Season 24 · Episode 5

The Real World: Confused & Abused

Mardi Gras is in full swing as the roommates trade beads for fried chicken on one of the Tucks Parade floats. As the Tucks Parade dies down so does the feud between Preston and Ryan as they "squash their beef" and decide to play nice, but still reserve the right to hate one another with a fiery passion. At the Tucks Ball McKenzie's drunken alter ego, Mary, shows up in army fatigues and she's got a penchant for beer and 40 year-old men in plumbers uniforms. Later, Knight questions Jemmye's feelings as they cuddle next to a photo of her and her towering, basketballer boyfriend, Kodi. Jemmye begins to question her own motivations with Knight, maybe he's turning into more than just friends with benefits. "Team Knight or Team Kodi?" That is the question! The next night leads to even more confusion when Jemmye, who had been toying with the idea of going to see Kodi play basketball, sees Knight flirting with another random girl right next to her. As Knight sees it, Jemmye needs to go to Kodi's game so she can stop messing up his. On a happier romantic note, McKenzie gives Mary the night off when she meets Travis, a cute, spring-breaker who is more into talking that drinking. With Knight exploring his options, Jemmye is left with the need to go to Kodi's game, so she and Ashlee venture to Baton Rouge, where they not only run into Kodi, but twenty of his closest family members. With somewhat of a shrug off from her baller boyfriend, Jemmye is more confused that ever as the roommates go into the final Mardi Gras celebration, Fat Tuesday. At the bar, McKenzie runs into Travis and she learns that, like herself, he is a fellow blacker-outer. But while they might be a match made in foggy-memoried heaven, Travis has to return home, leaving McKenzie without a man but with a valuable lesson: if you blackout a lot, you might want to cut back on the drinking. Fresh off her encounter with Kodi, and filled to the brim with Bourbon Street's finest booze, Jemmye confides in Knight that before Kodi she was in a long-term abusive relationship. As she opens up to Knight she begins to realize that she feels a deeper connection and safety with him that she has with any other man. As for Knight, the feeling might be mutual.