Austen Kroll had an ah-ha moment on this week’s episode of Southern Charm about his friendships with Shep Rose and Craig Conover — resulting in him distancing himself from both of them.
“Austen, keep running your mouth and Shep is going to say something that is going to ruin your life,” Craig, 36, threatened during the Wednesday, December 10, episode of the Bravo series after getting into a fight with Austen, 38, one episode prior.
Craig claimed that he knew Austen was “not happy” because of what Shep allegedly knew about him and was choosing to keep it a secret.
After claiming that he didn’t know what Craig was saying, Shep, 45, told pals Venita Aspen and Madison LeCroy that the drama was linked to something he was told in New York City.
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“Two f***ing 25-year-old girls in New York came up to me in, like, the west village and [were] like, ‘Your friend Austen blah blah blah,’” Shep recalled at the group’s literary-themed party. “I was like, ‘I don’t want to know. I don’t care. Leave me the f*** alone.’”
Shep hinted that the women claimed Austen had cheated on his then-girlfriend, Audrey Pratt, but said it was “totally unsubstantiated” and he didn’t see anything to prove Austen was unfaithful.
Shep later told Austen directly that “two moron girls” told him their friend was “talking” to Austen. He then asked Craig whether he should tell Austen and “interrupt his peace,” and Craig advised him to keep it quiet.
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“Come the f*** on. There is absolutely no truth to the rumor that I have cheated on my girlfriend,” Austen said during a confessional. “Which is why it upsets me so much that my two friends can so callously spread just bulls***.”
Austen proceeded to call out Shep at the party for not coming to him first and stirring the pot alongside Craig when he was supposed to be one of his closest friends.
“Shep will ruin your life because there’s conjecture that I talked to some f***ing girl in New York?” Austen clapped back at Shep, referring to Craig’s previous threat against him. “Dude, I talk to girls at the bar and f***ing Audrey knows. She tells me that she talks to guys at the bar.”
A frustrated Austen continued to yell at Shep, asking, “So the only way that I can have peace is if I’m single and just chasing p***y every day like you and f***ing Craig now? Why even come around you f***ing a***holes? Why even tell you guys anything?”
As the episode continued, Austen confided in his ex-girlfriend Madison, 35, and pal Rodrigo Reyes about how “saddened” he was by Shep and Craig’s actions. He also decided to screen Shep’s calls and avoid him entirely after their blow out.
“You’re shocked they threw you under the bus? It’s kinda a pattern at this point,” Madison told Austen. “Anytime I feel like you’re in a relationship and these two idiots are single they’ll try to sabotage it or take it down no matter what.”
She proceeded to remind the audience that when she dated Austen on and off from 2018 to 2020, his friends were completely against them.
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“Listen, Craig and Shep broke Austen and I up. And now because they’re miserable they’re going to take Austen down,” Madison claimed.
Austen noted that Audrey didn’t think for a second he had cheated, instead she told him it “sucked” that Shep and Craig were the ones stoking the fire. (Austen confirmed to Us Weekly in November that he and Audrey had broken up earlier that year after dating more than one year.)
“I thought that they were my real friends,” Austen confessed. Madison chimed in saying, “That might be your first mistake.”
Austen thought about it for a minute, before admitting, “The other night just absolutely proved that to me, like, woah, both of those dudes are just not my friends.”
Southern Charm airs on Bravo Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
