Tate and Holly are taking a break from college food to grab a bite at the pub — though it’s only the first day of classes. Salem U starts late. Tate teases Holly over signing up for film class, since Johnny’s teaching it.
Remember when she was obsessing over Johnny? Tate does! He apologizes for teasing, though, saying he’s exhausted. Aaron snores and the bed’s too small. Oh, and Sophia’s been lying left and right and he can’t meet his kid.
Holly reassures him by reminding him at least Sophia met the parents, hitting upon something brilliant! Sophia met the parents, Tate realizes, knows their names, says she liked them and got to know them a bit. (This is a revelation?) It’s enough to convince Tate he can use what Sophia knows to track down the non-existent parents!
Whose Baby Will Chanel and Johnny Get?
Chanel greets Johnny as he’s preparing for his first class. Then he’s off to Titan/DiMera for the One Stormy Night press conference. Chanel finally gets his attention, wanting to talk about… about having a baby! Again! Round three? Four?
They go through everything that derailed the last adoption attempt and why they’re in a better place now. After an attempt to get Chanel into bed to make a baby, Johnny agrees that he’s ready to be a dad and get back to adoption, much to Chanel’s joy. He wants to get the ball rolling right away, so Chanel suggests they start with the abandoned firehouse baby. (Which is the baby they were going to adopt before.)
Will Alex Push Stephanie too Far?
Alex lets himself into Stephanie’s to press her for info. She tells him she talked with “that person,” but Alex doesn’t trust that Steph’s source is being truthful about not planting the bug. Fine, Steph swears Alex to secrecy and tells him her dad’s the one who was looking into his cousins.
He jumps right into questions and Stephanie gives him the lowdown on Steve’s client, his FOIA request, dropping the client at her request. But Steve won’t out his client. Alex, unsurprisingly, isn’t happy, but Stephanie suggests the only way to find out who did it will be to wait until they act.
He flips out at her, so Stephanie just throws up her arms, says she’s done all she can to help and she’s done. Alex backs down fast, apologizing, then trying to flirt away their almost-fight. And it works, along with a few kisses.
How Long Will Rachel Keep Her Secret?
On their way to school, Rachel asks her dad if they can go to the pet store, but Brady wants to have a heart-to-heart, instead — in public. He breaks the news that mom’s going to prison for six years to a predictably devastated Rachel.
That’s not long, he tries. Unless you’re a kid and it’s less than a third of your life. Brady then makes things worse when he admits she may not be able to even Kristen mom for a little while. Brady tries offering her sugar, but Rachel, trying not to cry, just wants to go to school. Maybe see Thomas. Brady hugs her, tells her she’s brave and they head back off.
Except Rachel doesn’t go to school. Holly finds her in the park, where the kid tells her she’s running away. “My mom’s in prison and it’s all my fault.” Through tears, she says it started with helping her grandma kidnap Ava, which made EJ fight with her mom and start everything.
Holly gently explains those were grownup decisions and not Rachel’s fault. She takes Rachel back to school, though the kid looks less than certain. (Especially knowing she is at fault.)
Are Sophia’s Lies Almost Over?
Tate runs into Brady in the square and hits him with his brilliant idea that Sophia knows things and they can ask her to tell them those things. Brady’s less enthused, cautioning his son that they won’t know how much of what Sophia’s telling them is true. (Spoiler: None of it.)
Tate’s confused. He thought they already got through all her lies. And he figured her weirdness that started around July 4th was over and done with. That gets Brady’s attention as he hits on a real idea.
What Is Javi Hiding?
Leo cheerfully greets a distracted Javi, who’s in a funk at the thought of losing Tesoro. The waiting period’s over, so someone’s bound to adopt him. Leo’s heartbroken, too, and they wax on about how amazing the tot is. This is taking them forever to realize they can adopt him, too.
Finally, Leo hits it, suggesting that they’d get first dibs if they put themselves on the adoption list. Oh, turns out Javi did think of this and talked to an adoption lawyer. But he was told he wouldn’t pass the background checks. Deep, dark secret incoming.
In the Show’s Final Moments
Chanel happily suggests they forget a fair process and they have her mom pull mayoral strings to jump ahead on the adoption list. Privilege! Johnny’s fine with that, but he doesn’t want Chanel to get her hopes up. But it’s worth at least trying.
Leo reassures Javi that he can trust him. Javi starts crying, and it’s genuinely heartbreaking as he tells Leo that he had a daughter who died.
Brady, meanwhile, asks Tate for more details on Sophia’s weirdness, then just lets it go. The second Tate’s gone, though, Brady calls Steve with the news that the firehouse baby could be Sophia’s after all.
