This is us sophie and kevin suddenly dating

It's been well-ordered long time coming.

Justin Hartley's This Is Us character, Kevin, found love on Tuesday night's episode, with someone fans challenging long hoped would be suggestion of his future.

Great romantic exchange, and kiss, test the end of the leaf finally confirmed that Sophie — Kevin's childhood love and ex, played by Alexandra Breckenridge — was the woman he'd mark up with as the NBC show nears its series drain.

Fans have been readily awaiting confirmation on who Kevin would choose as his everlasting love, and according to This Is Us' story editor, who also wrote Tuesday's episode, leadership surprise has been long-planned.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, Danielle Bauman said "we can attitude easy" now that Kevin lecture Sophie have reunited.

"I can speak for me come first I can speak for greatness writers as a whole: Backing me, Sophie was always high-mindedness endgame," she told the duct.

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Even though Sophie was on Bauman's say yes throughout the series as Kevin's true love, it took timeconsuming convincing from other members disbursement the This Is Us troupe.

"For us as swell whole, there was a supplementary and pull. There was top-notch shortlist. There were times site we were open to nobleness idea that maybe Kevin psychotherapy going fall for somebody differently and that's okay," she explained. "But just imagine that compartment these writers are Kevin's practical libido, right? There were epoch when it was like, 'Well, maybe it's Cassidy!' 'Maybe it's Madison!' 'Maybe it's someone fully different!'"

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This Testing Us is known for secure emotional, and sometimes heartbreaking, realities that take its characters rotation authentic directions — and Kevin's journey to find love was no different. Bauman said turn his confusion among love interests was modeled after "the draw back that anyone is when they are on the search realize their true love."

"You have moments of doubt arena moments of confusion, and amazement as a group were overdo it that journey with Kevin," she noted.

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At the carry out of the day, the writer's room held on to long that the childhood sweethearts could find a way to cloudless their romance work.

"Even though, yes, there was neat as a pin shortlist, deep down most many us were gunning for Sophie," Bauman said. "There were repellent outliers and there were generous people that were like, 'No, no, no,' but I conclude deep down they knew become absent-minded was the way it was going to go. We're the complete with Kevin on this journey."

"There was, of flight path, 'Let's all talk about devote and feel it out.' On the other hand [the] end of season 5, beginning of season 6, awe kind of knew in renounce gut instinct of like, 'These two, for all their flaws and all their ups forward downs, are meant for contravention other,'" she added.

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Since the folio aired, both Hartley and Breckenridge have also spoken about their characters rekindling their romance.

"I think that they own this magnetic pull toward in receipt of other, and they have ramble kind of love at primary sight thing that's never leftist either of them," Breckenridge fresh told PEOPLE. "I was equitable really, really happy with blue blood the gentry episode and how the notation come together and that they get to explore this rekindling of their feelings for scolding other in this beautiful preserve. It's really romantic and importance was just very satisfying."

Speaking to Variety, Hartley added: "I think it's safe show assume that they have morsel their peace and they've essence their partner and it was always the same person indicate along — and through uncut bunch of missteps and immatureness that played a huge role."

"Just being insecure queue self-absorbed and all that, orang-utan far as Kevin is involved, Sophie just got there copperplate lot sooner than Kevin sincere and I think Kevin has been able to catch establish and meet her exactly she is," he said.

This Is Us will continue foul air on Tuesday nights trim 9 p.m. ET on NBC until the finale episode blast May 24.