Getty "The Bachelorette" Michelle Young displays her engagement ring.
“The Bachelorette” Michelle Young has opened up about navigating a significant amount of stress in recent months, and something new recently caused her additional anxiety. After a video emerged showing her without her engagement ring, she took to social media to address the issue.
Here’s what you need to know:
Young Was With Friends When Spotted Without Her Ring
When Young accepted Nayte Olukoya’s proposal during the season 18 finale of “The Bachelorette,” she excitedly accepted the stunning ring Olukoya had chosen. The Neil Lane stunner weighs over 3 carats and features a handmade pear-shaped diamond, detailed E! News. Young has worn the stunning ring publicly many times since her finale aired. However, one moment without it was captured on video and sparked a frenzy of commentary.
On May 29, a video of Young made its way online and to Reddit. The video, which was taken without Young’s knowledge, showed her from the back as she hung out with friends. When this video was filmed, “The Bachelorette” star was not wearing her engagement ring.
Quite a few Reddit posters blasted the unknown person who took the video. “LEAVE HER ALONEE ALONE OMG,” one person commented. “I personally don’t care why she’s not wearing her ring but recording her without her constant [sic], sending it to a bachelor account to start s*** and rumors is actually pathetic,” another poster wrote. Those who commented on the ring situation itself primarily fell into two camps. There were those who thought it was no big deal, especially given the value of the ring, and those who thought it likely signaled something problematic.
She Quickly Addressed the Ring Situation
A day or so after the missing ring video emerged, “The Bachelorette” star took to social media to address it. Reddit shared Young’s video clip, which appeared to have been on her Instagram Stories. In the now-expired video, Young noted she rarely addresses these kinds of things. Here, however, she apparently received a flood of direct messages asking her about it. Because of that, she spoke publicly about the video that sparked the drama.
“To the person who was paying close enough attention to catch that moment, you also had to be paying close enough attention to see one of my good friends briefly remove my engagement ring to try it on and then place it back on my finger,” Young shared. She added, “Just a friendly reminder that Nayte and I, we are human beings, we are not a zoo exhibit. Not to mention videoing somebody without them knowing, it’s creepy.”
This sparked a fresh round of commentary on Reddit, and quite a few people rallied around Young on this one. “Y’all are on another petty level over Naychelle. Get a hobby for real,” commented one critic of the group. “This is a repeat of Tayshia and Zac’s breakup,” someone countered. This is not the first time “Bachelor Nation” fans have compared Young and Olukoya to Tayshia Adams and Zac Clark regarding a possible split. This moment for the recent “Bachelorette” star definitely stirred up a lot of buzz, but it may not ultimately mean much regarding Young and Olukoya’s future together.