"That Killed Me": Temptation Island's Kaitlin Looks Back on Season 5 After the Reunion

Temptation Island Season 5 has been one for the books, and the reunion didn’t disappoint. Especially when it came to one (former) couple.

Kaitlin and Hall made Temptation Island history as the first-ever engaged couple to join the show. They had been together for 8 years, and in a shocking twist, Hall ended the engagement — long before the finale — to follow his heart all the way to single Makayla.

RELATED: Temptation Island: Kaitlin Shares Her First Reaction to Hall's Surprise Villa Visit: "I Wasn't Worried"

Now with Temptation Island Season 5 concluded, Kaitlin spoke to USA Insider about the reunion, lessons learned, and life after the island.

What did Kaitlin think of Hall's reaction during the Season 5 reunion?

During the reunion, Hall revealed he had stopped paying on her engagement ring when they decided to come on Temptation Island. “I was scared because I didn’t know the outcome, I didn’t want to come on this show,” he said. He also shared that he'd been lying to himself for the past eight years, and Kaitlin demanded to know why he came back to her after their first break up three years into the relationship. “I was lost,” Hall answered.  Eventually, Mark and the cast held Hall’s feet to the fire to help Kaitlin get the answers she’d been waiting for.

“I wanted everyone to go after Hall and ask him the questions because I still needed answers and had questions. I just hope everyone's seeing what I'm seeing at that point,” Kaitlin told USA Insider.

Kaitlin also got to face Makayla during the second part of the reunion and things got a little awkward because, of course, Makayla jumped to Hall’s defense. Kaitlin decided not to engage and argue over her decision to take Hall back after they broke up the first time and bring him on the show.

“I’m a girl’s girl at the end of the day. I would not stoop to get into it with her. I don’t know anything about the girl, so I’m just like, you don’t know me, and I don’t know you,” Kaitlin said.

Kaitlin Only Regrets One Thing

Reflecting on the season, Kaitlin said she has basically no regrets.

“I feel like I stayed true to myself. I feel like I looked a little dumb at some points but I went in thinking, 'I’m the problem so why haven’t I set a date yet?'" Kaitlin said. "I really thought when he came to that house we were going to leave and get married, since that was the goal of the whole thing — going on the show to figure out my sh--. I started flipping out when I saw the bonfires of those two, and I only regret how I handled that."

She added that the biggest lesson she learned was that it’s OK to focus on yourself. “I spent a lot of time giving, giving, giving to this person and just inevitably focused on myself and what I want and being around my family. Just an equal balance," she explained. "It’s like how Mark said at every bonfire, 'You can have it all.'"

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Kaitlin also said that she saw the viewers' comments asking what she was doing while they were engaged and she wanted to set the record straight. “I was opening a business, why is that not OK? The timeline kills me because we just saw there’s no timeline with Makayla, and that killed me too," she said.

What is Kaitlin doing now after Temptation Island?

After the island, Kaitlin has continued to thrive in Charleston, South Carolina: “My business is doing great. I own a female gym and I’m loving it. Hall and I moved to Charleston from New York together and I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, but then I opened the business. I just feel like I found my people and community in Charleston. So, things are great.”

Catch up on Temptation Island episodes on Peacock.