wichita Falls, TX.

The Big Brother broadcast began on Day 83 with tension building between James and Natalie. Because James had made the decision to trust Nicole Franzel and Corey Brooks, Natalie was resentful and the game had put a strain on their romance.

Meanwhile, Paul Abrahamian, Victor Arroyo, Nicole and Corey -- who had made a pretty solid Final 4 deal -- determined whether they should get rid of Natalie or James first. Corey and Paul wanted Natalie to go home, mainly because both men thought they had a friendship with James and could therefore pull him onto his side since James would be in the middle of two pairs.

Paul told Nicole he talked to James about minor things but she worried he was trying to work with James in case he stays and wins HoH, which was actually the case. Victor also let James talk about his girl problems, justifying that it never hurts to have some sort of relationship with a guy in the house.

Natalie was acting super distant from James and he was doing everything in his power to hold them together. He was mad at himself for getting in a showmance. Natalie was upset because she was absolutely convinced she was going home. She was more frustrated with herself for not sticking with her gut and staying true to Victor. James, however, blamed himself.

Corey was sick of Natalie making James feel guilty and depressed all the time. Nicole and Corey worried that James might work with Paul a and Victor only because he felt he owed the pair something since he had betrayed them before and been the deciding vote to evict Victor from the house for the second time.

After days of Natalie moping a around the house and being sarcastic with James, he finally stood up for himself and called her out for being a brat. He even said she was acting like "an assh-le" and her "true colors" were coming out, to which Natalie replied, "That's nice."

James then admitted to Natalie that he heard she had thrown him under the bus. Natalie swore on everything she loves that she never did that. James didn't know what to believe since Victor and Paul had seemed very sincere about the information.

James then accused Natalie of using him in the game because she had a crush on Corey and tried to get a showmance going with Victor before picking him. James alleged she even had a "fling" with Paulie Calafiore, which really infuriated her. Natalie confessed James wasn't the person she thought he was. James was supposedly "done" with her and regretted almost giving his game to keep her safe.

In their speeches at the live eviction, it became clear Natalie and James had mended their relationship. She said James is stuck with her forever and they are soul mates, and James noted it was an absolute honor to play the game with her. 

After Natalie was evicted via unanimous vote, she walked out of the house and yelled, "I'll miss you James! I love you!" 

Once Natalie sat down with Big Brother host Julie Chen for her post-eviction interview, she insisted she had never intentionally thrown James under the bus and never would in a million years. It was in her heart to protect him. Natalie claimed she even campaigned to keep James in the house at the end of her game, hoping everyone would see how much she cared about him.

In light of rumors Natalie was using James in the game, the perky Latina promised her showmance was "so real" and she loved and cared for him as a person. She even said they could pursue a romance in the real world if they find out how to make it work.

Natalie additionally confirmed she told James to do whatever it takes to get to the Final 2 no matter whom he must work with. She'd support him whole-heartedly going forward.

The episode concluded with a Head of Household competition. As the outgoing HoH, Victor could not compete.

For the competition, the players were required to transfer butter from a barrel across a slippery lane to a large eight-gallon container resting on top of a popcorn box. The first person to fill the large container and remove the floating popcorn kernel would become the new Head of Household.

The challenge looked exhausting because the houseguests had to run back and forth numerous times while slipping all over the place.

In a twist, there was a second smaller container that could be filled in order to release a larger scooper, making it possible to transfer more butter faster. The players not only had to physically push themselves, but strategy was involved as well.

[Spoiler Warning: To find out who won the HoH competition, highlight the area below].

Corey was crowned the new Head of Household.

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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.