Reality Bites: Ashley Kelsey's Moving On & Focusing On Herself

She may have fallen in love on 'The Real World,' but now Ashley is focusing on herself.

By Emily Longeretta — Written on Sep 26, 2012

On MTV's The Real World: San Diego, fans everywhere 'oohed' and 'ahhed' at the Barbie and Ken romance that sparked up between roommates Zac Nichols and Ashley Kesley. So, with the new season of Battle of the Seasons beginning last week, we saw that Team San Diego included the two love birds... except, there was no love.

"Ashley ripped my heart out, put it in a blender and served it to me for breakfast," Zac said on the premiere of BOTS last week. So, want to know what happenen? We did, too.

"After we left The Real World house, things were different," Ashley explained in an exclusive interview. "I felt like what we had in the house and even outside, right when we left was real and we were serious. But after a while, the relationship began to feel forced, unnatural. Out in the real world, we couldn't make it work."

During The Real World, the two seemed very much alike, and Ashley was viewed by others in the house as fake, but apparently that wasn't the case. "In the San Diego house, Zac was trying to be the guy I would date. He's a good guy, don't get me wrong. He's super funny. The Zac outside the house is someone that I would be friends with, but not someone that I would date. As for my personality, I was being me on the show, but he wasn't. He's totally different."

So, did she really break his heart? "Zac used to tell my mom I was the first one he loved and I would be the last," Ashley remembered. "I cared a lot about him, too. But after we left, things changed and got real. I put in a lot of effort and when I didn't get it back, I backed off. So, when I didn't get the effort I wanted, I ended it."

Ashley explained that in most relationships she's been in, like most girls, becomes totally consumed in them and she considers it a flaw of hers. "I become so focused on the other person, it's not healthy. I've learned now that you can't make someone else happy if you're not making you happy first."

So, going into the BOTS house, ofcourse she was nervous and hadn't seen him since the breakup. Her relationships with the other housemates, now teammates, Sam and Frank, were okay, but she hadn't been close with either of them.

"I had to put my pride aside," Ashley said of going on the show being a little uncomfortable. "I wanted to be there for my team, and take it like a woman. We can't win without each other."

Last week, on the premiere, Zac is shown moving on as well, when—the second night in, he is seen kissing Team Cancun's Jonna.

"People would always come up to me and ask if I was mad!," Ashley laughed. "No! I haven't seen the show so I have no idea what direction they're going to take it, but I wasn't at all jealous. I broke up with him! As long as it wasn't affecting the team, I was fine with it!"

"That's what sucks. This house is full of 32 people, so if you don't tell your story, someone else will. So if I don't talk about it, someone else will bring it up. It's everyone's opinions."

We can't wait to see how this season of BOTS plays out, and either can Ashley! "A lot of interesting relationships are formed throughout the show!"
But, don't think that's her main focus. "I'm developing a website, a blog about working out, health, and fitness," she said. She's also focusing on herself, and planning for the future. "A lot of people on these shows are so focused living for the moment, but you really need to think of the things you're doing and how they're affecting their future."

Stay tuned to see how Ashley and the rest of Team San Diego do on the Battle of the Seasons, every Wednesday (yes, tonight!) at 10 PM.

Tell us: do you think you could live under the same roof as your ex?