Big Brother’s house is open once more! Every week, Parade.com’s Mike Bloom will be bringing you interviews with houseguests as they get evicted from the game.

Preschool aide Nicole Anthony wanted to treat the Big Brother house like a classroom, assessing and adapting weekly. Her skills allowed her to do just that, going from a precarious position locked in the basement up to the penthouse of power. Unfortunately, she faced an uphill battle against a showmance for a spot in the finals. And after losing the final HoH competition, her bell had finally rung. But when her report card came in, she received extra credit in the form of this season’s America’s Favorite Houseguest prize.

Nicole started the game firmly on the outside of the “Gr8ful” alliance, losing allies left and right. Though Camp Comeback kept her friends in the house, she began to feel more alone. This hit a fever pitch when she tried to tell Nick Maccarone and Bella Wang that the rest of their alliance were coming after them. When the rest of “Unde9iable” denied the claim, they turned their fury onto Nicole, reducing her to tears with personal remarks. This caused Nick to backdoor her for eviction, though the rest of the group had different plans, blindsiding both him and Nicole in keeping her over Cliff Hogg. Though this would be the last time Nicole would touch the block until finale night, she approached the immediate game with a sense of caution.

Related: Big Brother 21: Jackson Michie’s Win Brings Confetti and Controversy

As the weeks progressed, and the “Six Shooters” split, Nicole would get brought into various alliances courtesy of her relationship with Cliff. The most significant was a deal made with him, Jackson Michie and Holly Allen to go to the final four. All the while, her social game continued to impress. She was even able to reconnect with Nick by the time his eviction came. After winning her first competition on Day 79, she chose to honor her deal and break up the house’s tightest pair in Tommy Bracco and Christie Murphy. Her loyalty wavered, though, when she and Cliff were tempted to evict Holly and separate another duo. After days of discussion, Cliff’s agenda, combined with a lie planted by Jackson convinced Nicole to stick with the plan and evict Tommy. But the damage had still been done, and though Nicole won HoH the very next round, Jackson took a shot at Cliff by winning the Veto and voting him out. Though one of the original “bottom-feeders” was able to be a top dog, she was an underdog going into the final three. After losing both parts of the final HoH competition, it paved the way for the showmance to sit in the final two together, making Nicole the final jury member. Though she lost out on the top prize, her metamorphosis resonated with fans, buffering the butterfly with the title of America’s Favorite Houseguest.

Now out of the house, Nicole talks with Parade.com about her reactions to finding out about her new title, what led her to cast her jury vote for Holly, working her way out of several difficult situations, and more.

I can’t imagine what last night was like for you. You face a disappointment in becoming the last member of the jury, then get a big surprise in the form of the fan-favorite prize.

It was a bitter pill going to Final Three with a showmance and knowing my goose was cooked. But America’s FAvorite made it all worth it. It’s better than anything I could have ever wished for or dreamed of. I sat in my bed last night overcome with emotion. I’m in that house, and I’m just Nicole from Long Island, doing my thing. I’m a girl living in a house doing my best. I don’t think of myself as anything more than that. To come out and hear so many people support me and love me is something I can’t even fathom. I’m so thankful that people care about me. It’s amazing.

What was the reasoning behind your vote for Holly in the end?

For the majority of the season, I said, “Wow, if Michie makes it to the end, I’m voting for him.” He is a competition beast and had a tremendous social game in manipulating but keeping people close to him. It was very well done. But in the last week, I spoke a lot with Holly in the backyard. I’ll admit Holly was someone I discredited, someone I viewed as being with and behind Michie. The more I spoke to her about her strategy to lay low in the beginning and take out people like Sam and Nick. She’s good at mental comps. In the final HoH, she was so close to Michie in Part 1, and she blew me out of the water in Part 2. And I’m supposed to be really good at those! It made me look at her in a new light, that she has a strategy very close to my own. If I wanted to be respected on a game level, she deserved that respect as well. I assumed the jury would vote for Michie. But I wanted my vote to be a “hoo-rah!” for people who are underestimated.

You just spoke about the past week with Holly and Jackson. Was there anything you could have done to try to break up the showmance and get to the end?

I definitely believe if Holly had won, there would have been more consideration. She’s very smart and considered her options against me. But I think their showmance was unbreakable; they’ve been together since the beginning of the season. That’s like having Cliff and me at the end in terms of season-long duos. You’re going to pick your person. In retrospect, I look at the decision between Tommy and Holly, and I go back and forth in my head. The ultimate decision came down to who I thought I could beat, and I thought mental comps were coming. I thought Holly was worse at those than Tommy, but that was her strategy. She really got me; she played a lot dumber than she is. She’s a freaking genius!

In the beginning, you lost your closest allies early on and watched a majority form without you. How much did you have to adjust your gameplay because of that?

In the beginning, I was very much playing as Nicole the person. It didn’t bother me that people were in Camp Comeback and on the block about to be evicted. My thing was that if you’re my person, you’re my person. I don’t care if you’re going to aid my game or not. I enjoyed spending time with them and talking game with them, despite the fact that they weren’t in the game. The hardest day was the actual Camp Comeback competition when I saw three of my friends walk out. Granted, one of my good friends stayed. But I had to watch four friends battle it out. Moving forward from that was very scary because I knew my people were gone and now I need to navigate all these couples and where I would fall in this mixture of people.

