Marco-Ellie Relationship

"I mean, I go for cool, alternative girls like Ellie Nash."
— Marco to Ellie

The relationship between Marco Del Rossi and Ellie Nash is known as Marlie (Marco/Ellie) or more commonly, Mellie (Marco/Ellie). It began in the second season of Degrassi: The Next Generation.

Relationship History

Overview

The two first met in the second season during their freshman year at Degrassi Community School in 2002. Ellie had developed a crush on Marco, and he asked her out, even though his feelings for her were only platonic. When Ellie wanted to take their relationship further, Marco's confused feelings about his sexuality caused him to come out to her. Ellie agrees to pretend to be his girlfriend until he was able to figure things out, though the charade quickly grew tiring for her. The two broke up, but remained best friends all the way until their last season on the show. After graduating high school, Marco and Ellie become roommates for their freshman year of college, but at the end of the year, they decided to move out on their own because they were too dependent on each other.

Season 2

In Take My Breath Away, Marco approaches Ellie outside after he notices that she's reading The Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey. Ellie is surprised that Marco is a fan of the writer's dark books. The two bond for a moment over their shared interest, before Marco leaves her to join his friends. Meanwhile, Hazel and Paige are sitting at a nearby table, where Hazel fills Paige in on her budding crush on Marco. Determined to win him over, Hazel leaves Paige to make conversation with him, while Ellie looks on sadly, doubting her chances of earning Marco's affection.

During Media Immersion class, Ellie sends a secret e-mail to Marco inspired by The Gashlycrumb Tinies. Upon receiving it, Marco turns to look at Hazel, smiling at her. Ashley then joins Ellie, noting the e-mail she sent, and asks to know who Ellie's secret crush is. Flustered, Ellie tells Ashley to mind her own business after she teases her about the e-mail.

Later, while working on a project together in the library, Marco fills Ellie in on the e-mail that he received, telling her that he finds it confusing. Ellie tells Marco that the sender clearly has a crush on Marco. When Marco asks why whoever sent it can't simply be straightforward with him, Ellie tells him that an anonymous e-mail allows the sender, who's probably shy, to be spared potential rejection. When Marco asks Ellie if she's ever felt that way, Ellie says that telling someone that you like them is hard. Marco agrees that it is, all the while looking and smiling at her.

Ellie then decides to tell Marco she likes him, and sends him another e-mail, telling him to meet her after school in the zen garden. Marco, thinking he's going to the garden to meet Hazel, is confused as to why Ellie is there. When Marco asks Ellie if she's the one who'd been sending him the e-mails, Ellie leaves, despite Marco's pleas for her to stay.

Outside, Ellie receives a phone call from Marco. When she begins to tell him that she doesn't handle rejection well, Marco interrupts, telling her to turn around. She turns to see Marco approaching her, phone in hand. He tells her that he didn't reject her, and explains that he was going to the zen garden with the intention of telling Hazel that she isn't his type. He says that he'd much rather date a "cool, alternative" girl like Ellie, and asks her out for coffee.

In a deleted scene in the same episode, Marco asked Ellie what was wrong as she had barely said anything all day. Ellie sarcastically responded, "Anything, anything, anything. How's that?" Craig Manning met them in the corridor and they walked to class together. Marco told Craig that he heard that he and Manny were a couple after their date the previous night. Craig said that this was not the case and Marco advised him to let Manny know that they were not in a relationship. When Craig asked him how he should do that, Marco said that he should be upfront with Manny. Ellie, who had feelings for Marco and had been sending him anonymous secret admirer emails, said that it was not that easy. Marco countered that it was and told Craig that he could not keep things bottled up inside or he would go crazy. Craig realized that he was right and that he should tell Manny how he felt. As they walked behind Craig, Ellie gave Marco a pained look, which confused him.

In Careless Whisper, Marco is wonderful in Ellie's eyes, and they eventually become boyfriend and girlfriend. However, she soon realizes that he acts more like a friend than a boyfriend and after a few arguments, they decide to make out in Ashley Kerwin's room at a study night to prove their relationship with one another. However, Marco says that he is confused about his sexuality, which Ellie accepts, saying that she will be his fake girlfriend for the time being.

In How Soon Is Now?, Ellie and Marco filmed a commercial for Mr. Simpson's class, but they fought about what the commercial's style should be. After an argument, Ellie apologized to him, and Marco officially came out to her. He told her that she was his best friend but Ellie realized that they could never be more than friends. Ellie accepted this but was clearly saddened.

