"Allow me to present my wild theory that Bella actually wins The Bachelor."

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Last night, I tucked myself into bed sure of the fact I knew exactly how today would play out. 

I would wake up, go through my normal day, and at approximately 8.30pm, I would find out that Locky Gilbert had in fact chosen Irena during The Bachelor finale. 

All the clues pointed to this seemingly inevitable ending. 

Irena got the 'wifey' entrance in the very first episode - the slow motion exit from the limo, the lingering walk up the red carpet, the long introduction to Locky. 

WATCH: Our first look at The Bachelorette. Post continues below.

She had an immediate connection with Locky, and through a series of single dates, group dates, and chats at the cocktail parties, that connection seemed to deepen. 

For most of the season, she stayed away from the drama. Even though the drama was EVERYWHERE. When she was pulled into the drama during the final three weeks, it seemed like Irena was more of a target than an instigator. 

For weeks now it has made complete and utter sense that Irena would be the one standing with Locky at the end. 

But then last night I awoke at 2.30am and had a sudden realisation. 

WE ALL THINK IRENA WINS BECAUSE THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT CHANNEL TEN AND WARNER BROS WANT US TO THINK. 

Think about it. 

The most memorable TV shows/movies/books all rely on the audience buying into a narrative so they don't see what's right in front of their eyes. 

They cleverly use misdirection and red herrings to lead us down one path, while the other path is just sitting there waiting for us to notice it. 

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Bruce Willis was dead the whole time in The Sixth Sense (SPOILER ALERT FOR A MOVIE FROM 1999) but we didn't realise because we were so distracted by the ghosts of small children popping out from under beds etc, etc. 

We didn't see the ending coming in The Hours, Gone Girl and The Usual Suspects. 

We never saw Nikki Gogan getting her heart broken on Richie Strahan's season of The Bachelor because we were so distracted by Alex Nation being the 'stage five clinger'. 

And now we haven't seen the fact that Bella actually wins The Bachelor because we have been distracted by the red herrings carefully laid out for us by Channel Ten and even Bella and Locky themselves. 

Let me break it down for you. 

1. Bella's fight with Irena 

After watching Bella's fight with Irena play out over the past couple of weeks, we all decided Bella couldn't win because the winner never gets involved in drama in the house. 

Or does she? 

Perhaps Bella's fight with Irena wasn't as big a deal as it was made out on screen? Perhaps the producers deliberately made it such a big part of the storyline to put us off the scent? 

2. Bella's confrontation with Locky. 

After her fight with Irena, Locky seriously considered sending Bella home. They had an emotional conversation outside of the rose ceremony and Locky ultimately decided to keep Bella on the show. 

Then we had to sit through that painful single date where they broke a plate and glued it back together to symbolise repairing their relationship. 

Was this just a clever ploy by the producers to make us doubt Locky and Bella's connection?

3. Bella's relationship with Nathan Favro. 

Over the past few weeks, Bella has been photographed with fellow Bachelor franchise alumni Nathan Favro. 

Apparently they dated before Bella went on the show and they've since reunited. 

Usually, Bachelor contestants have it stipulated in their contract that they're not allowed to hint at being in a relationship with someone else until their exit from the show has been aired on TV. 

It's especially important that the final two do not reveal their relationship status. In fact, we've never had a contestant in the final two be this obvious about their relationship status. 

So why would Bella be allowed to so blatantly ignore the rules if she hadn't been put up to it by the producers? And isn't it a coincidence that the person she's allegedly dating is also part of the franchise? Maybe a certain someone was promised a spot in Paradise or as the next Bachelor? 

4. Bella's been very public while Irena has stayed on the down low. 

Lastly, we need to look at how differently Bella and Irena have been behaving in the outside world while the season is airing. 

Bella has been out and about being photographed by paparazzi. She's shared the fact that she's currently living with fellow contestant Bec Cvilikas. We all know who she's dating. 

Meanwhile, Irena has kept a low profile. 

While we've all been talking about Bella's private life we've just assumed this means she doesn't win but what if she has been told to drip feed us these details? 

What if Irena has been so quiet because she's nursing a broken heart? Or she's been told to stay quiet?

GUYS, THEY'RE ALL IN IT TOGETHER. 

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We've been reading the clues the wrong way this whole time and we've been completely and utterly duped by Channel Ten, Bella, Locky and even Osher himself. 

CASE BLOODY CLOSED. 

Read more on this topic: 

Locky is rejected by the winner, plus all the other The Bachelor finale gossip in one place.