Does Aaliyah leave 'Love Is Blind' season 5 early? Here's what she tells us

Does Aaliyah leave Love Is Blind season 5 early, or does she decide to put the drama aside? Believe it or not, things can get very intense in the pods, despite the fact that singles are interacting blindly. How much is too much? Some contestants, like Aaliyah, are forced to make a decision. 

In Love Is Blind season 5, which premieres on Netflix on Friday, September 22, we meet a new cast of hopeful romantics from the Houston area and witness romance blossoming. What we also encounter are plenty of friendship developments, particularly in the women's quarters. Aaliyah and Lydia become inseparable, but did that connection negatively impact Aaliyah's love with Uche? Well...

*Warning: spoilers for season 5 episodes 1-4 ahead*

Does Aaliyah leave 'Love Is Blind' season 5 early?

Aaliyah and Uche hit it off from the get-go because of their shared love of poetry and desire to dig deep in to each other's feelings. Despite a hiccup along the way about cheating and trust issues, the two decide to give forever a shot. But on the day that Uche ventured to the pods to propose, he learned that Aaliyah left the experiment. 

Despite the love she had for Uche, she tells My Imperfect Life that the situation felt off—for one particular reason. 

"To be honest, it was just a gut feeling," she says. "It was just an intuition moment for me. I felt like I was making the best decision for myself and everyone involved at the time."

What caused Aaliyah to make her decision?

Despite a few ups and downs along the way, Aaliyah and Uche proved to be a solid connection...until her best friend, Lydia, dropped a bombshell. It wasn't uncommon for Aaliyah and Lydia to share "I love you's" and Aaliyah even confessed that she believed Lydia would be a wonderful auntie to her kids someday. Plus they comforted one another throughout their dating trials and tribulations. Even if love wasn't in the cards, these two had each other. 

However, things took a very confusing turn when Aaliyah learned that Uche was Lydia's ex—a secret she had been keeping the entire time Aaliyah was dating him and confiding in her friend about him. Were there lingering feelings? Could this odd dynamic work out in the future? Would everyone be able to come together and eventually laugh about it?

While in the women's living quarters, Aaliyah felt as though she was receiving unsolicited info about Uche from Lydia—things she wanted to learn for herself. When she jokingly told Lydia that she could have Uche back if they didn't work out, a verbal confrontation erupted, one we don't see play out on screen. The dynamic and the tension became too much. 

Though things ended on dramatic terms, Aaliyah tells us she has no regrets. 

"I think we both know that we have a mutual respect for one another," she tells My Imperfect Life. "I think we both want each other to be happy and in a good place."

But when it comes to love, fellow contestant Milton (Lydia's other half) puts it well—for all participants: 

"Love, you know, like anything, requires work. It requires commitment," he tells My Imperfect Life. "I often think of it like getting through undergrad: there are some good semesters, and there are some tough semesters. You may not be on the Dean's List every semester, and that's OK. You know, sometimes you have to do something to boost that GPA."

We'll wait to see what kind of a semester it is for Uche and Aaliyah. 

Love Is Blind season 5 premieres on Netflix on Friday, September 22 with episodes 1-4. The show drops episodes weekly on Fridays until October 13.