Yahoo News 90 Day: Cleo Chafes When Christian Boils Her Autism Down to Getting Easily 'Overwhelmed'
"I literally always feel that I'm a burden because I'm autistic, especially when it comes to romance," Cleo confessed on Sunday's '90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days'
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Cleo got candid about what she needed from Christian in the latest 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days.
On Sunday’s episode, the couple went out for fish and chips when Christian said he noticed Cleo was “really overwhelmed” during their latest bar outing.
The Londoner appeared to be taken aback by her partner’s observations, then noted that she felt neglected during the night when Christian began to make conversation with other women — instead of focusing on getting to know her.
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“Maybe it's just me being cliche, or I don't know, boring or whatever,” she began. “I feel like a first date with a girl, you kind of want to make it about you two, and you felt the need to make it about a larger group of girls.”
Cleo continued, “You did not really include me in the conversation rather than mentioning my name. I wouldn't go on a first date with you, and then start talking to a group of dudes and sit next to them and tell them I'm from Italy and everything when I'm literally there to get to know you.”
Though Christian denied any insinuations he'd been flirting, he acknowledged how the incident may have hurt Cleo's feelings or given her the impression of a “cold shoulder.”
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Cleo admitted that she already had “some worries” about how Christian would “deal” with her trans identity and how “being on the [autism] spectrum affects our relationship."
She continued, “And I fear that if I let him know that I wasn't 100% comfortable in that place it could turn him off."
Cleo then reassured Christian that she “did have a good time” while out, but didn’t like the compact “space” and how it affected her sensory needs. Despite her comments, Christian said he worried the experience could put a “damper on the rest of our trip.”
“I feel like you'd have fears that everywhere that we go this is gonna be like a common occurrence or might be hesitant to go out to a place again with me,” he confessed.
Cleo explained that she wanted to be thoughtful about the way Christian felt and shared that the couple didn’t “constantly have to go places that are accommodating to my needs.”
"I want to make sure you're able to experience as much of the things that you want to,” she added.
The flare-up was symptomatic of insecurity stemming from Cleo's lived experience. “I literally always feel like I'm at fault,” she said in a confessional interview. “Like, I literally always feel that I'm a burden because I'm autistic, especially when it comes to romance. I'm sensitive. I can be very picky about certain things. I actually do have quite high support needs when it comes to certain areas of my life.”
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Christian assured Cleo that he didn’t make the trip to London to have Cleo as his “arm candy” and noted that the trip was for both of them.
“I like Christian and of course I hope that things will work out,” she said in an interview. “But I do worry whether it’s all proving to be a little too much for him.”
Christian told her, “You're not going to dampen my sparkle by just being who you are, you know, and telling me that something's uncomfortable for you. Last nightI learned something about you and, like, going forward it's definitely going to be a situation that I'm not gonna forget. It's trial and error.”
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90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on TLC.
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