It may have taken decades, but the timing was finally right.
The mystery of what happened the night before the wedding was finally solved on This Is Us Season 6 Episode 14, which also unveiled the mystery woman at the heart of it all.
For longtime This Is Us fans, it likely wasn’t a surprise that the episode was all about Sophie (Alexandra Breckenridge).
It was always Sophie, and we all knew it. But the timing was consistently off between her and Kevin.
It would be easy to just push the blame on Kevin for being immature and confused, but the truth is, Sophie wasn’t the best version of herself either.
But even though all roads led back to Sophie, the writers kept us on the edge of our seats throughout the entire episode.
Most audiences wanted this outcome — and how could you not after seeing the insane chemistry between Sophie and Kevin? It radiated off the screen — but it wasn’t entirely certain that Sophie would be the last one standing.
There were plenty of detours along the way, as there are naturally in life, including Arielle (Katie Lowes), the wedding singer, and Cassidy (Jennifer Morrison). And while Kevin had a connection with both those ladies, they weren’t his person.
Arielle wasn’t even really a thing. She could have been, but it would be yet another fling in Kevin’s pocket. Instead, the writers used that chemistry to craft a perfect moment in which she captured the essence of Kevin and Sophie’s longing for each other via a poem on a napkin.
And Cassidy, well, that relationship idea has been tossed around several times, mostly coming from a conflicted Kevin, but she’s shot it down every single time.
Sparks may have flown between them once before, but Cassidy knew it wasn’t right. Deep down inside, Kevin knew it too.
They are just best friends, and there was no sense in trying to make anything more out of it.
Kevin’s heart always belonged to Sophie — he carried her with him always, which is why so many of his relationships were always doomed.
It was love at first sight as he was drawn to her from the moment she stepped foot into his classroom.
Kevin didn’t even seem interested in pursuing Sophie when he realized she would be at the wedding. His eyes scanned the room for her, sure, and the world stopped spinning the moment she walked in, but he didn’t try anything because he respected that she was married.
When her luggage was lost, he offered to drive her into town simply out of the kindness of his heart.
But it was then that it was very apparent that the two of them were like magnets being drawn to each other. The pull was strong and irresistible. There were so many longing gazes that it was hard to shake.
And everything turned on its axis when Sophie revealed that she was divorced.
It all made sense, however, including the desire to be around him and wonder “what if” they just gave into this moment.
Sophie was pretty much sold when she saw Kevin with his children — his pride and joy in life.
When they stared at each other across the fire pit, they knew each other so well that they could communicate without words.
In fact, I loved the whole unspoken nature of the scene where he follows her to the elevator and they make their way to his room.
Of course, it’s also understandable that a comment about what once was stopped Sophie in her tracks.
Throughout the day, she spent all this time re-discovering Kevin Pearson. She’s know him her whole life, but she was just finding out all of these new things about him. It was one of the first times she saw him as a father, as a son with an ailing mother, and as a man who is passionate about vets and his non-for-profit business.
It was a new look on him and the realization that he finally evolved into the man she always believed he could be.
So, naturally, talking about the past threw her off course and into aa world of regret as she feared that by reconnecting, they would go backwards and undo all the progress they made individually.
It’s an understandable fear, especially as Sophie has given Kevin plenty of chances before and each time, her life has imploded.
She was being cautious with her heart, and we all know why.
And Kevin, well, he simply didn’t want to blow it again. His whole life, he’s always been the one to act impulsively and mess things up when they were going well.
I absolutely loved his talk with Randall because man, if there’s anyone that’s fit to give a pep talk, it’s Randall.
At first, it wasn’t completely obvious as to where he was going with the whole Super Bowl metaphor, but by the end, I couldn’t help but think that he was brilliant.
There’s only one thing the Pearson family loves more than football, and that’s true love.
Randall was right when he said that the world was insane — and through this noise, this insanity, and all the tens of thousands of people around, Sophie and Kevin still found their way back to each other.
That’s all you need to know.
Randall’s pep talk was the courage that Kevin needed, while Rebecca’s heart-to-heart was what Sophie needed.
Rebecca’s declining mental state has been hard on the family — and it’s been hard to watch as a fan — but in this moment, the fact that she was stuck in the past actually lent itself to the situation.
When she spoke with Sophie, she thought that Kevin was still 20-years-old. She called him an idiot, but assured Sophie that when he finally grew up, he would be really great.
What Rebecca didn’t know is that all that time — those 20 years — had already passed, and the advice she was giving a teen Sophie was very applicable to the present day.
Kevin was great, and he finally deserved the second (third? fourth? fifth?) chance.
I’m really happy that Sophie cut him off before he could continue in his “in lieu of” speech because the one she delivered was so much better.
As Kevin and Sophie took the plunge and made it official, the entire Pearson clan hovered around the cheer them on.
True love, in its purest form, exists — and it’s Kevin and Sophie. It took them 45 years to get it right, but you can’t say they never stopped trying to find their way back to each other and become endgame!
And for those of you who think Sophie should’ve moved on and left Kevin in her past, well, she tried, and it never worked. The hold he had on her was too strong. Also, we absolutely do not need that kind of negativity here, so just let the Kevin and Sophie shippers relish in this moment.
There are four more episodes until the series finale. Are you ready?
Next up is Miguel’s story. It may have taken six seasons, but that man is finally getting his moment in the spotlight!
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