Opening up!

Bachelor Nation fans are getting to know Thomas N. on Jenn Tran’s season of “The Bachelorette.”

After meeting him during this week’s season premiere, Thomas N. stopped by the “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast for a candid conversation with co-hosts Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt.

Joe asked Thomas N. how he ended up on the show and what led him to applying for “The Bachelorette.”

Thomas N. got candid, saying, “Two years ago, I went through a pretty bad breakup. I took a year to work on myself and really get my feet under me. I had just bought a house, so I also wanted to get my life in order. I wanted to get married and she didn’t. That was the hardest part. I was there and she wasn’t there yet. That was hard for both of us. I took that time to do my own thing after that.”

Then, Thomas N. shared that his 21-year-old sister Lily came to town to stay with him and knew he needed to start dating again.

He said, “My sister was staying with me that summer and she wanted to get me back out there and wanted to submit me for ‘The Bachelorette.’ So one night we popped open a bottle of rosé and started working on it. That was last summer, so shout-out to my little sister Lily. I applied in June of 2023 and I got called in February of 2024.”

Thomas N. shared what he expected from the show, saying, “I did watch Joey’s season, but I came into it open-minded. Everyone kept telling me that what you think will happen won’t happen, so that’s the idea that I came into the house feeling. I was just open-minded coming into the show.”

He also revealed that he has a friendship with Bachelor Nation alumni Robby Hayes and was able to get some words of wisdom from Robby before filming.

Thomas N. shared, “I felt like I had a little bit of a leg up. My brother swam with Robby Hayes from JoJo’s season of ‘The Bachelorette.’ They went to college together and I swam with Robby’s younger brothers. When this came up, I called Robby and asked what I could expect. He was like, ‘Have no expectations. Don’t go into it thinking you will know what to do because you won’t.’ That was probably the most useful bit of advice.”

Check out more of Thomas N.’s conversation with Joe and Serena on the full episode of “Bachelor Happy Hour” below.