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Why did Erik Lake give Virginia Coombs an ultimatum? 'MAFS' fans call him 'the real villain' in fight over dogs

As dog parents, both Lake and Coombs are extremely protective about their dogs, Tex and Rockie respectively, but Lake chose to criticize Coombs's dog

For the couples of 'Married at First Sight', the honeymoon period seems to be far from over -- their once fairy tale romances are all in for a rude awakening. Erik Lake and Virginia Coombs came off their one-month anniversary at an all-time high, only to have Lake give his wife an ultimatum soon after. 

Coombs has made it plenty clear to Lake that she often is very guarded in relationships and has a tendency to leave, on account of being hurt in the past before. Patience and time with her is key, something that Lake seems to forgo far too often for comfort. 

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As dog parents, both Lake and Coombs are extremely protective about their dogs, Tex and Rockie respectively. During a bit of morning pillow talk, Lake pointed out how their dogs get along with them so well, seeing that Coombs is great with Tex and that Lake gets along well with Rockie. He mentioned that Rockie needs to be disciplined more, seeing that he can't be left off-leash and allegedly bites people. Coombs didn't take kindly to the comments and was quick to storm out of their apartmen, with Rockie in tow. When the producers asked her what's wrong, she broke down, saying that Rockie means the world to her. She got him during a terrible time in her life when she was depressed and he helped her overcome it, a fact that Lake knew, but still choose to criticize her dog, implying that Tex was better, did not sit well with her. 

Coombs finally came back home with Rockie and sat down to talk to Lake. She pointed out that she can't act like everything between them is normal, even though for Lake, it is. Coombs was very clear about how she felt: "I just don't like pretending we're in a great place when we're not." She said, confronting the problem. 

Turns out, Lake and Coombs had a massive fight the night prior. The pair went out drinking and Coombs went to the washroom and later, the bar. But on seeing that she hadn't returned for 45 minutes, Lake was absolutely livid, seeing that he didn't know her whereabouts and claimed it was because he was worried. Coombs made it clear that he's coming off as far too controlling, seeing that the fight last night got rather ugly. The whole exchange was too much for Coombs to handle, she was extremely upset and began to cry, saying that she was sorry for the fact that she has anxiety, was a bad dog mom and she didn't like the fact that every time something was wrong, Lake made it about himself. She even made it clear that right now, she wanted to leave and go back to her sister's house and that she was tired of him telling her to leave every time something went wrong. Lake who was calm to a point of coming off as cold said that she was 'free to do whatever she wanted', leaving the issue between them unresolved.


Twitter was quick to point out that Lake was clearly at fault here. "I feel like Erik may be lowkey crazy. That conversation about the dogs escalated for no reason. #MAFS #MarriedAtFirstSight" Tweeted a fan. "And just like that, Erik has been the real villain all along. #MAFS #MarriedAtFirstSight" agreed another. 

Fans felt as though there were too many red flags and that Lake was really coming down on Coombs far too hard. "Erik: "she gets so defensive and puts these walls up" Sir, you and Virginia have the same problem #MarriedAtFirstSight #mafs," tweeted a fan, pointing out that relationships are a two-way street. "Erik has big emotional abuser energy. Listen to your intuition and run, Virginia. #mafs," warned another.

"Erik is gaslighting Virginia big time. He’s controlling her, lecturing her, making her feel small and then he victimizes himself #MarriedAtFirstSight #MAFS #mafsatl," explained another. "Erik keeps contradicting himself saying he doesn’t want Virginia to change herself but then saying there’s certain things she have to change for the marriage #MarriedAtFirstSight #MAFS," added another. 

Seeing that Lake still believes Rockie needs more discipline, we wonder where this marriage to Coombs will progress from here. 

Catch Season 12 of 'Married at First Sight' on Lifetime on Wednesdays at 8/7c. For more information, check your local listings.