Big Brother 28: Лирик Медейрос тоглоомоос хасагдсаныхаа дараа Мелодигийн сэтгэгдэлд тайлбар өглөө

Lyric Medeiros became the fourth houseguest evicted from Big Brother 28 in what was hands-down the most exciting week of the game so far, thanks to a last-minute vote flip. Haley Thogmartin, this week’s Head of Household, originally put up Taylor Brown, Melody Morris, and Drew Campbell, but when Taylor won the Power of Veto and pulled herself off the block, Haley used her renom to put up Lyric instead.

Then, after Drew won the BB Blockbuster to secure his own safety, it came down to Lyric and Melody — and at the eleventh hour, reality TV vets Dee Valladares, Rick Devens and Angela Murray flipped the house against Lyric, worried she’d come after them if she ever won power, while also keeping the burgeoning showmance between Drew and Melody as a target in front of them. The house ultimately voted out Lyric 8-3, with only Chuk Anyanwu, Kamu Kirk, and Yash Patel voting in her favor. They were all left speechless, as was HOH Haley.

Speaking with Men’s Journal the morning after her eviction, the Hawaii-based lawyer, 25, opened up about the blindside and how she took the news that Melody — one of her closest allies — vented in the diary room that she wanted to “punch her in the f–king face.”

“Well, I heard that Melody said she wants to punch me in the face, so no hard feelings at all,” Lyric said. “I understand it’s a game.”

She also detailed the apology she made to ally Mallory Aurichio after throwing her under the bus with Haley, explained why she still trusts Chuk and Kamu despite voting her out, and opened up about her whirlwind romance with fellow houseguest Rome Seymour.

Scroll down to read our full interview with Lyric Medeiros.

Men’s Journal: How are you feeling this morning? The vote was 8-3 — whose vote stung the most last night?

Lyric Medeiros: You know, honestly, not anyone’s. I say that truthfully because the minute that Haley put me up as a renom, I knew I was going home. I knew it. I knew it. I watched enough Big Brother to know that when you put a competitor up against people who haven’t won competitions, there’s a big chance that they go home if they don’t win that Blockbuster. So I had a feeling, and I mentally prepared myself.

Men’s Journal: You told Julie [Chen Moonves] that you kind of saw this coming, though the house didn’t turn on you until the last minute. What do you think actually got Dee, Devens, and Angela to flip?

Lyric Medeiros: I’m not sure. I don’t know. I had a conversation with Dee in the gym upstairs, and she asked me who I would put up, and I said I wouldn’t put up Chuk, Haley, or Kamu. She was trying to open my eyes to the fact that Chuk and Haley and Kamu are coming for me, but I knew in the back of my head that she was working with them, and so I obviously didn’t want to give her what she wanted to hear. And I was kind of wishy-washy on that because I was kind of uncertain what she was trying to do. But I trusted Dee. She told me she wanted to work with me during her HOH. I saw throughout the game that she was relying on Devens, and they were really working together. And I always knew that it was the six of them working together, and I had a feeling that it would be Drew and Barrett [Pfeiffer] too, in on it. So I tried to use that to my advantage. Maybe it backfired, I’m not sure, but honestly, I’m so grateful for this whole opportunity, and it’s probably for the best I got out then, because I think it’s about to go down in the house. And I found out Lala [LaTrice Verrett] won, and I’m so happy. I hope things turn for the better in that house, and she puts up some big dogs, because there needs to be a flip — the power needs to shift, and thank goodness Lala has the power.

Men’s Journal: Yes, it sounds like she might put up Drew, Barrett and Kamu, but she wants to backdoor Haley. That’s her plan right now, so we’ll see.

Lyric Medeiros: I’m so proud of you, Lala. I’m so proud of you, Lala, because she was getting really close with Haley this past week. She was playing the game. It was clear, getting really close to Angela. But I know Lala knows what she’s doing, and she’s very smart, and she’s so endearing, and so kind, and gracious. And so I can’t wait to see how she slays this HOH. And I’m rooting for her all the way.

Men’s Journal: I was gonna say — it seemed like Kamu and Chuk were open to bringing you into their side of the house, their alliance, but Haley was very reluctant. Why do you think that was?

Lyric Medeiros: You know what? I’m not sure. I think maybe after the pickleball competition, Haley was like, “Oh, this girl can compete — it could be bad for my game if we bring her in.” I had a really good relationship with Chuk and Kamu. I got really close with them this past week too. Love those guys so much. They voted for me in the end. I love them, and I will continue to love them outside of this game. But you know that my greatest love goes to my man Rome. I am like buzzing at the fact that I get to call him later today when I get my phone. I literally can’t contain my excitement. I love that man so much.

Men’s Journal: I was gonna say — he’s been rooting for you on the outside, so I think you guys will be good. Where do you see that relationship going?

Lyric Medeiros: Gosh, I hope he makes me his girlfriend, like, tomorrow.

Men’s Journal: Wow, OK!

Lyric Medeiros: What people don’t see on Big Brother is the amount of time you spend with each other. Rome and I — the minute we got into the house, we clicked, and it was like magnets. We truly were like magnets. We couldn’t stay away from each other. We wanted to learn more about each other. We wanted to get to know each other. When you meet someone, you know, and when you know, you know. And the first conversation we had together was talking about our parents and how long they’ve been together. He said over 30 years for his and over 28 years for mine, and how much we value family. Immediately, I knew that we had the same values.

