Bachelor Nation blindside? Ben Higgins was surprised to see his friend Chris Soules cozied up with Victoria Fuller in Iowa amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“Chris is a good buddy of mine,” the 31-year-old former Bachelor told Us Weekly exclusively. “We’ve stayed friends and we’ve stayed in communication through his ups and downs and through my ups and downs. I will tell you this, he has not confirmed or denied to me as a friend if this is happening. … I don’t know her, but I’m shocked that it happened.”
Rumors surfaced in April that Soules, 38, was dating Fuller, 26, when fans noticed a number of similarities in the decor of each of the reality TV personalities’ Instagram photos. An insider revealed to Us shortly afterward that the Dancing With the Stars alum “slid into Victoria’s DMs” following her time on The Bachelor. Two weeks later, the Virginia Beach native seemingly confirmed that she was enjoying “farm life” with Soules when she shared a photo of herself posing in the farmer’s living room.
“Chris is one of the best looking dudes and one of the kindest-hearted dudes I’ve ever met,” Higgins explained. “So if he’s found somebody that’s kept him the same way through this, then good on him. I just wish he would talk to me about it.”
Though Higgins hasn’t heard from the season 19 Bachelor star about his potential new flame, the Colorado native is looking forward to seeing where the rumored relationship ends up.
“Victoria seemed a lot more outspoken than Chris. Chris is a super quiet, shy guy,” Higgins said. “He has a great family. He’s really good at what he does. He’s a great farmer, and I didn’t see that side of Victoria. That doesn’t — none of that relates with her.”
Despite their apparently opposite personalities, Higgins is willing to give the pair the benefit of the doubt. While Fuller was “sensitive” and “would get irritable quickly” on Peter Weber‘s season of the ABC dating series, Higgins thinks Soules’ even-keeled energy could be the perfect balance.
“Chris has never gotten underneath my skin, so maybe he’s just a really consistent force in her life and then maybe they make the best couple ever,” he told Us. “Or maybe this is just a really fun quarantine.”
Higgins, for his part, is safely quarantined in Tennessee with fiancée Jessica Clarke. Us broke the news at the time that the two had gotten engaged after one year of dating, and now the couple is enjoying some much-needed time together.
“I know people have been hurting in extraordinary ways in this whole thing, and Jessica and I don’t take that lightly,” he said. “But for us in our story, in our life, it’s actually been really nice to slow down and be together. … It’s been healthy for us as a couple.”
With reporting by Kayley Stumpe
