Happy Monday, everyone! Kristen Dimera went out for drinks the same night she killed a teenager. That's where we are now. Today's episode also gave us the cancer reveal we've been dreading, Javi telling Leo to keep his distance, and EJ putting pieces together faster than anyone expected. Let's get into it.

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Kristen Goes to a Bar After Murdering a Teenager

The episode opens with EJ sitting at Small Bar with Cat, with Kristen in the background. If you didn't watch Friday's episode, could would look completely normal. But we know what happened. We saw her bash Sophia over the head with a rock and watch the body float away. And now here she is, ordering drinks like it's any other night.

EJ gets a phone call — Johnny's been hurt and rushed to the hospital. Kristen's face goes white. "Johnny isn't dead, is he?" The relief when Cat says he's alive is visible, but so is the recalculation. Her plan to destroy EJ through Johnny didn't work. Johnny survived, and now there's a living witness who can tell people Sophia tried to kill him, which could lead directly back to Kristen.

Kristen rushes to the hospital and plays the concerned aunt. EJ isn't buying it. In the waiting room, he turns on her: "You aren't exactly free of sin when it comes to Sophia Choi, are you?" He reminds her she was defending Sophia in the square, acting "all mama bear." Kristen explodes — how dare he implicate her in this tragedy, she had no idea what was going on in that child's sick mind. But EJ's instincts are good, and by episode's end, Jada takes a phone call: forensics found Sophia's backpack on a bridge and a shoe in the river. Evidence indicates she acted on her suicide note. Salem now believes Sophia is dead by her own hand — exactly the story Kristen built.

Johnny Recounts his Ordeal

Johnny is in his hospital room with Chanel when we pick up where Friday left off. He's groggy from the gas inhalation, but alert enough to tell her what happened. Sophia showed up at the door, pepper-sprayed him, tied him to a chair, turned on the gas, and lit a candle floating in a cup of acetone — a makeshift time bomb. She told him this was payback for backing out of the adoption and ruining her life.

EJ joins them in full DiMera rage. "That deranged little gutter snipe. She's about to learn what DiMera vengeance is about." Johnny calms him down. He's fine, Trey is safe, it's over. EJ hires round-the-clock protection for Trey anyway.

Jada comes to ask questions, and Chanel and EJ step out. Johnny walks her through the timeline — Sophia's words, the trap, how Javi broke down the door. Jada tells him about the suicide note. "If she really did take her own life," Johnny says, "no wonder she wasn't worried about the consequences."

Later, Paulina arrives with baby Trey, and the room fills with warmth. Johnny holds his son, Paulina fusses over everyone, and for a moment, the DiMera hospital room feels like a family living room.

Chanel Tells Johnny About the Cancer

When Johnny asks where she was when he was brought in, she deflects: a last-minute mammogram appointment opened up, so she came to the hospital instead of the aquarium.

After Paulina leaves with Trey, Johnny asks directly. Do you have the results? Chanel tells him: they need a biopsy to know for certain, but Sarah thinks it's cancer.

Javi Pushes Leo Away

Javi wakes up in a hospital bed after collapsing from gas and smoke inhalation. Sarah explains what happened — since he went into Johnny's apartment without a respirator, and once the adrenaline wore off, his body gave out.

Leo sees the news about Johnny's apartment on his laptop in the Square and races to the hospital. He finds Javi's room and immediately launches into his usual breathless energy, but Javi isn't having it. He asks Sarah not to leave him alone with Leo. When she does anyway, Leo tries to connect: he compares the situation to his own feelings about Dimitri, says being alone with Javi might rekindle something. "I'm struggling to breathe," Javi snaps, "and you are sucking the oxygen out of the room."

The whole episode, Javi holds Leo at arm's length. He has a boyfriend. He doesn't want these conversations. Leo calls him a hero and tells him Trey will one day hear the story of the man who saved his father's life. Javi softens for just a moment: "If anything ever happened to you, I would..." Then he catches himself. "We can't be having these conversations. We're not in a relationship anymore. Maybe it's just better for both of us if we keep our distance."

