Relationships move at different paces and this is certainly proven on this episode of Summer House. In one corner, there’s KJ and Dara, making it official right after KJ claimed he wanted to take things slow.
Then there’s Mia and her boyfriend, Scott, who maaaaybe spend a whole weekend together and then Kyle and Amanda who are just, well, miserable. But the West and Ciara of it all leave me screaming at the TV knowing what we know now. Not only does Ciara take West out of jail, but she opens herself up to his friendship in a big way…
After Ciara tearfully shares that she does not feel like West even sees her, Amanda consoles her, claiming that Ciara deserves so much more respect than what she gets. So cringey.
The crew rallies after their Vegas party and head to the club to listen to DJ Kyle spin some beats. Once home, Kyle drunkenly thanks Amanda for attending his session, which is something a wife would normally do, but considering the state of their relationship, it was a real treat for him.
The last two weeks Mia has started to dream about her parents a lot and it’s been really hard on her. Mia explains that she has just been doing what she has to do to survive, but she knows deep down, her mom would want her to THRIVE. The thought of speaking with a medium keeps gnawing at her…
The next morning, Dara explains that the girls have been great towards her relationship with KJ so far. KJ shares that he has never liked a girl this much, but has been hurt in the past so he does have a wall up.
Dara checks in on Ciara and shares that last night, West got obliterated and could only talk about Ciara and what happened at the Vegas party re: making out with another girl. Dara states that she is “really mad” at West. Now West claims he “feels bad” since his main objective is not to hurt Ciara’s feelings (well, he certainly failed at that…). He knows he has ruined it by making out with someone he has never met before, so he decides to apologize.
He goes to Ciara’s room and says he is sorry for being a sh*tty friend to her. He claims he is personally bummed since they were making progress on a friendship level. Ciara never wanted to be friends to begin with and advises him that it’s best that they are just not friends.
West states he is closer to her than anyone in the house and wishes he could take things back. West tells Ciara he does not want to pretend he doesn’t know her, but Ciara makes it clear she doesn’t have much to offer him otherwise. It’s truly bizarre West had this vulnerable conversation with Ciara, yet goes and dates Amanda!
The gang packs up and heads back to the city for the week ahead. Mia and her brother, Nick, meet up with Ciara. We learn that Mia lives four blocks away from her brother, but if she had her way, he’d live closer. They are meeting with a medium that Ciara met while she was in Costa Rica.
Mia is longing for closure about her mother and when the medium begins talking, Mia becomes emotional. Mentions of dreams and hands are shared and Mia’s mom comes through saying she wishes Mia had more confidence and was less stagnant in her life. She then tells her not to worry, Mia will be having a baby girl when the time is right and she will be there every step of the way. Tissue, please.
West is trying to prove he’s a good guy by volunteering at a dog adoption fundraiser. Amanda and Kyle come to support him and Amanda gets a moment to chat with West about what went down with Ciara. Amanda reminds West that he has been such a good friend to her all summer, but once he disrespects Ciara, it becomes a weird dynamic. West is unsure what he jeopardized with Ciara, but Amanda points out that he is super flirty with her when they go out on the weekends. Is she jealous?
Scott is making his debut in the Hamptons, but only for one night since his busy career is sending him back to Miami for an uncertain amount of time. West is going into this weekend attempting to control his attitude and his effort and Dara shares that she is now officially exclusive with KJ. They are boyfriend and girlfriend. #Fullsend.
Kyle explains that Amanda is unsure if she will be coming, despite it being the second to last weekend of the summer. Evidently, it’s a mystery why Amanda bailed, but that topic changes quickly once Ciara catches KJ’s ear about his new girlfriend. Ciara worries that KJ jumped into this relationship super fast and Mia reminds him that he does not have to propose to Dara any time soon.
Ciara can hardly believe that Amanda would leave her with 7 boys for the weekend. Amanda states that the idea of coming to the Hamptons is “overwhelming” her. She’s been trying to power through it all summer, but now she just wants to be alone and not paste a fake smile on her face.
West interrupts Ciara’s FaceTime with Amanda and lets her know that still, a week later, he does not feel any better. He apologizes AGAIN. Ciara admits that she does not hate West, but it’s getting exhausting. Ciara decides to invite West for coffee in the morning to see where things go.
Sidenote: Kyle is actually having FUN and that’s because his wife is nowhere to be seen. What a realization!
The house wakes up the next day and Mia has to say goodbye to Scott. He rarely gives her a full weekend and it’s starting to wear on her. After speaking with the medium, Mia is thinking it’s time to move and start making decisions in her life, especially with her relationship.
Before going out on the boat, West and Ciara leave early for some coffee, shocking most people in the house. Ciara lets West know that it’s been two years of nothing being said and she is afraid of being embarrassed around him. When West did not see her while he was making out last weekend, Ciara felt triggered. This cycle of whatever the heck they are is getting exhausting.
West talking to the media and downplaying the relationship by saying “We’re not each other’s people” really upset her, considering Ciara thought of him as one of her best friends. She did not expect that type of behavior from him and West claims this all makes him feel “really sad.”
West explains that he tried to defend himself while he was under attack and Ciara apologizes for not being there for him when he needed it. Ciara realizes that their situation would be a lot simpler if they lived simpler lives.
West shares that his natural instinct is to resent the person who everyone is sh*tting on him about and Ciara realizes this muddies the water of how they actually feel about each other. Ciara gets emotional and states that she misses West as her friend and he agrees.
Ciara does not want people talking badly about West because he’s not a bad person (ugh). She admits that she is tired of keeping her guard up and wonders what it could be like if she lets West back in as a friend. West misses the moments where he gets to talk with Ciara one on one. He apologizes, yet again, and explains he was not thinking about how impactful it was to bring her home to his family. Now he understands things better than he did before.
West states that he “sees her more” which is all Ciara wanted. He shares that he is happier when they communicate and he even gets a smile out of Ciara. Ciara asks West if they can just be best friends again and they hug it out in an emotional embrace that lasts entirely too long, if you ask me.
West makes a joke about Ciara not making out with Jesse and Ciara laughs it off because West did not even try to save her. If only we could forewarn Ciara of how this “friendship” will turn out in a few months…
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE SUMMER HOUSE EPISODE?