Gender is a spectrum, and so is love on Schitt's Creek, where pansexual David Rose (Daniel Levy) falls for his "straight" business partner Patrick Brewer (Noah Reid) in the acclaimed show's third season. Returning for its sixth and final installment tonight on Pop TV and Canada's CBC, Schitt's Creek is about to take this baby bird of a relationship and kick it out of the nest to fly free in the skies of syndication. But before we prepare to say goodbye to everyone's favorite apothecary-owning, small-town couple, let's take a look at how they got here.

David's been pansexual since day one, telling his soon-to-be best friend Stevie (Emily Hampshire) that when it comes to his taste in grapes, he prefers "the wine, not the label" in the Season 1 episode "Honeymoon." To boot, there's never a whiff of homophobia in the town of Schitt's Creek, a conscious decision by creator Levy to stage a "sort of quiet protest"—a portrayal of a queer love story in "a world where there is no consequence."

Patrick enters into this world in the Season 3 episode "Motel Review," in which David is trying to open his apothecary. He has to go through Patrick to get his business license, but his sister Alexis (Annie Murphy) notices that Patrick seems to be hanging around the shop a lot. She insists that the "sweet little button face" is into David, which David finds hard to believe.

Of course, those mid-range jeans are not as basic as they seem. Well, the jeans are, but the man in them… not so much. Taking advantage of Patrick's business acumen and interest in him/the store/what-have-you, David asks Patrick to team up with him. So they open Rose Apothecary to sell overpriced soaps and lotions to the residents of Schitt's Creek. Because a small town loves a bespoke general store—historically. However, things get complicated when David learns that this straight-legged man is, indeed, into him. They share a kiss in the Season 3 finale, "Grad Night."

Fast-forward to Season 4, and David finds himself navigating the uncharted waters of a long-term relationship. In an attempt to ease his anxious heart, Patrick serenades David at Rose Apothecary's inaugural open mic night in one of the most adorably twee moments of 2018.

But their happiness is short-lived. If you thought being boyfriends and business partners was complicated, Patrick's ex-fiancée Rachel (Stacey Farber) shows up unexpectedly in the seventh episode of Season 4, "The Barbecue." After Patrick assures David he has nothing to worry about and that he should trust him, Alexis invites new motel guest Rachel to the Rose family picnic, and the proverbial shit hits the fan. Turns out Patrick has been dodging Rachel's texts about them getting back together for the past few months while he was dating David.

David is, understandably, upset and needs some space to figure out all the crazy that just happened. So they go on a break, during which Patrick tries to woo David back with various gifts. The boy does love a gift. So much so that David milks Patrick's guilt to keep his generosity flowing, despite having already forgiven him. To make up for his greed, David does a callback to Patrick's acoustic Tina Turner moment with an interpretive dance and performance to say "Sorryboutit."

Now, a queer man doesn't lip-synch for his life to a legendary diva for just anyone, so by this point we know these two cuckoo kids are probably in it for the long haul. And so does Patrick, who surprises David by telling him he loves him in the Season 4 finale, "Singles Week." David, having said "I love you" only twice (once to his parents and once at a Mariah Carey concert), doesn't know how to handle it.

David, however, eventually finds the courage to tell Patrick he loves him, and by Season 5 they've settled into comfortable coupledom. So when Patrick asks David to look for apartments with him, he assumes that means Patrick wants them to move in together. Wrong. Patrick just wanted David's opinion (as if he had to ask for it). Once past that misunderstanding, David wanders into an all new one when he invites Patrick's mom and dad to their son's surprise birthday party. Surprise! He never told his parents that he was dating a man.

Episode 11, "Meet the Parents," tests the boundaries of this world devoid of homophobia because as a viewer you expect some sort of fallout from Patrick's parents. After all, he probably didn't come out for a reason. Well, that reason had less to do with them and more with him. Patrick was worried his parents wouldn't be able to accept him, but when he comes out to them they're just happy that David makes him happy. And this major step in Patrick's development sets us up for the big reveal in the season finale, "The Hike."

On the titular hike, during which just about everything goes wrong, Patrick makes up for making David walk in nature by popping the question.

It only took two seasons, but David and Patrick went from acquaintances to business partners to boyfriends to fiancés. This sixth and final season will reveal how their love story ends, and while we'll be sad to see them go, they deserve all the fictional happiness that a one-horse town has to offer.

The final season of Schitt's Creek premieres January 7 at 9pm EST on Pop TV.