Leo leaves. He doesn't argue. He just goes.

My Take

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Today's episode ended with Jada taking a phone call and delivering the news: forensics found Sophia's backpack on a bridge and a shoe in the river. Evidence indicates she acted on her suicide note.

Except we watched Kristen bash her over the head with a rock on Friday. We watched goons throw the body in the water. We watched Kristen stage the whole thing to look exactly like this — a troubled girl who followed through on her darkest impulse. The suicide note was real. The staged evidence is real. And now the police are buying it.

But is Sophia actually dead?

This is Days of Our Lives. The show has spent sixty years teaching its audience one lesson above all others: no one stays dead in Salem. The Salem Stalker storyline killed off a dozen characters only to reveal they were all alive on an island called Melaswen. Will Horton was strangled by a serial killer and came back. Jack Deveraux has died and returned so many times the show stopped counting. And let’s not forget about Stefano.

The formula is simple: no body recovered from the water means no confirmed death. And right now, Jada's team has a backpack, a shoe, and some blood. They don't have Sophia.

The weekly promo for this week adds fuel to the fire. In it, a blood-drenched Sophia walks into the DiMera living room and says to Kristen: "What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost." The most likely explanation is a hallucination — Kristen's guilt manifesting as a waking nightmare. But "most likely" isn't the same as "definitely”.

There are arguments on both sides. In favor of Sophia being gone: the actress Rachel Boyd was reportedly let go from the show. SheKnows is already framing this as an exit story. The character completed a full two-year arc from Holly's scheming friend, to Kristen's weapon, to tragic victim. That's a complete story with a devastating ending.

But TV Fanatic argues the odds are closer to 50-50. They point out that the show went out of its way to NOT show us Sophia's face after the rock hit. We saw Kristen swing. We saw the goons throw Sophia’s body in the water. But we never saw the moment of death the way we'd see it if the show wanted us to be certain. That ambiguity feels deliberate.

And then there's the question of Kristen's story. If Sophia is gone, Kristen got away with premeditated murder and the audience knows it but no one in Salem does. That's a ticking clock that could run for months — the tension of waiting for someone to figure it out. If Sophia survived, she becomes the witness who can destroy Kristen, which is a different kind of ticking clock, but an equally compelling one.

My money is on Sophia being alive - and returning sooner, rather than later. What do you think?

Trivia Question: What did Leo accuse Javi of that caused their first breakup?

Jada Gives Amy Choi Devastating News

Per CDL and SheKnows, Jada delivers the news no mother wants to hear. Blood found at the pier reportedly matches Sophia's. After today's episode established the backpack and shoe, tomorrow makes it worse for the one person in Salem who still loved that girl unconditionally.

Holly, Tate, and Ari Process Their Feelings About Sophia

These three of them were once Sophia's friends. Now they're sitting with what happened. Holly told Sophia she wished she were dead, and those words ended up in the suicide note. That guilt is about to become very real, per CDL.

Alex Asks Joy to Stay in Salem

With the DNA test confirming baby Kelsey is his, Alex makes his move: he asks Joy to stay so he can be a present father. This immediately makes his marriage to Stephanie more complicated, especially since Stephanie just told her therapist she doesn't feel ready to handle another woman's child.

Stephanie Opens Up to Julie

Stephanie needs someone to talk to who isn't her husband or her therapist, and she finds that person in Julie.

Finally, Philip Tries to Give Gabi Advice

Philip steps in with counsel for his fiancée — likely a pump-the-brakes conversation ahead of Gabi's bigger play on the will reading later this week. Whether she listens is another question entirely. Per SoapHub.

Is Sophia really gone? The soap world is divided. SheKnows reports that Sophia is dead and frames the story as Rachel Boyd's likely exit from the show. But TV Fanatic isn't so sure, arguing the odds are 50-50 that she survived. The weekly promo — in which a bloodied Sophia walks into the DiMera mansion and asks Kristen if she's seen a ghost — is either a hallucination scene or the biggest hint the show has dropped. No body has been recovered.

