Katie Thurston’s engagement to Blake Moynes may not have lasted long beyond The Bachelorette’s Season 17 finale, but Thurston certainly isn’t letting that keep her down. One month after announcing her split from Moynes, it appears Thurston has moved on with another of her suitors from the dating show, which she revealed on Instagram as the final installation of her “12 Days of Messy” challenge.
Katie Thurston has been honoring the album release of Taylor Swift’s Red (Taylor’s Version) by dedicating each one of Swift’s songs to one of her Bachelorette exes each day. On the twelfth day of the challenge, Thurston shared “Begin Again (Taylor’s Version)” as a homage to John Hersey, a contestant from her season of The Bachelorette who was eliminated in Week 2. The Instagram Stories post showed Thurston and Hersey hanging out in a couple of different places, as Swift’s song about starting a new relationship after heartbreak played in the background, which has fans thinking this post was as much about a romantic future as it was the past.
Along with some other videos from their recent hangs (yes, multiple), Katie Thurston posted a throwback to her initial interaction with John Hersey on The Bachelorette when Hersey came out of the limo. After they introduced themselves and Hersey was on his way inside, Thurston commented aloud that Hersey was her type, which he appeared to have heard, as he turned around and smiled at an embarrassed Thurston.
Katie Thurston has dropped hints about her current relationship status in the past couple of days, as she mentioned on Instagram that she was going to stay in the San Diego area — where John Hersey lives — a little longer than originally expected.
San Diego was supposed to be a pit stop but might plant some roots for a bit.
John Hersey may have only lasted a couple of weeks on The Bachelorette, but afterward he had only nice things to say about Katie Thurston and his experience on the dating show overall. Hersey expressed his appreciation for Thurston and all things Season 17 in a glowing Instagram post after his elimination:
Perhaps it was because of such a positive attitude that Katie Thurston stayed in touch with John Hersey all this time later. Before Season 17 of The Bachelorette even premiered, some eagle-eyed fans thought that Hersey might have been the recipient of Thurston’s final rose after she posted from the California restaurant Duke’s La Jolla, where Hersey worked, with the teasing caption “Something borrowed, something blue.”
Alas, Katie Thurston got engaged to Blake Moynes on the finale of The Bachelorette’s seventeenth season after a roller coaster of drama, awkwardness and one of the biggest fights in franchise history. Unfortunately the long-distance couple broke up after only a few months. It’s nice to see that Thurston has been able to “begin again” with someone she met through her experience on The Bachelorette.
Katie Thurston’s on-screen romantic journey may be finished, but we’re right in the middle of Michelle Young’s season of The Bachelorette. Tune in to see if Young crosses the finish line with a ring on her finger. The Bachelorette airs at 8 p.m. Tuesdays on ABC, and be sure to check out our 2021 TV Schedule to see what else is coming through the end of the year.
