After Everything Ending Explained: Do Hardin & Tessa End Up Together?
After Everything brings the After movie series to a close with a heartfelt ending that reveals whether Hardin and Tessa end up together.
The ending of After Everything, the final movie in the After series, answers massive questions from the franchise, like whether Hardin and Tessa end up together. This movie starts two years after Hardin and Tessa’s breakup in After Ever Happy. Hardin is drinking again and putting off writing his second novel. He spends a good amount of time partying and hooking up with women to numb his pain.
Hardin goes to a meal with his mother and biological father where they confronted him about his drinking and the book he is supposed to write. He lashes out by bringing up their relationship troubles and deceit about Hardin’s paternity. They continue to press him on what he’s doing with his life. After his biological father leaves, Hardin’s mother suggests that he take a trip to get away from his life and gain some perspective. This suggestion is the catalyst that brings about the complicated and romantic ending to the After series.
The biggest question in After Everything is if Hardin and Tessa find their way back to one another. Hardin goes to Landon and Nora’s wedding at the end of After Everything, hoping that he can get Tessa back but understanding that she’s probably in a relationship with somebody else. After the ceremony, he learned that the man Tessa has been posting photos with isn’t her boyfriend. When Hardin and Tessa are dancing together, he apologizes to her for writing his book. This moment shows Hardin’s much-needed internal growth. Rather than deflecting or becoming defensive, he takes full responsibility for his actions.
Later in the reception, Hardin gives a speech alluding to Tessa being the other half of his soul. She runs out of the room, upset, and he follows her. When he apologizes, he states that he was trying to get her attention. This is a red flag that he might not have changed as much as it seems. After all, he bribed a child to get her on the dance floor so he could talk to her, and then he used words that he knew would bother her so that he could get her attention. These are still emotional manipulative actions.
The two proceed to have sex in the bridal room. Afterward, she apologizes for her reaction to his book, clarifying that she was worried about what everyone would think. Instead of encouraging her to feel bad, he admitted once again that he didn’t handle the situation right. The fact that he continuously acknowledges his misconduct is at least a small amount of progress from past After movies.
The pair confess their feelings, agreeing that they are inevitable. Hardin kneels and proposes to Tessa, to which she says yes. After Everything then flashes forward, showing Hardin entering an apartment, where his daughter runs up to hug him. He then hugs and kisses Tessa, who is pregnant with their second child. This is a happy surprise because Tessa learns in After Ever Happy that she has cervical insufficiency, which makes it almost impossible for her to get pregnant or carry a fetus to term. Considering her devastation upon finding out her medical condition, it’s extra satisfying to see her as a parent.
At the start of After Everything, Hardin is struggling to write the second book that he promised the publishers. Only after flying to Lisbon and meeting up with Natalie did he begin writing his novel. By the time he’s ready to leave for Landon and Nora’s wedding, he’s finished writing Before. Hardin’s second book focuses on his life before meeting Tessa, including his awful betrayal of Natalie. Unlike the first time that he wrote a book, Hardin goes to Natalie with the manuscript asking her to read the book and give him permission to publish it.
The fact that he approached her with the book before even telling his publisher about its existence proves that he learned from his previous mistakes. He understands that the story isn’t just his to tell, and it will impact Natalie differently than it does him. This self-awareness and personal growth is nice to see in the final installment of the After movies. It makes him a person worthy of some forgiveness, though neither Tessa nor Natalie owe it to him.
While in Lisbon, Hardin ends up in jail after getting beaten up by Natalie’s friend Sebastian for dancing with one of the guys’ girlfriends while drunk. This leads to an important conversation in After Everything between Hardin and his biological dad, Christian. Christian helps Hardin realize that he can’t continue his past patterns of aggression, drinking, and spiraling because of his breakup with Tessa. When he admits that he’s scared of failing because the bar is so high after his relationship and book, Christian tells him to change his idea of success. This is a massive turning point for Hardin’s character, pushing him to appreciate the little things.
