Warning: this story contains spoilers from episodes 1-12 ofLove Is Blindseason 8.
Mason Horacekknows things withMadison Errichiellowouldn’t have worked out onLove Is Blind— even if he hadn’t made some missteps in the pods.
The season 8 stars formed a connection early on in the pods, but Madison, 28, later ended things due to her stronger connection withAlex Brown. However, following Mason and Madison’s split, she learned that he had been saying the exact same things to her and fellow participant Meg Fink.
Madison (left) and Mason from ‘Love Is Blind’.Netflix
Netflix
After Madison started venting to Alex, 29, in the pods about Mason’s behavior, Alex refused to speak poorly about his costar, which upset Madison — and in turn, ended their relationship for good. Meanwhile, Mason pursued Meg after their time in the pods and it was revealed in episode 11 that the two started dating after the show.
Speaking to PEOPLE, Mason, 33, says he’s confident Madison was never the one for him and he wished he would’ve come to that realization sooner than he did.
Mason Horacek in ‘Love Is Blind’ season 8 pods.Netflix
“There’s a lot that I look back on watching it now where I really wish I would’ve addressed the red flags that I saw when I was dating Madison,” he says. “I chose to ignore them and just kind of got wrapped up in my feelings and went with what I felt at the time.”
“If I hadn’t ignored those red flags, I feel like I would’ve ended up in a better situation instead of the catastrophe that we all witnessed,” he admits.
Noting that in past relationships, he tended to ignore red flags which resulted in “more drama” or “difficult situations,” Mason adds: “I came to the show to avoid something like that, but I just went right back into my old ways, which is very disappointing and heartbreaking for me to watch that back.”
“It’s just sucks when it’s one of the biggest world stages that you have to fumble the ball and learn in that aspect. But now I’ll never forget the lesson,” he admits.
Mason Horacek in the ‘Love Is Blind’ pods.Netflix
Though watching his own actions was tough, Mason says he felt “completely backed up” seeing Alexsupport him and refuse to speak poorlyabout him inside the pods.
“I felt like he had my back and he told me after we got done filming that that had happened,” he reveals. “But watching it back, I didn’t know the extent or the severity or the tension that was actually in the room and being able to watch it back was like, wow. He really did something brave and uncomfortable just to defend me. So I just have mad respect for him and it made me really, really value him.”
From left: Mason Horacek, Madison Errichiello, and Alex Brown.Adam Rose/Netflix
Adam Rose/Netflix
However, as fans saw, the two had an awkward exchange at the cast gathering in episode 11.
Not only did Mason show up and reveal he was now dating Meg, but Madison and Alex also arrived separately. When Madison explained everything that went down between them to Lauren O’Brien, she insisted that Alex was “a huge liar” because he wouldn’t admit he trashed Mason.
The season 8 men of ‘Love Is Blind’.Greg Gayne/Netflix
Greg Gayne/Netflix
Despite the drama, Mason insists he and Alex are all good.
“We are all really, really good friends in the pods … we have a group of friends that we automatically have a great friend group that we can always go out with and hang out and shoot a text in the group chat and always have someone down to do something,” he says. “So I think we got a really nice little community after filming with this experience.”
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source: people.com