Bridgerton Season 3 finally brings us the heart-melting romance between Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgerton. Unlike the previous seasons’ enemies-to-lovers couples, these two transform their childhood friendship into a beautiful romance. Their long-awaited happily ever after feels like a romantic fairytale, but it also offers some great lessons on how the strongest loves can blossom from the sturdiest friendships.

A close friendship can become a strong foundation for romance.

Penelope and Colin’s friendship is the real secret to their fairytale romance. They’ve spent years getting to know each other’s quirks and building trust. This deep understanding and genuine connection give their love a solid foundation to build on. Their long-standing bond shows that being friends first can make a romance even more special and lasting.

Mutual support can strengthen the bond between romantic partners.

Pen always hypes Colin up, supporting whatever big ambitions he’s chasing. And on the flip side, Colin has her back 100% as she navigates the insecurities and craziness that come with hiding her secret identity. That kind of mutual ride-or-die energy strengthens the bond between them. And when you think about it, that kind of deep, solid support could be the key ingredient for a romance to go the distance.

Open communication can help cut through tension and strengthen a romance.

Any good, lasting relationship is built on being able to really talk to each other — the good, the bad, and the ugly. That’s the great thing about Penelope and Colin’s friendship — there’s already such an easy openness there. No need for them to ever walk on eggshells. And they can just lay it all out — quirks and all —knowing the other person truly sees them. With that level of honest communication already ingrained from their years as friends, you can imagine how solid the foundation is for them as a couple. That’s the kind of real, vulnerable talk that breathes life into a romance for the long haul.

Having shared interests gives lovers loads to discuss.

Penelope and Colin are childhood buds. And through years of friendship, they’ve discovered and bonded over their mutual love for good writing and literature. Already having that foundation of mutual hobbies and activities they’re passionate about gives them a head start for romance. It gives them all sorts of built-in things to experience and connect over as a couple right off the bat. Having common passions that you can enthusiastically discuss creates a fun, engaging world you can geek out in together.

Patience and understanding can help you weather anything romantically.

Because they’ve been buddies forever, Penelope and Colin have developed patience and understanding that should help them weather anything romantically. Despite receiving no reciprocation, Pen has been pretty patient with her childhood crush. And even after reading Colin’s juicy journal, she seemed pretty understanding of his trysts.

Trust and loyalty make navigating romance easier.

When you’ve gone through the trenches with someone as just friends, your trust and loyalty can become the glue that really holds your romance together. Pen and Colin had each other’s backs through their years of friendship. So when things finally turned intimate during that oh-so-scandalous carriage ride, Penelope trusted Colin completely.

Emotional intimacy can make a romance feel more meaningful and sincere.

For years before anything romantic ever went down, Pen and Colin had cultivated this crazy deep emotional bond and intimacy, just from being each other’s trusted confidants. They knew everything about each other. So stepping into a relationship together, they already had that raw vulnerability and emotional closeness on lock. That’s the real key — letting an intensely intimate friendship be the foundation before catching feelings. With that emotional intimacy already cemented, their love isn’t just physical, but soul-deep.

When true friends accept each other for who they are, they can foster a healthy and authentic romance.

Pen and Colin can fully be themselves around each other after being friends for so long. No fronts, no games — just raw, unfiltered authenticity from knowing and accepting every part of each other, flaws and all. Once the romance kicked in, they already had this foundation of wholehearted acceptance in place. Accepting and embracing someone’s real self gives love an authenticity that can help it flourish.

Friends who grow together create a dynamic and evolving relationship.

Pen and Colin have always encouraged each other to chase their wildest ambitions. Penelope with her writing, and Colin with his travels and adventures. They witnessed each other’s glow-ups over the years and supported their individual evolutions. But the two also grew together as a unit — their friendship deepening as they worked side-by-side to help Penelope find a husband. With that foundation of uplifting growth, their love wasn’t just a fiery fling, but a partnership nurturing them both to thrive.

Unconditional love found in friendship can turn into a powerful romantic love.

Pen and Colin’s bond goes way deeper than just your usual bestie vibes. Penelope carried a deep, unconditional love for him for years — even when he was oblivious and it was unrequited. She still loved him, despite learning of his romantic escapades. And he still confessed his love for her, despite knowing how the ton would criticize him for choosing her. The two let their unconditional, soulmate-level friendship ignite the spark before the fire of romance. And with that foundation, their love could withstand any storm and stand the test of time.