Season 11 of 'Vanderpump Rules' is finally here.
Ariana Madix made sure to lay down some ground rules when it came to living with her ex. On Tuesday's season 11 premiere of Vanderpump Rules, Ariana discussed how she and Tom Sandoval managed to live in the same house after he cheated on her with Rachel Leviss last year.
"Three months ago, when Tom blew up our lives, I was not, like, prepared to be kicked out of my house and start a whole new frickin' life," Ariana said in a confessional. "So, even though we still live under the same roof, I've been able to maintain a no-contact policy."
"We communicate via his assistant, Anne," she continued, "which is great for me because I don't have to look at his stupid face, but bad for Anne, because that's literally her job."
Ariana revealed that she's texted Anne many things, including a request that Tom turn his LED lights off at night. "He says they fall under freedom of speech," Anne responded on behalf of Tom.
With Tom out of town filming season 2 of Special Forces: World's Toughest Test, Ariana welcomed her pal, Katie Maloney, over to reveal that she views her and Tom's shared home as the "last thing tying" her to her ex. According to Ariana, Tom made the "psychotic" suggestion of buying her out of her house, which Katie questioned how he had the money to do.
"I'm sorry, but then you don't have to move and I do?" Ariana questioned, before alluding to Rachel by saying, "What are you gonna bring your little pen pal over here? I don't f**king think so."
Earlier this month, Ariana sued her ex, seeking a "partition by sale" of the home they bought in 2019, signaling her desire to sell the property and split the proceeds.
At the time of filming, Ariana believed that Tom and Rachel were still together, and she had their lightning bolt messages as proof of that.
As for how the rest of the group fared in the wake of Scandoval, Scheana Shay revealed that she reached out to him following his friend, Ali's, death, which is how she found out that he blocked her phone number. She later discovered that he'd blocked her on Instagram, along with her sister, podcast, and daughter's accounts.
Then there's Tom Schwartz, who ventured out to meet James Kennedy wearing merch from him and the other Tom's bar, Schwartz & Sandy's, for the first time since the scandal. The Scandoval fallout had a major impact on business, which left Schwartz feeling "a lot of resentment" toward his business partner.
"Last year almost just broke me," Schwartz, who divorced Katie in 2022, admitted in a confessional. "I got divorced. My brother, Burt, has been having some serious health issues. We had so many bar woes. You could almost say that Sandoval was a radioactive cherry on my s**t sundae of a year."
Not only was his business affected by his pal's affair, but Schwartz also felt "like a pariah" in his friend group, especially by Ariana who blocked his phone number and social media accounts. The one-time pals reunited for the first time at James' DJ set, which was held at Schwartz and Sandoval's other business, TomTom.
"I shouldn't have to make my life smaller because Tom messed everything up, and if I can go there and make new memories, maybe it won't have power over me anymore and I'll just be able to look at it as some bar," Ariana said in a confessional, before heading to TomTom, where she largely chose to ignore her ex's best friend.
"Queen Ariana, Patron Saint of Scorned Women," Schwartz complained in a confessional. "But, like, until the ice melts with her, I have a feeling it's going to be really hard to make inroads with the rest of the girls."
As the installment came to an end, Sandoval arrived home to an empty house, setting the scene for a dramatic episode two.
When ET spoke with Sandoval earlier this month, he revealed how he's changed since his cheating scandal.
"Going through that has really helped me put in perspective things that are really important," he said. "[It] helped me grow, as far as prioritizing certain things. And [it] really just put me to the test to see what I'm made of."
He also urged fans to remember he's "not a character," but rather "a human being," adding, "I'm a real person. Just try to keep that in mind."
Season 11 of Vanderpump Rules airs Tuesdays on Bravo.
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