“Days of Our Lives” fans have seen plenty of epic love stories on the soap opera throughout the years. However, none has been quite like that of Chad DiMera and Abigail Deveraux. The couple have a long history together and a special bond that can never be broken, even in death. Let’s examine the duo’s heartwarming love story from beginning to tragic end.
Days of Our Lives: Chad and Abigail’s relationship timeline
When it comes to beloved “Days of Our Lives” couples, Chad and Abigail are high on the list. The pair first met when they were teenagers. Of course, Abby was well known to viewers as she’s a legacy character born to Jack Deveraux (Matthew Ashford) and Jennifer Horton (Melissa Reeves/Cady McClain), per Soap Central. When Abby was aged into her teenage years, actress Ashley Benson took over the role. Eventually, Kate Mansi stepped into the character and began her journey with Chad.
As for Chad, he first stepped into Salem in 2009 with actor Casey Deidrick in the role. He was soon discovered to be the son of Salem’s biggest villain, Stefano DiMera (Joseph Mascolo). Stefano took him in, and Chad began to acclimate into the DiMera family nicely, bonding with his plethora of siblings. However, it wasn’t until 2011 that Chad and Abby officially crossed paths and began what would be one of the soap opera’s most iconic relationships.
Chad and Abby dated briefly, and their romance was filled with drama. Eventually, they both moved on. Chad dated the likes of Melanie Jonas, while Abigail became infatuated with the much older and married Austin Reed. Eventually, Chad left Salem, and “Days of Our Lives” fans watched Abigail continue her pattern of poor romantic choices. She even had a torrid affair with Chad’s older brother EJ DiMera (then James Scott), while he was in a relationship with Sami Brady (Alison Sweeney).
Chad & Abigail survived a serial killer together
After leaving her affair with EJ behind, Abigail met Salem’s bad boy, Ben Weston (Robert Scott Wilson). Abby and Ben were in the process of growing close when Chad returned to Salem. This time, actor Billy Flynn was in the role. It was obvious that Chad and Abby were still drawn to each other, and that was proven when they got intimate. However, Abigail opted to stick with Ben and soon found herself pregnant.
Ben was thrilled by Abigail’s pregnancy. However, his behavior began to grow erratic. At the same time, “Days of Our Lives” characters were being killed off by a serial killer dubbed The Necktie Killer. The murderer took the lives of Serena Mason, Paige Larson, and Will Horton before it was revealed to be Ben all along. When Abby found out about Ben’s secret, he kidnapped her and held her hostage in a remote cabin.
Abigail went into labor while being held prisoner and eventually gave birth to her son. Realizing that someone wasn’t right, Chad came to Abby’s rescue. Ben kidnapped the child and attempted to kill Abby and Chad by setting the cabin on fire. However, they escaped, and Abigail was later reunited with her son, whom she named Thomas. Soon after, it was confirmed that Thomas was Chad’s child, and he and Abby gave their relationship a real shot.
Abby’s mental health took a toll on her relationship with Chad
Although “Days of Our Lives” viewers were thrilled to see Chad and Abigail reunite, the didn’t have a happy ending. Instead, Abby began to suffer from serious mental illness. She was terrified that Ben would return to harm her or her child.
Chad and Abby pushed passed their issues and eventually got married in 2016. However, Abigail’s thoughts of Ben continued to plague her. She left Salem to seek treatment and later faked her death. Believing that Abby was dead, Chad moved on with Gabi Hernandez (Camila Banus) and was shocked to learn that his wife was still alive when she returned to Salem with Marci Miller in the role.
The couple eventually reunited. However, things went from bad to worse when she began to exhibit signs of split personalities. Abby’s mental health got so bad that she lost time, and began dressing up like Gabi Hernandez (Camila Banus). Abigail even killed Andre DiMera while suffering from her split personality disorder.
Abigail’s mental illness also bled over into her marriage. While believing that she was Gabi, Abby was head over heels in love with Chad’s brother, Stefan DiMera (then Tyler Christopher). The two carried out a relationship and Abby eventually got pregnant again. After receiving help for her split personality disorder, Abigail gave birth to a daughter named Charlotte. Much to her relief, Chad was revealed to be the father of that child as well.
Chad and Abby moved to Paris before returning to Salem
In 2019, “Days of Our Lives” fans watched Chad and Abigail get married again. Shortly after the ceremony, the pair packed up their kids and moved to Paris for Chad’s work. They later returned when Abby’s mother, Jennifer, was sent into a year-long coma. After their move back to Salem, Abigail’s family was rocked by the news that her father, Jack, had a long-lost daughter named Gwen. It was soon revealed that Gwen was looking to lash out against her half-sister and seduced Chad into a one-night stand that resulted in pregnancy. Gwen eventually lost the baby, but the bad blood between her and Abby never went away.
Chad’s involvement with Gwen led Abby to leave Salem. When she returned she was ready to work on their marriage. They finally seemed to be doing well and were happy in their marriage when the unthinkable happened. Just hours after deciding they wanted to have a third child, Chad found Abigail stabbed to death in their bedroom. Eventually, Clyde Weston confessed to the murder and was sent to jail.
“Days of Our Lives” fans watched Chad sink into a depression as he was left to raise his children solo without the love of his life by his side. As Chad began to get used to his new normal, he met Stephanie Johnson (Abigail Klein). The two fell in love and moved in together. However, Chad has continued to struggle to let go of Abigail’s memory.
Image Credits: Chris Haston/Todd Williamson, YouTube, YouTube.
Kendra Quinn