Like the seasons before it, Outer Banks Season 4, Part 1 offers more adventure, more treasure, and more of JJ Maybank’s bad decisions. However, one common trope the writers left on the cutting room floor this season is the relationship drama between series protagonist, John B (Chase Stokes), and Kook princess-turned-Pogue, Sarah Cameron (Madelyn Cline).

In the first season of Outer Banks, John B and Sarah come from different worlds — one, a stoner from The Cut, and the other, a rich daddy’s girl born into a lot of money. When an undercover mission brings them together romantically, Sarah has to win the hearts (and trust) of John B’s fellow Pogues as they embark on their mission to find gold.

Since then, their relationship has hardly been smooth sailing. In Season 2, Sarah calls it quits with John B over his reaction to her father’s staged “death” (Ward had pretended to blow himself up after giving a false confession to killing Sheriff Peterkin, but he was eventually killed off at the end of Season 3).

John B and Sarah ultimately rekindle their romance by the end of Season 2 — but that’s not the last of their relationship issues. In Season 3, Sarah — in a moment of weakness — cheats on John B with her ex-boyfriend, Topper (Austin North). But John B later forgives Sarah, admitting he understands why she cheated as he wasn’t there for her when she needed him most.

This season, however, John B and Sarah don’t have their relationship tested — at least, not in the way it has been before. Instead, the two adorable exchange homemade wedding rings in one swoon-worthy scene — a romantic callback to when they unofficially tied the knot at the start of Season 2. Plus, their casual forehead kisses and shared bed in the new and improved Poguelandia commune prove that they are still very much in love.

“Look, relationships are hard and, you know, relationships come with tests. But not always,” Cline told DECIDER over a Zoom interview. “And it’s nice to show that their relationship isn’t always filled with some sort of conflict or argument.”

“We really wanted to show, ‘Oh, they do actually get along.’ You know what I mean?” the actress continued. “They’re not always like bickering at each other or, you know, making a big mistake. So that was a relief.”

According to Cline, putting John B and Sarah’s relationship on the back-burner this season also made room for the show’s two newest couples — JJ (Rudy Pankow) and Kie (Madison Bailey) as well as Cleo (Carlacia Grant) and Pope (Jonathan Daviss) — who were formed at the end of Season 3.

“We can focus on other storylines and also give space to other characters and relationships that we also want to see developed,” Cline said, “and, you know, just strengthen the entire ensemble dynamic as well.”