Days of Our Lives Just Sent Jeremy Packing In the Least Dramatic Way Possible… and It Was Kinda Awesome

Talk about an unexpected exit! Sure, we knew that Michael Roark’s time as Days of Our Lives’ Jeremy was coming to an end. But what we couldn’t have predicted was how quickly — and relatively drama free — things unfolded in his final episode, which aired on Wednesday, April 29. (You can read a full recap here.)

Jeremy first popped back up in Salem in October of last year, looking to make amends with Stephanie after his abusive past behavior and prove that he was a changed man. It… wasn’t an easy go. While Julie has stuck by her Horton family member, virtually everyone else in Salem clashed with Jeremy, despite his turn as a substitute first grade teacher.

His date with Jada backfired, his attempt to connect with Maggie blew up, and eventually, just about everyone in town became convinced he was stalking Stephanie and threatening Alex’s life. But then Stephanie’s real stalker kidnapped her and it was Jeremy who first tracked her down — only to be nabbed by Owen, too! Once rescued, the experience left them both traumatized and led to them bonding, as Stephanie felt Jeremy was the only one who knew what she was going through.

And surprisingly, they seemed to have real chemistry! But then, just as we were warming to Jeremy, we realized he was looking to take advantage of this newfound closeness and get another try with Stephanie, marriage to Alex or not. First, his humble hero facade slipped as he admitted that, despite his, “No worries, I understand why you all suspected it was me,” he was seething underneath.

Then, to top it all off, he brought Joy back to town to give Alex the baby he wanted, even if not with his new wife. And this is where things got interesting. Because anyone who knows anything about soaps probably predicted that a distraught Steph would lean on Jeremy, leading to all sorts of stress and strife. Instead, he planted an unwanted kiss on his ex who, in no uncertain terms, made it clear that she would never, ever be getting back together with her abusive ex!

Quicker than you can say “I’m outta here,” Jeremy admitted his role in bringing Joy to town, apologized for everything and packed up to leave town. First, however, he got to share a lovely scene with Julie, who made it clear that he was now and forever a Horton and, as such, would always have a home in Salem. Despite there being far more dramatic paths the show could have gone down, Jeremy’s exit totally worked. Because sometimes, a character comes to town, stirs up trouble and, having served their purpose, leaves.

So while it seems pretty safe to say that Jeremy and Stephanie won’t be reuniting at any point, that doesn’t mean he couldn’t eventually return and throw sparks with someone else.