It's the kind of phrase which would leave his adoring fans in disbelief. Matthew Johnson, known as "Matty J", might be the chosen man to star in The Bachelor but he admits romance has never been his strong point.
"I think initially I wouldn't consider myself a big romantic," he says. "But I think the more we progressed through the show the more I realised I actually kind of am. I think everybody does want to have that fairytale."
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"I think maybe, I know that guys, myself included, definitely struggle to talk about their emotions," he admits.
Johnson credits the women in his family for helping him bring out a softer side.
It's no wonder he has come around to the idea of romance.
After all, Johnson is now the centrepiece of Ten's elaborate dating show which provides the visual equivalent of a Mills and Boon-esque fantasy for its viewers, all in love with the idea of a bit of escapism on a weekday night.
In other words, Matty J is now Fabio without the hair and the horse. It's a role he understands all too well.
"I was obviously really excited to meet all the women [but] at the same time I felt a lot of pressure as well on my shoulders, you know, that it's not an easy task to be The Bachelor, people have a certain expectation," Johnson says.
"I was kind of hoping on that first night that I was going to live up to it."
Ten's casting agents were confident in their man. But because he is impossibly nice, well-educated, funny, handsome and self-deprecating, only a self-appointed "Agony Aunt" can get to the bottom of why on earth Matty J was still single in the first place.
He laughs when asked what happened but blames years of travel and work, with a subtle nod to the fun side of being a bachelor in his 20s.
"I think for me, timing plays a pretty huge role. When I was living in London my priorities weren't so much about finding 'the one', it was more about travelling the world and getting those experiences under my belt, then after that, career was my main focus," Johnson says. "I think now that I've moved back to Sydney, my priorities were definitely to settle down."
Johnson is, of course, already familiar to viewers after he was runner-up in The Bachelorette last year. In a piece of excruciating television, Johnson looked as though he had been sucker-punched when he was rejected by Georgia Love.
It was almost the classic scenario of the nice guy not getting the girl and Johnson admits his family advised him to be cautious about going on television again.
"I think it would have been easier for me if I didn't know what it felt like," he says. "As the weeks progressed it definitely got harder and harder when I was hoping it would get easier."
It is probably impolite to tell the winner this in advance (ahead of the show airing) but there was actually another woman Johnson was thinking of before the final rose ceremony, which was filmed earlier this year. It was his sister Kate, who is a year older than him.
"Normally in day to day life, I turn to my sister straight away, kind of like 'hey, this is the situation, what do you recommend?'," Johnson says, of the decision-making on the show. "That was the hardest part, I think … not having that luxury of having that person in your family so close."
He admits even as a teenager he "wasn't overly confident" and relied on Kate as a guide with girls. "Like if I had a crush, for example, the first person I would turn to would be my sister. How do I attempt this? What do you recommend? Or I would show her a text message and say 'Can you decipher this for me, what does it actually mean?'"
Now his own choice has been made for The Bachelor, Johnson's main role is to keep the result a secret (for now) despite the interest from fans and media.
"It is pretty surreal, even now, I'm kind of oblivious to it all. I think probably last year was the most strange because whenever an article would come out or a promo would appear on TV all my friends and family would message me and all remind me this had just come out," he says.
"But now I think I feel a bit more accustomed to it. So I think doing The Bachelorette was kind of the perfect warm-up for doing The Bachelor."
WHAT The Bachelor Australia (new season)
WHEN Ten, Wednesday, 7.30pm
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