Katie Thurston Reignites Flame With John Hersey Following Recent Split

The 27-year-old John Hersey appeared on "The Bachelorette" for about two weeks. Though he had a brief stint with the show, there was no love lost between him and Katie Thurston.

"Taking a second to appreciate the stillness of such a special moment with this strong, goofy, and genuine human being," Hersey raved on Instagram alongside a photo of his limo arrival while on the show.

The following week after he got evicted, he poked fun at his short-lived turn in "Bachelor Nation." He wrote in a separate Instagram post, "Thank god there is photo evidence. Otherwise, I might have convinced myself I was dreaming."

Although he might not have gotten the final rise from Thurston, she saw something special in Hersey from the jump. "Yeah, that's my type. I think that's my type," she joked after their first meeting during the June premiere. "Did he hear me? Play it cool."

Although her season ended in August 2021, it ended with Blake Moynes popping the question. They were engaged until a month ago, when they revealed their split.

Nearly a month later, Thurston announced she's dating Hersey, a different contestant from her season. She shared this by doing a series of Instagram stories she called "12 Days of Messy," where she matched men from her season with a song from Taylor's version of "Red." Hersey, aptly, got the song "Begin Again."

The relationship news came not long after the former Bachelor contestant addressed the rumors about her status with John Hersey. "Y'all getting wild in my DMs," she teased in an Instagram Story after she shared a throwback video from "the first time I saw John since filming" ended. The video upload featured individual snapshot photos of the BFFs, one of which revealed Thurston shielding her face with playing cards.

A few days later, she posted a photo of a bouquet sent from a friend with a note which read, "These are not romantic flowers. These are happy flowers. Because I want you to be happy," which many were sure was from Hersey. Thurston also shared a picture of Hersey's dog a few days after her breakup with Moynes. "Dexter is forcing me out of the house this morning," she captioned the October snap.

Hersey has made many appearances on the Washington native's social media, from dinners in San Diego to a Freeform event that celebrated 31 Nights of Halloween. Before she confirmed her new romance, Thurston wiped all traces of Moynes from her Instagram feed.

Three months after Moynes proposed to Thurston in the 17th season of "The Bachelorette," the pair recently shared that they were going their separate ways "with mutual love and respect."

Per an insider, their split wasn't done in bad faith. "They just couldn't make the long-distance relationship work," the source explained. "Katie missed Blake once he left, and they would get into little arguments, but at the end of the day, Katie wished he would be with her more."

Earlier in October, the reality star disclosed to her Instagram followers about feeling "lonely" while her then-fiancé worked on a wildlife range in Africa. Per the insider, Thurston is "super supportive of his work," but the distance between them "was too difficult for her to deal with."

Moynes' dedication to his career was one of the reasons Thurston fell in love with him during their time together on "The Bachelorette." "They tried," the source told Us Magazine, noting that they recently split. "She didn't want to put on a facade if they truly weren't on the best terms."

On November 23, Us Weekly confirmed that Katie had reignited her romance with John Hersey. "The news blindsided blake," an insider told the outlet. Us Weekly also observed that Moynes unfollowed Thurston on Instagram after she announced her relationship status with Hersey.

Culled from ET Online, Moynes also spoke to former "Bachelor" stars Mike Johnson and Dr. Bryan Abasolo on the "Talking It Out" podcast. "I was shocked. I thought that she might at least tell me on the side, just because we have had very cordial, easy conversations that we have had through text. Why not reach out to me and tell me that at least to give me a heads up?" He continued, "I don't think there was any physical cheating there, but it is emotional for it to transition as quickly as it did."

Throughout the show's seventh season, Amabile (originally from Becca Kufrin's season) and Pitt (from Matt James' season) proved to be a solid and formidable couple.

Although Amabile's "Paradise" ex Kendall Long appeared at the proposal, nothing could cause a dent in their relationship.

They left the show engaged, and they are still together now. Per an appearance on "Bachelor Happy Hour," Amabile and Pitt are figuring out their permanent home, whether it's shuttling between Chicago and Toronto or moving permanently to New York City.

Other couples from the show include Kenny Braasch and Mari Pepin, Riley Christian and Maurissa Gunn, and Noah Erb and Abigail Heringer.