There is an odd vibe on the Below Deck Mediterranean interior. One problem evolved into at least three more, and the person who started it all has managed to sidestep blame and transfer it to the new stew. Of course, the root of it all is Lexi Wilson. But the need to switch bunks to accommodate Delaney Evans has pinned the frustration on her. The heat is coming from the kitchen as Chef Mathew Shea is being the most vocal about wanting to stay solo in his cabin. Chief Stew Katie Flood’s lack of decisiveness is exposed through this whole fiasco.
So while the crew’s frustration is now misdirected at Delaney, Lexi is sneaking in the background riding her new friend’s coattails. And it’s interesting that after the kind of meltdown that she had on the first charter, Lexi is now getting along with the rest of the crew.
Of course, Katie treated Lexi with kid gloves and tiptoed around the issues. But it was a hard situation, and the crew had to find a way to work together after Captain Sandy Yawn refused to fire the volatile second stew.
So Katie decided the best course of action was kindness. She told Hollywood Life, “I was nice!” during an exclusive interview before the August 31st episode aired. “I think, yeah, it’s a hard one,” Katie continued, “I never dealt with what happened this season before. Lexi was also going through a hard time herself.”
The fact that Lexi recently lost her father before filming got her a bit of a pass with the rest of the crew, especially from Katie. “We found out she loses her dad,” Katie explained, “I’m such an empathis. That was really hard for me because I don’t like to beat somebody when they’re down but at the same time, this girl can’t act this way.”
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There was a conversation between Katie and Lexi that was not aired. Katie asked her stew to consider how the environment was affecting her mental health. She said, “It was a real struggle to me to find that balance instead of being like, ‘OK sister, this is not all good,’ but also, ‘Are you OK?’ I did say that to her at one point. I don’t think they showed it. I said to her at one point, ‘I want you to think about this, Lexi. If you think this is the right environment for you. Your mental health is much more important than anything going on here and I will support you through that but I need you to be honest with me.’ It was a tough one for sure.”
Lexi stayed on, and the solution was to bring Delaney onboard to help the interior. Katie was wary of how a fourth girl would change the dynamic within her team. “When Captain Sandy was like, ‘OK, we’ve got this girl,’ and then I obviously didn’t jump on the bandwagon straight away,” Katie explained.
“I actually wanted to think about it whilst we’re in the middle of a charter so there’s not a lot of time to process everything and then my main concern was I didn’t want Lexi to lose [it] again,” she continued, “I didn’t want her to act the way she did again that night and I didn’t know. She became really quiet and she didn’t really communicate with any of us where she was at, even just being OK with what she was going through.”
If being too much of an empathetic were ever a problem, it would be with Katie’s decision making. She can’t seem to focus on the big picture and do what’s best for the charter. Instead, people’s feelings consume her, except when it comes to feedback on the cabin arrangements. Nobody wants to move, yet Katie wants to please Delaney rather than the rest of her crew.
RELATED: Below Deck Alum Kate Chastain Says Katie Flood’s Mistake Of The Season Is Letting Lexi Wilson “Know She’s Scared Of Her”
Katie had the same reaction to Lexi, who proved how volatile she can be if unhappy. Katie said, “She didn’t really talk to any of us about it, so I was really concerned. I was like, ‘This is going to go one of two ways. She’s either going to take this and be fine or not,’ and I don’t know what version I was going to get so I was just trying to be really real with her. I was like, ‘Look, this is the situation. We have this girl. Obviously things are falling apart. Let’s get each of our hands on, but I don’t want you to think that I’m replacing you,’ because that wasn’t actually the case. It wasn’t like Lexi got let go and Delaney was brought on. It was like, ‘Oh, this girl’s here, let’s just try it.’”
So the crew got saddled with four members on the interior, just so nobody’s feelings got hurt. The latest episode ended with a cliffhanger after Katie asked Delaney for a meeting. Will Delaney stay or be let go? Maybe the better solution would be to fire Lexi instead.
RELATED: Malia White Doesn’t Think Lexi Wilson’s Apology Was Sincere After Below Deck Mediterranean Fight
TELL US- WHAT DO YOU THINK OF KATIE’S MANAGEMENT STYE? IS SHE TOO NICE? WHAT IS THE SOLUTION TO THE LEXI/DELANEY SITUATION?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]