I Had Questions For Luke On 'Married At First Sight' — So I Asked Him Some

Let's just call a spade a spade. Luke has not come off looking great this season on Married at First Sight. He's been pretty standoffish from the jump, and it doesn't feel like there's much his new wife Kate can do to change that. And sometimes when he rebuffs her he can be downright cruel. Who can forget when she told producers the story of their first kiss — which Luke said made him feel "repulsed and dead inside." Yikes. So in an email with Romper, Luke clarified some things for me. But, to be honest, I'm still not sure if I'm ready to let him off the hook.

Let's start with the biggie. On the show, Luke has said he regrets saying "repulsed and dead inside" because it was way too harsh (ya think?). Since saying it, he has been rightfully called out by Pastor Cal and everyone on the internet. When asked to give the moment a little bit of context, Luke doesn't seem to fully understand what made him say that either. He says, "I really wish I could go back to that night and really understand the context myself a bit better, be a fly on the wall in my own conversation." Luke continues, "I'm not very good with words, as I've shown and said countless times, and what should have sounded like 'I'm not feeling it' came off with maximum harshness due to panic. I was just trying to deescalate an uncomfortable situation and went down in infamy instead."

Look, Luke says he panicked, so I'll believe he panicked. But "repulsed" is a pretty strong word no matter which way you slice it so I reserve the right to think Luke is a jerk for saying that to the woman who married him. I'm also definitely not the only person who thinks so. On one episode, fellow contestant AJ declared in a confessional that if he had been Kate he would have asked for a divorce. That all said, it hasn't been all negative for Luke. He says life after the show has been "hot and cold." He explains, "I've had the opportunity to meet some great people, both in person and online, as well as become closer with all the great friends and family that I already had in my life. However, people can be cruel, and I've been harassed, bullied, and even had people go around pretending to be me!"

Luke also doesn't think that his relationship is really all that different from all of the other couples. "Despite what the viewership may see or expect, I'd say I'm very comparable to Will and Jasmine. He's hilarious! They also have a rocky road of getting to know each other and have expectations that may not have panned out," he tells me. It's true that Will and Jasmine had some issues starting out, particularly when Jasmine insisted that as the man, Will should be paying most, if not all, of the household bills. But Luke says he doesn't compare himself to the other couples as a rule.

You would be forgiven for thinking that after all of this, Luke wishes he'd never taken part in this experiment. However, he says, "I do not regret the show one bit," explaining, "It brought a unique aspect to not only my life but to the lives of everyone that cares about me. I think it has made a better man out of me and a better person around those that I had already included in my life."

Now are Luke and Kate still married today? Luke can't say — but I definitely have a few guesses of my own.