by Gina Scarpa

I'll admit that reality shows get me to shed a tear or two on the regular but last night's season finale of The Bachelorette really got me. From Emily's breakup with one man to her engagement with another, the emotions that came out in this episode felt real - and that's saying a lot for a show that has a track record of 1-7 in terms of successful marriages!

 

Things start with the men meeting Emily's family in Curacao. Jef is up first and while Emily looks like she's ready for the red carpet, he shows up wearing a white t-shirt and jeans. He is forced to sit with each member of the family, each one questioning whether or not he's really ready to settle down with Emily and whether or not he's the right man for her. One of Jef's strongest qualities though is his ability to communicate and he wins them over so much that Emily's dad doesn't even want to meet Arie!

 

Arie is up next and he's so nervous that he just talks uncontrollably and gets things off to an awkward start. Once he calms down a bit, he gives the family a box that contains all the roses Emily gave him. Am I alone in thinking that was kind of an odd choice? Emily's brother pulls Arie aside at one point to tell him that he's very smooth in the way he talks (really?) and of course, wants to make sure his intentions are genuine. Arie ends up winning everybody over and now, they can't formulate an opinion as to which one Emily should choose. Well, after all, they have known each guy for about an hour. What does Emily expect them to say?

 

Jef meets up with Emily on the beach to have a talk about Ricki. He's very anxious to meet her and finds it hard to get down on one knee without having met her. Emily is understandably protective about introducing her daughter to another man but Jef is able to convince her to let him into her personal life. The pair head to her house in Curacao where Jef is able to spend some time with Ricki and play in the pool with her. It ends up being a very good decision on her part because the natural chemistry between the three is what she needed to know for sure that he's the one for her.

 

After a romantic dinner with Jef, Emily meets with Chris Harrison to inform him that she's made her choice. There's just that little problem of Arie still hanging around and waiting for his big romantic date with her. Emily was able to express herself beautifully in front of Chris but once she shows up to her date with Arie, she can't find the words to let him go.

 

When he realizes where she's going with the conversation, he's obviously shocked and pissed. You can't expect someone to understand when you say, "I love you, I just love him a little bit more." A little bit more sounds like something worth fighting for, which we'll get to during the After The Final Rose section of the night. He gives her a hug, wishes her luck, and takes off in an SUV to head home.

 

Jef visits Neil Lane to pick out a ring and then meets up with Emily to find out if he's the one. Once she lets him know that he is, he tells her that he's not just giving her empty words and that he plans on this lasting forever. When he finally pops the question, she stares at him for a good ten seconds before finally saying yes. I think she gave everyone a heart attack with that! Thankfully, Peter Cetera's "Glory of Love" dried my tears and made me burst out laughing. Seriously, was there no song from THIS decade that was appropriate? Not Train's "Marry Me" or Bruno Mars's "Marry You"... anything???

 

At the live After The Final Rose recap, we find out that a heartbroken Arie flew to Charlotte after filming wrapped to leave his journal on her doorstep for her to read. She never did and returned it to him in front of millions of people.  One thing Emily learned about herself through this process is that she needs to be more direct bu it seemed she was still struggling with that.  She wants so much to be liked that she can't tell someone the tough words they need to hear in order to have closure.

 

When Jef comes out, it's clear how happy these two are and how right they are for each other.  He plans on moving to Charlotte and they'll live separately until they get married.  She's hoping for a spring wedding but they haven't made any solid plans yet.  Next up for these two is a humanitarian trip to Africa with his charity, People Water.  We'll be rooting for them and hoping for the best!  

 

 

(Image courtesy of ABC)

 

 

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