Also, the way that Rome handled himself after Devens blew up his game — such a class act — and I was like, yeah, turn the AC on. That’s the man I want to be with. And the way that he was there for me, because when you can trust someone and feel so protected and safe with someone in that Big Brother house where everyone is out to get you and talking crap behind your back, you hold on to that person tight, and that’s what I did with Rome, and I think that’s what he did with me. I’ve been telling this a lot, but after Ashley [Trail] got renominated in the first week, I kind of had a moment where I missed my family, missed my mom, and I kind of broke down. I started crying, and Rome immediately came into the pod room, held me like a baby, and told me it was going to be okay, and that he wasn’t going to leave my side until I felt better to walk out. And in that moment, I was like, I trust this guy. And I genuinely could see myself dating this guy because he is supportive and he stands by you during your lowest moments, and that is someone I want in my life. And in that moment, I told him I was an attorney, and hopefully that showed him trust back. Anyways, I could talk about Rome all day, but love him.

Men’s Journal: I did ask him what he would think if you kinda distanced yourself from him just for the game, and he said he was OK with all of that. I know you told Julie about throwing Mallory and Melody under the bus, and said it was for the game — do you see yourself staying close to them? Any regrets?

Lyric Medeiros: Well, I heard that Melody said she wants to punch me in the face, so no hard feelings at all. I understand it’s a game. I told myself coming into this game, I definitely wanted to keep my character, and I wanted my parents to be proud, and to look back and think, “Lyric is playing a game, but she’s going to stay true to herself.” I wanted to make my parents proud because I know that this is forever, and that’s part of the reason why I apologized to Mallory after I told Chuk and Haley that Mallory would put them up. I think it was general knowledge that Mallory was coming for Chuk, Haley, and Kamu. I just confirmed it, hopefully to gain trust with Haley. Obviously, she still put me up regardless, but I didn’t want to walk away from that game not fighting for myself, not advocating for myself, and that’s exactly what I did.

Men’s Journal: It’s a game.

Lyric Medeiros: It’s a game at the end of the day, but also for my own well-being, I had to come clean to Mallory. I had to come clean to her and tell her, “Hey, I’m so sorry if I hurt you. Genuinely, I’m so sorry. We need to stick together in this game. They’re going to try and pin us against each other, but moving forward, I’m so sorry, and I’ll never ever drag your name or talk about you in conversations with Chuk, Haley, and Kamu.” Although it’s known and it’s just common knowledge that Mallory put them up, I just confirmed it, and I wouldn’t do that moving forward in the game. And I told her that, and I apologized.

Men’s Journal: I know you told Julie that you would go after Drew and Barrett. What about Haley and Kamu since they’re the ones that put you on the block? And why not the icons?

Lyric Medeiros: This is a long game. Big Brother is a long game. I understood that from the beginning, and the two people I really didn’t talk game with were Drew and Barrett. So I know that if they won an HOH, they’d put me up. However, if Dee, Devens, Chuk, Haley, or Kamu won, I know if Chuk or Kamu won, again, they wouldn’t put me up. Kamu put me up — I think as a trust exercise, maybe, I don’t know. I’ll watch back the tape and see what he was truly thinking. But I truly trusted Kamu, not only because we had the Hawaii factor, but also because we had a good relationship in the house. Kamu and I got along. We talked a lot about our personal lives together. Same with Chuk — Chuk is someone I could definitely see being best friends outside of this house. When I saw him pop up for my goodbye message, I got so sad, because he truly is someone I spent a lot of time with in that house, and he’s just a great friend. And it was strictly just friends with me and Chuk, because obviously my heart was with Rome the whole entire time.

Men’s Journal: Would you say you were using flirting as a strategy?

Lyric Medeiros: So when Kamu was HOH, I was definitely like, “Oh, I could use flirting to my strategy.” But I thought to myself, “Lyric, that’s not going to paint a good image to America if you’re doing that when Rome just told you he loved you on national television.” So I definitely dialed it back, and I told myself I want to be respectful to Rome in this game too. And Rome told me, he was like, “Do what you got to do — flirt, get those boys wrapped around your finger, make them protect you, but no handholding and no kissing.” And I said, “Deal, say less, fair enough.” But I think everything works out for a reason, and I’m just so grateful. Like the one thing I keep telling myself is, I’m so grateful for this experience, and God really put me in this position, and it was my time to go because it was my time to go, and so I take it as a blessing. I’m so grateful for this opportunity. I found someone who I love, and someone who I’m so excited to explore life with in the outside world, and that’s the biggest blessing from this game.

Men’s Journal: Who do you think is playing the best and worst game? Is there someone you’re rooting for now, and someone you want to see follow you out the door?

Lyric Medeiros: I don’t want to see anyone follow me out the door, but I do think Mallory and Melody are close because they kind of only have each other in that house. And I told them before I left, “Look, if I leave, you guys have to hold on to each other, and you have to find people to work with — people who are going to win competitions and keep you safe.” In terms of who I want to win, that’s an easy answer — Yash [Patel] all the way, team Yash. Yash, love Yash. You do not understand — he is so kind, he is so sweet, and he’s smart. Yash is very smart. He put himself in a good position where he’s good with both sides and good with everyone in the house. I’m curious to know if he has any alliances, because he’s in a really good position, and I want to see him win this whole thing.

Men’s Journal: Would you ever play Big Brother again? Did you have fun?

Lyric Medeiros: I had fun. I had so much fun. I would absolutely play Big Brother again, but just make sure Rome’s in there with me.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Related: Big Brother’s Jason De Puy Says the Tea Party Blowup With Kamu Was Personal (Exclusive)