‘A Million Little Things’ Introduces a (Surprisingly Great) Sophie and Tyrell Romance in Its Final Hours

If someone had told me A Million Little Things was going to introduce a romantic storyline for our sweet girl Sophie Dixon (Lizzy Greene) four episodes before the series finale, I would have screamed.

Last-minute love stories written just under the wire often come across as forced, disingenuous attempts to tie up loose ends, leave characters fulfilled, and appease fans who crave happy endings. But against all odds, the mutual crush A Million Little Things introduced in its final season — and explored in Episode 9, “Father’s Day” — felt natural, safe, exciting, and long overdue.

The eventful episode, which premiered on April 5, saw the highly-anticipated return of Delilah (Stephanie Szostak); a surprise Christopher Llyod cameo; and various dad-related storylines involving Gary (James Roday Rodriguez), Rome (Romany Malco), and Eddie (David Giuntoli). But it also followed an unlikely duo — Sophie and Tyrell (Adam Swain) — on a road trip home to their families.

We learn that Tyrell went to see Sophie’s band play on his way home from college, filmed their show, stuck around for the after-party, and hitched a ride back home with Sophie. The majority of their scenes together are spent chatting and giggling in the car, joking about everything from Halloween candy and relationship dealbreakers to octane vaporizing and gas station nachos. But they also show their capacity for deep conversations by opening up about losing their dads. With each swap of the steering wheel and in between near-breathless banter they fall harder for each other, and I fall harder for them as a couple.

After stopping at a motel for the night, Sophie teases Tyrell about his Grogu boxers and he asks her if they’re a dealbreaker. She answers by kissing him, and after a passionate make-out sesh, Tyrell asks for consent before they move to the bed. The next morning, Sophie wakes up in an empty bed, but before we have time to worry, the camera shows Tyrell sitting beside her with two cups of coffee in hand. He says she looks cute when she’s sleeping, and they agree last night was fun. But before they share a kiss, Regina calls. The next time we see them, they’re outside Rome and Gina’s apartment, and Sophie is asking if they can keep what happened between them. Tyrell agrees, looking visibly disappointed. As Sophie steps into the elevator to leave, they do the thing where they each look back at each other at different moments — a sure sign of romantic potential that I, for one, hope we see fulfilled.

Some fans may feel the last-minute setup is born from convenience, proximity, and the fact that there’s really no time left to introduce Sophie to anyone else. Some may be screaming at their TV screens begging these characters to branch out from their friend group. And all of those concerns are valid, but so freaking what? We’ve watched Sophie lose her dad, learn about her mother and Eddie’s affair, deal with the whole Peter saga, navigate life without a biological parent because her mom and little sister relocated TO FRANCE, and a million other little (AND BIG) things we don’t have the time to unpack. The girl has gone through it time and time again, and it’s about time she gets a happy storyline that makes her feel safe. The same goes for Tyrell, who also had to abandon his childhood far too soon.

Though we haven’t seen much of Sophie and Tyrell together, we know them so well as individuals that their relationship already makes sense. Their physical chemistry feels as effortless as their conversations, and the writers’ decision to include callbacks to inside jokes helps establish intimacy and puts the characters’ sparkling personalities front and center. They’re able to let their guards down with each other so easily because of their mutual connections to Rome and Regina, and that deep level of trust elicits immediate comfort and respect between them. We can trust Tyrell to be careful with Sophie’s heart because he’s a good guy who cares about her, but also because he knows Rome and Regina would end him if he ever hurt her.

Do I wish the characters had more time in the series to savor a romantic relationship? Absolutely. But Sophie and Tyrell falling for each other feels like a sweet last-minute twist, unlike, say, Eddie and D getting back together — a storyline that seems to be in the works and has yet to get me onboard.

New episodes of A Million Little Things air Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET on ABC with next-day streaming on Hulu.