The ousted houseguest took to his Instagram Story on Sunday with a positive, cryptic message for fans.
Ejected Big Brother houseguest Luke Valentine seems to be maintaining a positive outlook after getting ousted in the first week of Season 25 for violating the show's code of conduct by using a racial slur.
Luke took to his Instagram Story on Sunday, while power walking around a park without a shirt on, to share an up-beat by somewhat cryptic message, in which he notably did not appear contrite about the drama.
"Just letting you know, I'm alive, I've arrived, and you gotta keep the flames stoked," Luke said, smiling broadly while sweating profusely. "We can't burn out, no, no, no, the fires of love will continue to burn."
"So thank you for all the memes, thank you for all the support, the kind words," Luke added.
Luke was caught dropping the N-word in the Big Brother live feeds early Wednesday morning while in the middle of a conversation with Jared Fields, who is Black, Cory Wurtenberger and Hisam Goueli.
The moment was addressed and shown during Thursday's Big Brother, and given slightly more context. The hot mic picked up Luke blurting out, "I'm in the f**king cheese room, n***a," while talking with Cory, who is white.
Luke, a 30-year-old illustrator from Coral Springs, Florida, tried to laugh it off before pausing and attempting to correct his language by saying the word "dude," instead. He then continued, "Anyways, we were in the f**king cheese room."
Amid some laughter, Luke apologized twice to Jared, who was laying in bed in the room. After Cory and Hisam left the room, Luke turned to Jared and said, "He got more mad about that than you. A little slip of the tongue."
As a result of the incident, Luke was almost immediately ousted from the house. He was called into the Diary Room, never to be seen again.
Shortly after, the houseguests were called into the living room where the reigning Head of Household, Reilly Smedley, read a message from producers. "Due to violating the Big Brother code of conduct by using a racial slur, Luke has been removed from the house and will no longer be participating in the Big Brother game," Reilly read out loud as the other houseguests looked on in shock. "The game goes on and the live vote and eviction will continue as scheduled."
Jared said in a confessional interview during Thursday's show that he harbors no ill-will toward Luke.
"I've had friends like Luke in the past... I don't associate ignorance with malice," Jared said. "Whether Luke meant it in that way or not, it was rules and regulations. We were told clearly before walking into this house. I completely understand the decision. I also understand there's consequences to every action you make."
"It's hard trying to help people understand where you're coming from, especially being the only Black male in this house," he added. "With that being said, Luke, I hope for you the best and I just really do hope it was a learning situation for you."
Big Brother Season 25 continues on in the wake of Luke's controversial exit. Big Brother airs Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT and Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CBS.
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