Sumith Prasad
Castille Landon’s romantic movie ‘After Everything’ introduces Natalie, an unrevealed part of Hardin Scott’s life before he met Tessa Young. Hardin and Natalie’s paths cross once again when the former leaves for the Portuguese capital of Lisbon to separate himself from the pain caused by his and Tessa’s breakup. Natalie, despite the unfavorable way they parted in the past, becomes a good friend to Hardin and helps him move on from his suffering. The time with Natalie immensely helps Hardin to become mature and provides him an opportunity to correct a mistake he had made in the past! SPOILERS AHEAD.
Hardin’s Betrayal of Natalie’s Trust
Hardin first met Natalie at an auto repair center run by the father of one of his friends. At the time, Hardin was playing cards with two friends. When Natalie left the center, one of the friends said that Hardin and the third friend couldn’t “get” her. Hardin seduced Natalie and ended up sharing intimacy with her to prove his friend wrong. Right before having sex, Hardin asked her whether he could record it to watch and think about her later, only for her to respond yes. He, however, truly recorded it to prove to the friend who challenged him that he managed to sleep with her.
Natalie allowed Hardin to record them having sex because she liked him. Hardin then sent the recording to his friend, who sent the same to several others. In no time, the video went viral, destroying Natalie’s reputation and severely affecting her life. She eventually left for Lisbon, far away where she wouldn’t be shamed and haunted by the video, to start a new chapter of her life. When Natalie arrived in Lisbon, she was dealing with the pain of Hardin’s betrayal, which made her seek comfort in a person like Sebastian. That’s one of the reasons why Sebastian beats Hardin up while the latter is in Lisbon.
Becoming Hardin’s Friend
Despite the history between them, Natalie decides to become Hardin’s friend. She values his change and apology and decides to be a good host to the person from her past. As someone who had dealt with severe pain, she may have been able to relate to Hardin’s life. That can be why she acts empathetically towards him despite his betrayal. Natalie’s compassion towards him changes Hardin for good. He realizes that it is possible to make amends in life and that he deserves happiness irrespective of the mistakes he made in the past. Natalie’s forgiveness gives him the strength to return to Tessa’s life as a mature man.
Natalie’s forgiveness makes it clear to Hardin that his mistakes don’t define his future for good. He eventually rewrites his fate by returning to Tessa with an apology and getting back together with her. If Natalie hadn’t been there for him to remind him that it is possible to earn redemption, Hardin and Tessa may have stayed separated for more than twenty-five months. He then expresses his gratitude towards Natalie by buying her the coastal house of her dreams.
After raising several red flags throughout his life, Hardin changes severely after he meets Natalie. Those changes lay the foundation for his life as a father after seemingly welcoming a daughter with Tessa. The time Hardin spends with Natalie also inspires him to write his second novel ‘Before.’ He becomes mature not only as a person but also as a writer, thanks to the way Natalie treats him. His decision to seek her permission before publishing ‘Before’ is an indication of the same maturity as well.
Mimi Keene, who is known for playing Ruby Matthews in Netflix’s coming-of-age drama series ‘Sex Education,’ portrays Natalie in ‘After Everything.’ Keene made her mark as an actress with her performance as Cindy Williams in BBC’s soap opera ‘EastEnders.’ After appearing in the 2017 short film ‘The Escape,’ Keene made her feature film debut in the 2019 British action thriller ‘Close.’ She plays a young Edith Tolkien in the 2019 biographical film ‘Tolkien,’ starring Nicholas Hoult as J. R. R. Tolkien and Lily Collins as the older Edith. Her credits also include BBC’s ‘Casualty’ and ‘Our Girl.’
Read More: Do Hardin and Tessa Get Married in After Everything?
