'Floribama Shore' star Candace Rice recalls the traumatic GatorJay abuse incident and how difficult it was to deal with on TV
'Floribama Shore' star Candace Rice has not had a very easy or comfortable relationship with her 'boo thang' GatorJay231 over season 2 part 1, with part 1 closing with a very shocking confession from Candace.
Towards the end of part 1, Candace confesses to her roommates and viewers that there had been an incident involving Gator raising his hand at Candace and putting his hands on her throat. The incident took place just before Candace arrived at the Panama City Beach House and chose to let it slide given her change in environment. However, repressing this incident does not work well for her and by the end of part 1, she resorts to sharing her story with everyone.
"TBH, I was forced into it and did not want to talk about it at first. The incident took place just before I came to the beach house and had happened the night before. So when I got to the house, I did not want it to be a public thing and decided to bury it," Candace exclusively tells MEAWW.
This is NOT ok, Candace! 🙅 #MTVFloribamaShore pic.twitter.com/QbIb4mLcf9
— MTV Floribama Shore (@FloribamaShore) October 2, 2018
During part 1, the crew decides to head to New Orleans to blow off some steam and as they are packing to leave, Candace gets a phone call from her mother asking her about whether Gator hit her or ever laid hands on her, which she denies to her.
"My mother called right before we left for New Orleans — and my best friend told her about what happened and I decided what's the point to hold it in? I had no choice but to bring it up and let my roommates know," Candace shared.
On the show, as much as the housemates are all about having fun, Candace's story stops everyone dead in their tracks, and the whole positive vibe seems to be put on hold. The whole crew is shocked and angry that GatorJay raised his hand at Candace, and they immediately try and talk her out of seeing him. As Nilsa says, "there is no excuse at all" to which Gus adds, "it is absolutely unacceptable."
Aimee does her best to convince Candace that he is a bad idea and shares that she too was in an abusive relationship which left her with many injuries and that she (Candace) should get out now before it all gets worse.
"The first half of season one was difficult for and I was fighting with everyone. I came from one big fight and jumped into a whole lot of fights with other people. It was a lot to hold in and so I finally let it go. All of you will get to see that in the second half," Candace added. Nilsa tells MEAWW, "Candace did not even have time to process, grieve, or even talk about it. When Candace opened up, I could feel a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders."
However, as Candace says, part 2 of MTV's 'Floribama Shore' will be a lot better and viewers are definitely looking forward to that!