Right before Camp Comeback, where you get put on blast for trying to play the middle of Gr8ful. Were you hesitant to make moves after getting caught doing that?

I knew there was a big group of eight, and I tried to chip away at it. I tried to gain everyone’s trust while also telling them about each other. So when they were fighting in that room, I was like, “Yes, it’s happening!” But then they turned on me and I was like, “Oh crap.” (Laughs.) Moving forward from that, I doubled down on my strategy of being nice to everyone. But to quote Nick, I made sure to “say less.” I said to myself, “Nicole, you have the right ideas socially. But even if it is the truth, you need to stop telling people stuff. Just validate them and let them talk to you. You don’t need to answer.” It affected my social game, but it wouldn’t have affected the moves I made. If I won HoH, I still would have put up big fish and the couples. I’m not one to take out the little guys.

That was one example of you being able to showcase great damage control, which got out you out of several situations in the house. How were you able to do that?

The Nicole of four or five years ago would have played very differently. The past few years, my mom taught me to forgive and move forward. That’s what I did. As much as people may have burned me, on a personal level, it was very easy for me to say, “They’re a person too. People can be angry and ignorant.” I wanted to forgive and move forward because it wasn’t worth it from a mental standpoint. But from a game level, I couldn’t be the girl walking around ignoring people. I had to be the one to say, “Okay, I’m all better now. Let’s move forward!”

Related: Big Brother 21: Holly Allen Goes from Wine to a Near Win

Before you started winning competitions, there was a perception you of being puppets to people like Nick and Cliff. What did you think about that reputation?

I always played my own game. I may not have won HoHs or Vetoes until the end. But I always did what was best for Nicole in my social interactions and votes. Whatever vote I cast, that was for my game. It was very difficult to hear people say, “Oh, you’re playing Nick’s game.” When it came to things like keeping Cliff, that was less about playing Nick’s game and more about helping my own game. It was frustrating to hear that. But I figured, “If they think that, let it be. It doesn’t bother me much. Because if you go after someone, you’ll go after Nick before me.

Back during the double eviction, you and Cliff held power to go with Jackson and Holly or Tommy and Christie. What prompted you to stick to your final four deal in that moment?

Cliff and I kept debating which way to go. Michie and Holly were always kind of there. Tommy and Christie were never there and never gave us the time of day. They said they wanted to work with us, but nothing came of it. Michie and Holly at least gave us the time of day. They were in that HoH room for four weeks straight and didn’t evict us. Granted they got out bigger targets and people they were concerned about. But they could have easily gotten rid of Cliff. It was our way of paying them back and showing them that we would keep them safe. I’ll also admit that moving forward, I thought there would be a lot more mental comps, memory challenges, and listing the days. I thought Christie and Tommy were going to be far better at those things than Michie and Holly. I thought I would be the puzzle gal and the numbers gal, so I took it as an opportunity to take out my competition.

You and Cliff were together since the early days of the “Fellowship of the Zing.” It lasts the entire game, to the point where he’s getting Holly to throw the HoH to you, then ends up getting evicted. What did you make of your relationship?

He and I were always working together, always good buds. Then the end started getting closer and closer in sight. When we were deciding between Tommy and Holly, that was the first moment in the game when I wasn’t thinking, “Better you than me. I’m playing Nicole’s game.” I thought, “No, it’s not just Nicole’s game. I want Nicole and Cliff in the Final Three!” I took the best possible route to get both of us there. I did think in our four-person alliance, Michie and Holly would take Cliff to Final Three over me. But by the grace of God, I beat Cliff in that HoH. I didn’t realize until that Veto came that I needed to win it; otherwise, Cliff is not coming to the Final Three.

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You pause mid-sentence during your chat with Julie when you notice your family in the audience. You spoke throughout the game that you hoped people back home were supporting you. How much did that play a part in your actions in the house, and what’s it been like to finally reconnect with them?

Oh my gosh. It means so much. I can’t even begin to express what seeing their faces meant. The reason why I talked about them so much was that they made me who I am and they helped me play this game. Before I left, they all gave me advice. My oldest sister was like, “You got this, girl,” which was the motivation I needed. My middle sister was like, “Don’t lose your temper. Keep it in check.” That helped me so many times when there were arguments in the house. My mom was like, “You are one determined little girl.” I kept that in my head this whole time. “I can do it. I will do it. I’m determined.” As I said, my mom also taught me forgiveness and moving on and love. That helped me so much in the game. When I was frustrated and angry, I thought, “Mom’s right. There are so many bigger issues in this world. I can get through this.” It gave me the motivation to push forward.

You spoke with Julie about your transformation in the house, saying you learned to be authentic and accept yourself. How did Big Brother change your opinion about yourself?

I started the game without self-confidence. I was quirky and I embraced it. I looked around and saw very, very beautiful women and handsome men. Then I looked at myself and said, “Oh, no. I’m not like them. I’m different. I don’t act like them. I don’t tell stories like they do or dress like them.” As the season went on, I realized, “I don’t need to do things like other people. I don’t need to talk about something just because others are or dress a certain way. I’m Nicole, and that’s okay. That’s enough.” I remember I had a moment where I said, “I am Nicole, and I love Nicole.” That’s something I’ve never said to myself before. It was a big moment for me.

Want to hear what Cliff Hogg had to say about his game? See our exclusive interview here.