The dramatic maybe split between 90 Day Fiance couple Jonathan Rivera and Fernanda Flores continues to play out on Instagram with Jonathan claiming that Fernanda left him because he wasn’t willing to leave his realty business in North Carolina behind so she could pursue her modeling “cuhreer” in Chicago.
In case you missed it, Jonathan and Fernanda have been promoting their break up with subtle teases over the past week, including Jonathan mentioning previously that it was Fernanda’s dream to become a professional model that played a huge part in her decision to leave Jonathan.
He recently confirmed that tea, and also shared some more details about becoming the new Russ and Paola. “Listen, this is the last comment I’ll make,” Jonathan begins his 100% guaranteed not last comment he’ll make. “We wouldn’t have been married had we not had the time constraints. 90 days isn’t enough time to get know someone. We had the best intentions.”
I will agree with Jonathan that 90 days is not enough time to get to know someone before marrying them, but I believe that you should have gotten to know them prior to starting the K-1 visa process, which is essentially the same thing as a marriage commitment. It’s hard to imagine someone going through all that bureaucracy and paying all that money if they weren’t assuming that they were going to get married at the end of it? The 90 days is just kind of a “last chance” period for the couple to see how living together in the United States for an extended period of time goes, right?
Jonathan continues his explanation by revealing Fernanda’s career ultimatum. “Commitment means everything, but it’s a two-way street. When you give me an ultimatum of closing my business or moving to continue my relationship so you can pursue your dreams, you put me in a tough position. I work too hard to just give it up. I’m also committed to my business and responsibilities.”
Once again, I have to agree with Jonathan here! I know he has his fair share of detractors, but I do get a sense that he is a hustler when it comes to his job — and being a successful realtor in Lumberton, North Carolina does not easily translate to being a successful realtor in Chicago. I am not suggesting that Jonathan couldn’t be successful in Chicago (he actually seems like he could be one of those big city real estate agents on a Bravo show), I’m just saying that being a successful realtor is ALL ABOUT knowing a specific area — the market, the people, the schools, the taxes…everything — and there would be one hell of a learning curve going from Lumberton to Chicago!
So, asking Jonathan to put his successful career at risk so that Fernanda could try to GET HER START in one of the most difficult professions to be successful at on the planet, is just irresponsible and foolish.
Despite the apparent relationship-ending ultimatum, Jonathan is still #TeamFernanda. “I know she’ll be a star,” he wrote. “I’ll always support her.” That last statement might be literally true given that whomever signed off as Fernanda’s sponsor for her green card will be financially responsible for her for the next ten years.
And speaking of Fernanda’s green card, she stirred up a bit of a controversy when she mentioned on Instagram that she didn’t need to get married to get a green card because her dad is a US citizen. Jonathan responded by claiming that wasn’t entirely true. “Negative,” he replied to someone who mentioned Fernanda’s claim on Instagram. “Her visa was denied through her father which [is] why we did the K-1.”
Jonathan seems to leave the door open for the possibility that Fernanda married him for a green card, but he shuts down claims that she might have married him just to be on the show — at least initially. “Fernanda and I were already approved for the K-1 before ever being approached by the show. I don’t believe her intentions were for fame, that may have changed.”
From what I understand, TLC does look for people who are already going through the K-1 visa process when casting for 90 Day Fiance. (This is in stark contrast to Before the 90 Days, for which producers are merely looking for couples in an international relationship who have never met in person. That concept leaves a LOT more room for fakery and fraud, as evidenced by a few very hard to believe story lines over the first couple seasons. ***COUGH*** PATRICK! ***COUGH*** CORTNEY! ***COUGH***) However, given the age and success of 90 Day Fiance, it is possible that current cast members could have started the K-1 visa process with the end goal of being cast on the show.
While we’re on the subject of 90 Day Fiance spin-offs and fake story lines, there is A LOT of speculation that all of this Jonathan and Fernanda drama (as well as the Jay and Ashley drama) is just a preview for the next season of Happily Ever After as the cast members look to create a viable real-time timeline now for their story lines on that show. I will be the first to admit that my eyes roll involuntarily whenever I see a new post by Jonathan or Fernanda, and I guess that is mainly because of how close this break up narrative mirrors perhaps the most over-played and yawn-inducing motif from the 90 Day Fiance franchise: the never-ending “conflict” between Russ and Pao over her aspiration to become a model. (If Fernanda and Jonathan decide to try to make things work with Fernanda moving to Chicago EXACTLY like Pao moved to Miami — with Russ and Jonathan staying behind — I will be SOOOOOO disappointed.)
As I’ve stated many times before, I completely understand that “reality” shows often rely heavily on the help of producers and editors when it comes to what we see on screen, but there is a line for a lot of viewers (like me), and I have no desire whatsoever to see this Fernanda modeling career narrative play out if it’s just a script for the cameras.
What do you think? Are Jonathan and Fernanda really split up, or is this all just smoke and mirrors for their future story line?
Asa Hawks is a writer and editor for Starcasm. You can contact Asa via Twitter, Facebook, or email at starcasmtips(at)yahoo.com
