‘Will & Grace’ Uncover Dark Moment From Their Past in New Episode

Will & Grace rehashed a painful time in their relationship during the latest episode, leading to a heartbreaking revelation about Will’s coming out story.

During “Who’s Sorry Now?” Grace (Debra Messing) encounters some old letters that she and Will (Eric McCormack) sent to each other during their college years, when she was head over heels in love with Will prior to his coming out.

The best friends had been bickering in the beginning of the episode over Grace’s inability to apologize to Will whenever she did something wrong, with Will wondering why she was unable to say she was sorry.

“I found all the letters that we wrote to each other in college,” Grace says, with Will adding he had organized the letters back when he was working on his memoir, titled Homo With a Pie.

They remember how around the time of Spring Break freshman year, Grace was madly in love, reading a letter where she calls Will her “lover” and she hints about wanting to lose her virginity to him.

The pair later find a letter dated the day after Thanksgiving, revealing that was the day Will came out to her as a gay man.

“You ripped my heart out. It was like everything I believed in was a lie,” Grace says. “Even holding this in my hand I feel like I want to throw up.”

She later beats herself up for note seeing Will’s sexuality earlier. And he finds a short letter where he writes “I’m sorry” multiple timer. He then brings up sending a much longer letter explaining his feelings, but Grace reveals she never read it.

“Will I was devastated,” Grace says. “I even considered becoming a lesbian but women are a lot of work.”

“I can’t believe you’re going. I cried when I wrote this letter,” Will admits.

“You cried? I think we know who was crying,” Grace says. But come on, we got through it. You apologized.” The comment leads Will to the realization that he is constantly apologizing to her, but she never says it because she still feels like a victim from him coming out.

Grace brushes off is comments and offers to read the letter now, but Will says it’s too late and throws it out the terrace as a thunderstorm rages on outside.

The letter doesn’t go too far, as a neighbor retrieves it and gives it to Grace. Will finds her later on crying about its contents.

“When I read your letter… I’m horrible,” Grace said. “How did I not read this letter. You went through so much after you came out and I wasn’t there for you… you were tortured and I never even thought about that.”

Grace continues, revealing a dark confession from Will in the letter: “I got to the part where you write: ‘Grace I don’t want to be gay. I just wish I was normal.’ Oh my God Will, that broke my heart. And the part where you said you were thinking about hurting yourself. Is that true?”

“It was a long time ago,” Will in a somber tone.

“This might be about 30 years late, I didn’t think about your pain. I only thought about mine,” Grace admits. “Because that’s the way the story of the gay guy and the straight girl is always told, isn’t it? He broke her heart. Poor her. But you were just being who you are. And you were scared to death that the world was going to find out and hate you for it.”

Grace officially apologizes, finally uttering the words “I’m sorry” and says that him being gay actually made her life better. The pair share a tender hug, marking the resolution of the difficult conversation.

Will & Grace airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.