After a season packed with frequent feuds and business battles, the drama will soon come to an end on "The Celebrity Apprentice" -- but don't expect Sunday night's finale to reflect the boardroom bitterness viewers saw all season long. That's because the final showdown is really a friendship face-off.
While others were busy backbiting, finalists Clay Aiken and Arsenio Hall forged a real friendship. They stopped by TODAY Thursday morning to talk about their bond.
"I'm impossible not to like," Aiken joked.
It's a sentiment that many of his former fellow contestants would protest, but on a more serious note, he added that he and Hall "have a lot in common." It just took a while for one of them to realize that.
"I learned that I'm not very trusting," Hall said. "We were literally leaving the hotel, heading back to our respective cities, and it dawned on me that he was an honest guy and we were really friends. … Every day I was waiting to find out 'Oh, Clay went into the confessional and used the N-word!' But no! … I've talked to people in the past -- Marlee Matlin told me this: 'You'll get back to L.A. and find out people you think are your friends are not your friends.' And I'm like 'Yeah!'"
Of course, in the end, at least where he and Aiken were concerned, that just wasn't the case.
While the finalists get along great, only one can win. Find out who that will be when the live season finale of the "Celebrity Apprentice" airs May 20 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.
Team Clay or Team Arsenio? Who are you rooting for in the "Celebrity Apprentice" finale? Share your thoughts on our Facebook page.
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