Stacy Haiduk (Kristen) addresses her future on the show. In a SoapHub interview, Haiduk frames her current reduced presence as a break rather than an exit, saying she's open to returning whenever the show needs her. Given that Kristen just committed premeditated murder and is about to be haunted by visions of her victim, "whenever the show needs her" may be sooner than she thinks.

Nikki Crawford teases Lexie's emotional reunion with Theo. In interviews with Parade and TV Insider, Crawford discusses preparing for the role and what's ahead in May sweeps. The Lexie return has been teased since the will reading storyline began, and spoilers suggest this week may be when it happens.

Raven Bowens (Chanel) interviewed by Soap Opera News — "On Love, Loss, and the General Hospital Role She Almost Played." With Chanel's cancer storyline now in full swing, Bowens opens up about the material she's been given in her final months on the show.

The week ahead: Stefano's will reading anchors Friday, May 8. EJ leads the proceedings, Theo serves as executor, and Tony and Anna return to Salem for the occasion. Kristen reportedly has three separate confrontations this week as EJ's suspicions grow. Javi's medical situation continues to worsen. And spoilers from SoapHub suggest EJ may figure out Kristen was behind everything before the week is over.

The next two weeks look stacked. Here's everything we know is coming.

Kristen can't escape what she did. The weekly promo shows a blood-soaked Sophia walking into the DiMera living room and asking, "What's the matter, Kristen? You look like you've seen a ghost." CDL, SheKnows, and SoapHub all flag this. Hallucination or not, Kristen's cool composure from tonight's bar scene is about to shatter. EJ is already suspicious. How long before she cracks under the pressure?

Gabi drops a bombshell at the will reading. Multiple sources (CDL, SoapHub, Primetimer) report that Gabi is about to claim Stefan's divorce papers were forged, making her his legal widow and potentially entitled to a massive share of DiMera money. Is this what she and Tony have been cooking up? The will reading reportedly kicks off during the week of May 11–15, and if Gabi walks in there with proof, every DiMera in that room is in trouble.

Stefano's will reading finally happens. Tony and Anna return to Salem for the occasion. Theo is executor. EJ is leading the proceedings. And could this be when Lexie fully awakens? The pieces have been moving toward this for weeks and it sounds like everything converges in the second week.

Kristen and Xander team up. This one is vague but intriguing. CDL teases an "outrageous road" for the two of them. Kristen just committed murder and is about to be haunted by visions of her victim. Xander has been off in his own world. What pulls these two together? Whatever it is, this pairing has chaos written all over it.

Johnny sits down with Marlena. He's processing the trauma of almost dying, and Marlena is the person he turns to. He'll also reportedly learn the full extent of Chanel's mammogram results during this stretch.

Roman isn't buying Kate's story. He pushes Kate for honesty about her role in the lawsuit setup involving Johnny. Does she come clean? Will their marriage survive this?

Chad and Cat can't avoid each other. They've been trying to keep things casual and move past whatever happened between them. Spoilers say that's not working.

Ari kisses Liam. Ari Horton (Vico Escorcia) goes for it with Liam Selejko (Hank Northrop) despite Gabi's objections. CDL and Koimoi both flag this. Teenage rebellion is alive and well in Salem.

Jada and Shawn are officially happening. Shawn moves into Jada's apartment for the rest of his recovery, and Parade confirms the romance is real. SoapHub reports fans are already reacting to the pairing. After everything both of them have been through, this feels earned.

A few things I'm chewing on after today.

Hit reply and tell me what you think. I read all of your responses!

Trivia Answer:

Leo accused Javi of being "Lady Whistleblower," the anonymous gossip columnist who was leaking Body & Soul spoilers. He wasn't. It was Kerry Youmans, who was framing Leo.

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