Photo mashup of Brady, Chloe, Nicole, Sami, and Gabi on Days of Our Lives
Credit: Jill Johnson/JPI; NBC screenshot

Days of Our Lives’ Nancy returned to Salem this week, worried her husband Craig was cheating on her. While that was the main point of her conversation with her daughter on Monday’s episode, our ears perked up when it was offhandedly mentioned that Chloe’s son is in boarding school. Considering that’s often the last stop before SORASing (Soap Opera Rapid Aging Syndrome, for the uninitiated) sets in, we had to wonder if it’s time to bring young Parker home — all grown up.

Or at least, semi-grown up.

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Chloe stares off, while standing at a crib. Days of Our Lives

The twenty-something set is currently thriving in Salem, but there is no teen set to speak of. While some could argue the canvas is crowded enough, it doesn’t hurt to plan ahead. Summer, which is just a few months away, has historically been the season for soaps to bulk up their teen stories. So, what better time to SORAS the offspring of beloved legacy characters?

While aging them all at the same time might be a bit much, there are plenty of options to choose from, should the NBC soap start to slowly introduce the next generation.

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Brady holds toddler Tate in his arms on Days of Our Lives

In addition to Parker, Brady’s son Tate could make a triumphant teenaged return home from California. Should Brady and Chloe reunite, the boys could become close step-brothers, much like Brady and Eric before them. Even if their parents don’t remarry, they still have a link, considering Parker is Maggie’s grandson and Tate is her husband, Victor’s great-grandson. It’s not hard to imagine future romantic, or even business, rivalries, especially if  Victor wants to get a head start on grooming the next generation, considering his current crop has been a disappointment to him. We’re mainly looking at you, Philip.

Over on the DiMera side of town, Chad and Abigail have survived everything from cheating to split personalities to brainwashing. But is their marriage strong enough to survive a teenaged Thomas and Charlotte, running in and out of the mansion with their potentially devilish cousins? Like Rachel, who could turn out to be more like her mother, Kristen than her father, Brady. A good villain is needed at every age, after all.

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sami and ej's daughter Sydney DAYS

Meanwhile, their other cousin, Sydney (EJ’s daughter with Sami) is out there, also in boarding school. She was just re-introduced in A Very Salem Christmas as a tween, but why not send her into full teendom? Finding out her brother was possessed by the devil, and that their half-sister’s father had their mother kidnapped and set up their father for it, certainly feels like a good time for her to blow back into town. And who knows, maybe she’ll be the one eager to learn DiMera business at her father’s side, unlike her brother, Johnny. Well, Johnny when he’s not possessed, that is.

Should Sydney come home a teenager, Nicole’s daughter Holly would need to have a growth spurt as well. To add to their mothers’ bitter feud, of course, but also because she might be the only one in that crop of kids who isn’t blood-related to just about everyone else. There does need to be some sweet teen crushes in there somewhere, but trying to navigate all the intertwined family trees makes our heads hurt.

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Nicole holds toddler Holly, as Eric holds the girl's hand. Days of Our Lives

Then, there’s Gabi and Will’s daughter, Ari. While she would certainly add to the Horton, Brady and Kiriakis family dynamic, she’d also represent the Hernandez clan, who could use some beefing up. Heck, she might even clash, or bond, with a DiMera, bringing Gabi back into Chad and Abigail’s orbit.

As for Eli and Lani’s twins, they were just born last year. We’ll let them wait for Allie’s son Henry, and Ben and Ciara’s unborn child to get a couple of years under their belts before sending them to adolescence together.

The next generation of Salem’s dynastic families is all cued up, whenever Days of Our Lives is ready to deploy the popular soap opera trope on them. Which grown-up dynamic would you most want to see? Tell us what you think, then look through our photo gallery of daytime’s cutest kids.