Robby Hayes finished JoJo Fletcher's season of The Bachelorette in the runner-up spot.

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Robby, a 27-year-old former competitive swimmer from Florida, was absolutely certain JoJo was going to pick him at the end of their journey and become his future wife. He was so convinced, in fact, he wondered whether JoJo was going to send Jordan Rodgers -- the winner -- home even earlier than the Final Rose Ceremony in Thailand.

Robby envisioned marriage and kids with JoJo, so he was devastated and crushed by the rejection. After the heartbreak and months of tabloid rumors regarding his past, it's probably safe to say Robby is ready to move forward with his life.

On Tuesday, Robby talked to reporters about his The Bachelorette experience and relationship with JoJo. Below is what he had to say.

Was there something that JoJo said or did in particular to make you think you'd be the last man standing? 

Robby Hayes: Nothing that she said in particular. I was just very confident with my emotions. So the spot and place that our relationship was and how far along I felt, it kind of gave me, you know, my own confidence to believe that maybe she had already sent Jordan home. Maybe that he went home the night before. And that's kind of just where that came from. 

There was no telltale sign that she gave me or any reason for it, but I was just fairly confident and figured that, you know, she would want that day to kind of be with that one guy she was going to choose in the end and not have both there at the end. 

Would you be open to being the next Bachelor if the opportunity presented itself?

Robby Hayes: Yes. It's definitely something that's crossed my mind. And it's definitely something that I'd have to sit down and talk, you know, with my family and my friends about. The reason I'm definitely hoping to do it is because I know that this avenue and this journey works. 

It worked for me last season with Jo, and I have no doubt that it could work for me again. So if that came knocking on my door, it's definitely something I'd be open to. But I'd have to sit down and talk to my family about it because they stressed a lot over this season. I can't imagine if I was [the star] after. 

You fell in love hard. Do you really think you'd be ready to start new relationships by the time The Bachelor starts filming, which I guess would be in a few months? 

Robby Hayes: Yes. You know, I've been fortunate enough to be spending lots and lots of time with my family. I moved back home for the show. So after the show, I came home. And they really helped me get my feet back underneath me.

And then you know, the last -- I'm sure you watched last night. I was able get that closure that I didn't have on [The Men Tell All]. I asked her [stuff] and she said, yes, she's happy and everything's good. So I definitely think I'd be ready by the time it came around. 

What reaction did your family and friends have to your first stint on reality TV? And how might that affect their opinion on you potentially doing it all over again?

Robby Hayes: Well, first, it starts with me being gone for two-and-a-half months. You know, my mom, it was really hard on her. She sent me a text everyday. Like, it was tough on them not seeing me.  And the emotions coming into my hometown where I finally did get to see them were real. We teared up getting to see each other. 

But then after the fact, the storm after it, you know, my mom and my sisters are very sensitive towards me. We're all very close and very protective of each other. So, you know, I knew coming into this that not every single person in America's going to love you.

There's going to be people out there that like someone else and feel it's necessary to say nasty things on social media. And my mom and my sisters took every single one of those comments to heart.

You know, I just brushed them off. There's hundreds of comments that I get. So, that's some of the difficulties they had with it. But, you know, over time, they learned that not everyone is going to love you, but most people do.

So, there's just little adjustments that they got used to over the course of it, because we were all brand new to it. We've never been through it. But they're extremely happy with how it went and I know they'd be extremely happy with my decision if I wanted to do it again. 

Are you from what I gather still going for your Graduate Degree in Finance at the University of Miami? 

Robby Hayes: That is correct. That is in the plans. I have two classes left that I need to finish to graduate with my Master's Degree in Finance. 

I understand that you were also working two jobs: GH Investments in Jacksonville and Myrtha Pools in Sarasota. How do you manage to juggle all that? And were those companies okay with you taking time off for The Bachelorette?  

Robby Hayes: Back in November and December, I had already been planning on leaving Myrtha Pools.  So I had been shipping out applications and my resume, trying to line up a new job. And then the show came along and kind of happened all right in this transition period. 

So, I had a little bit of downtime before the show. And actually, a buddy of mine and myself started GH Investments. It's a real estate investment firm that we kind of got off the floor.  But then I left for the show. So it kind of stalled a little bit.

And that's something that I actually want to get back to working on with them now that all of this has blown over. But I'll also be looking for, you know, a new stable job and a new city here coming up soon. [For graduate school], I'll pick those classes back up this fall.  

Check out Reality TV World's The Bachelorette 12 page for more from Robby Hayes' interview as well as JoJo Fletcher and Jordan Rodgers' interview post-show.



About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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