Years ago, in Xi’an, China, Emily Bieberly and Kobe Blaise had a wild one-night stand.
At least, that’s how it started. It turned into a relationship, an engagement, and now they are both parents of a toddler.
But Kobe and Koban have never been able to meet in person before.
When Kobe meets his son for the first time, he is moved to tears, and Emily quickly joins him.
As we saw on last week’s episode of 90 Day Fiance Season 9, Kobe Blaise was eager to meet his son.
Koban is 17 months old. Kobe has been waiting to meet him for more than two years.
Emily Bieberly was sympathetic — but also hoped that the two of them could have one night together before parenting consumes their lives forever.
On Episode 4, as we can see in this sneak peek clip, Kobe and Emily arrive together at her parents’ house.
He is greeted with balloons and a welcome by Emily’s parents, who are of course unsure of what to expect — and reluctant to intrude upon the moment.
The main event, however, is Koban and Kobe meeting in person for the very first time.
Koban is just a toddler. He is initially shy.
At first, both for emotional comfort and for sustenance, he is more interesting in nursing than anything else.
Kobe awkwardly says hello to Emily’s parents while Koban nurses. Then, it’s time.
Koban makes the smallest gesture towards Kobe, and Kobe is so overcome with emotion.
He bursts into tears, covering his face as feelings overwhelm him.
“Oh my god,” Kobe expresses. “he’s so cute.”
Kobe’s emotional state sets off Emily, who also tears up.
This is a powerful moment for this young family.
It’s a major moment in Koban’s life, too, even though he does not fully grasp the significance of the man from mommy’s computer screen now being there in person.
Meanwhile, Emily’s parents are in an awkward position.
They would love to meet their future son-in-law, get to know him, hug him, comfort him in this moment of intense emotion.
But they’re keeping to the sidelines, very deliberately, in a conscious effort to not detract from this milestone moment.
“I couldn’t take it,” Kobe gushes to the camera in this sneak peek clip.
“He was just so sweet,” he accurately described his 17-month-old son.
“Like, I’m a dad just because of him,” Kobe noted. “It was just a very beautiful moment.”
Fan reactions are sure to be mixed, however.
Obviously, seeing Kobe and Koban meet was adorable and long overdue.
Kobe would have been here ages ago if the K-1 visa had come faster and if the COVID-19 pandemic had not happened.
Emily has been condemned as “selfish” for hoping for a night with Kobe before he meets Koban.
On the one hand, that’s at least a valid take, albeit a short-sighted one.
Is it really best for Kobe or for Koban if the two of them are never able to rekindle their past sexual history and just live like roommates who happen to share a child?
Like we said, it’s still a reasonable point, though perhaps this episode will show us Kobe and Emily being more on the same page.
But the 90 Day Fiance fandom has certain prejudices — and, above all, misogyny, which has been firmly targeted at Emily since the premiere.
You know that some weirdos absolutely have strong, terrible opinions about Emily feeding her son instead of hiding in shame in another room like in ages past. Yikes.
