8 Reasons Why We Love 'Bachelorette' Rachel Lindsay and Bryan Abasolo's Love Story

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Not to be a Bachelor Nation trope, but this season of The Bachelorette really did give us one of the franchise's MOST DRAMATIC FINALES EVER! As fans, we were on the edge of our seats watching Rachel Lindsay and Peter Kraus break up. Their parting was raw and riveting, and things got even more intense in a we-can't-stop-gasping-but-can't-tear-our-eyes-away-either way when the two came face-to-face for the first time in months live on stage.

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But, here's the thing: the super-dramz finale should not overshadow what seems to be one of the most real love stories the show has seen in some time. So we're here to gush and gasp (in a very different fashion) over Rachel and Bryan Abasolo, the lawyer and the doctor who won each other's hearts from the start. Here are right reasons why we love their love!


1) Bryan was all about Rachel, and never wavered

From day one in the house, Bryan's focus was on winning Rachel's heart. He never got involved in drama with the other men and didn't speak poorly about his fellow contestants. Bryan was laser-focused on using his time with Rachel to get to know her.


2) Rachel felt the love for Bryan from day one

Bryan got the first impression rose! Initial attraction and chemistry means a lot, and traditionally it's a good sign for Bachelorettes! JoJo Fletcher and Kaitlyn Bristowe are both still with their guys, Jordan Rodgers and Shawn Booth, whom they each gave the first impression roses to.


3) They were on the same page about commitment

Rachel made it clear: she didn't take the risk of going on The Bachelorette just to walk away with a boyfriend. Bryan was ready to propose; he asked Rachel's mom for her blessing. And Bryan was ready to settle down, not play -- as he told us the morning after the finale, "Come on -- I'm 37 years old!"


4) Rachel told Bryan -- and only Bryan -- "I'm in love with you"

Post-season spoiler! Rachel might've said "I love you," as she said goodbye to Peter, but Bryan revealed to ET the morning after the finale that Rachel told him "I'm in love with you" during their off-camera time in fantasy suites! "I've been strong with my last four, and I loved each of them in a different way," Rachel said. "Bryan, he's the only one that I said I was in love with to. And I really wanted to reserve that language, that feeling, for one person. And that was Bryan for me."


5) He puts her first

Bryan calls Rachel his "reina," his "queen" in Spanish! When asked by Rachel's mom during hometowns who came first, Rachel or his mom (whom he's very close with), Bryan said Rachel. When host Chris Harrison asked about wedding plans during the finale, Bryan said his fiancee wants a winter wedding, and, "Whatever she wants, she gets!"


6) She calls him her best friend

Rachel told Chris Harrison when she knew Bryan was the one: "I was defending him to my family [during hometowns], and when I was explaining why he means so much to me, I told them that he was my best friend," Rachel revealed. "I shocked myself in that moment. He is the man for me. He truly is my best friend." In July, Rachel told us her favorite quality about her (at the time) mystery fiance: "His strength. I'm a strong person, but sometimes I don't always want to be that, and he's very good at picking up the pieces when I fall."


7) They're all about communication

"Our communication is off the charts," Bryan told ET. "Throughout the three months since we've finished the show, Facetime, calls several times a day. We don't stop talking to each other. We bring up all the tough topics." Rachel agreed, saying they talk about "everything." Both Rachel and Bryan also noted how "mature" their relationship is. "We discuss everything," Rachel told us in July. "We put everything on the table and I think it's really helped us move along and hopefully we won't fall into pitfalls that other couples have because we're just so open and honest with each other."


8) Their relationship has only gotten stronger since the proposal

Many Bachelor Nation couples struggle while watching the show air, but Bryan and Rachel headed that issue off at the pass. Rachel told us in July, "He needs to know everything that's going on so he can process everything. That's just the kind of person that he is -- he watches it all. ... I have to explain things on Mondays. Mondays are our most difficult time. We watch it, I explain it, talk about it and we move on and it's been great. We don't dwell on anything." The two also explained at length just how much their relationship has grown on Instagram.

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So, what's next? The pair is deciding where to live: Dallas, Miami or Los Angeles, and figuring out how to combine their lives. They've talked kids -- Bryan wants three, Rachel four -- and they're leaning towards a winter wedding filled with both of their "big" families. Congrats to Rachel and Bryan!