Kate's Big 'This Is Us' Moment May Have Wrapped Up A Painful Storyline

This Is Us has worked hard over five seasons to peel back the layers of all three Pearson children. Randall has had the bulk of it, but Kevin and Kate's stories have quietly expanded too, with Kevin especially undergoing a lot of emotional growth. It took a while to dig into Kate's story, but the turning point came in Season 4, when fans met her first boyfriend she had as a teen, Marc. The emotionally and physically abusive relationship she had with him derailed her for years. Since the relationship ended, fans have worried, will Marc return to This Is Us? Thankfully, it looks like that storyline is over for good.

Warning: Spoilers for This Is Us Season 5 follow. The last time fans saw Marc, he was thrown out by Rebecca, who was like an avenging angel where her daughter was concerned. But although that was in the middle of Season 4, the story didn't end there. Instead, the series doubled back after leaving it dormant, to the weekend in New York when Kevin tried to set their mom up with his acting teacher. Fans knew teenage Kate had not gone with the family to NYC that weekend, and now viewers knew why. That was the weekend she'd learned she was pregnant with Marc's baby.

Though fans assumed Kate would have an abortion, there was a lot of concern going in. The trailer showed her back with Marc at his apartment. Would she have second thoughts?

The good news is, she did not. Kate did want to see Marc one last time before going through with the abortion. She went over to his apartment after her initial appointment at the clinic (which had a 24-hour waiting period between the first appointment and the procedure). But she quickly confirmed that yes, she was making the right choice. His evident impatience with her, his mood swings, and his decision to pour himself a drink were enough red flags. She fled, and got the abortion the next day.

But Kate never fully processed that time in her life. After telling all of this to Toby, she decided she had to confront her ex, and she tracked down Marc after all these years.

What she found, frankly, was sad. Marc's still an hourly employee at a record store, pretending to manage a band that's going to break big. Moreover, he seemed shocked that Kate tracked him down and demanded they talk about "a six-month relationship that happened 20 years ago."

Maybe it was realizing how small and sad Marc is, or perhaps it was the dismissive attitude, but it was enough for Kate to finally shake off the demon he'd represented all these years. She told him off; he was a terrible person who'd used and abused her. Kate told him she had a beautiful husband and son, and her life was a good life he'll never know. And then she went back to the car, finally free.

No, I don't think viewers will see Marc again. Let's hope not, at least.

This Is Us continues Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.