In Tears Are Not Enough (2), Marco and Ellie were both concerned about Craig after the death of his father Albert Manning. At the luau, they sat together on a bench, taking pictures of everybody doing the limbo.

Season 3

In Father Figure (1), Ellie was amused that Paige Michalchuk referred to her boyfriend Spinner Mason as "honeybee." Craig said that he bet that she and Marco had pet names as well. He tried to take a photo of Ellie and Marco with his camera but Ellie took one of him first. She blew on her camera like a smoking gun before laughing.

In Pride (1), Ellie, Marco, Paige, Spinner, Jimmy and Hazel are driven to the beach by Paige's elder brother Dylan, who is openly gay. Ever since Marco secretly came out to Ellie, she's covered for him by pretending to be his girlfriend. But she's had enough, and leaves Marco to then decide whether or not he's ready to trust his friends to accept him for who he really is.

In Pride (2), Ellie talks to Marco about how Spinner treated him in the gym the day after he came out to him. She is disappointed that Marco is willing to let him get away with it. Ellie later finds Marco after finding out that he was gay bashed while trying to attend Dylan's hockey game. She offers help but Marco angrily and sadly walks away and states he won't be attracted to any gender ever again.

In Don't Dream It's Over, Sean and Ellie's relationship is steady, but it does have a few issues. When Ellie makes plans with Sean to go to the movies with him and his friends, she forgets about her plans with Marco, so Ellie takes him along. Jay and Alex, Sean's friends, don't greet him warmly. Sean is sick of Marco hanging around Ellie, and Ashley tries to convince her that change is good but Ellie doesn't see the problem in bringing Marco along with her. After some words of wisdom from Marco, Ellie and Sean make up.

In Rock and Roll High School, Marco and Ellie were, unusually, in opposing camps when Downtown Sasquatch performed in the Battle of the Bands against Ashley's anti-Craig band Hell Hath No Fury, of which Ellie was a member. Downtown Sasquatch won the competition.

Season 4

In King of Pain, Marco introduced Ellie to his vice president, Alex Nuñez. The two became friends quickly.

In Anywhere I Lay My Head, after a fire in Ellie's house, Marco was very concerned that she was suffering from smoke inhalation. However, Ellie assured him that she was fine and did not have black lung. When he asked her how her mother Caroline Nash was, she told him that she did not want to talk about her.

In Queen of Hearts, Marco taught Ellie how to play a new card game, Euchre, which she practiced and eventually became very skilled at it.

In Moonlight Desires, Ellie helped Marco to organize the blood drive at Degrassi by handing out stickers. She was shocked when Marco told her and Craig had he hoped to graduate early and move in with Dylan. She and Craig were extremely angry that Marco was refused permission to donate blood because he was gay and had sex with Dylan. After Marco discovered that Dylan was seeing other people, he phoned Ellie to discuss the situation. Alex claimed that promiscuity was a guy thing rather than a gay thing. Craig took exception to this but Ellie sarcastically reminded him that he had dated Ashley and Manny at the same time the previous year.

Season 5

In Venus (1), while Ashley was in England and Marco was in Africa over the summer, Craig and Ellie bonded, becoming best friends. As he excitedly told Ellie about his time in Africa, he became jealous of the fact that the two of them had even developed hand signals as his relationship with Ellie did not include them. On the first day of school, Ellie received an email from Ashley, telling her that she had met a boy named Alistair and started a relationship with him. As Marco let her know that it was Craig's 17th birthday the next day, she decided not to tell him yet and organized a party at The Dot for him. After Craig discovered that Ellie knew that Ashley had broken up with him, he was furious with her but Marco, who also knew about it, told Craig not to shoot the messenger. Craig said, "Screw you" to Ellie and left in a rage. Ellie was very hurt by his unkind words. Marco realized that she had feelings for Craig, which she denied.

In Venus (2), after Craig and Ellie's argument, Marco attempted to get them to talk to each other but neither of them were receptive to his efforts. Marco told Ellie that she and Craig should not stop hanging out together because of one argument as they had been best friends all summer. Given that Ellie had recently began playing the drums again and Craig refused to allow Spinner back into Downtown Sasquatch, Marco suggested that Ellie join it. Later that day, Craig, Marco and Jimmy were having lunch in the cafeteria and Marco motioned for Ellie to join them. However, she instead had lunch with Paige and Hazel. She looked over to Craig but he averted his gaze. The next day, Craig and Ellie reconciled without Marco's help and Ellie joined the band.

In Weddings, Parties, Anything, Marco asked Craig what they happened with Ellie after he and Jimmy had left them alone in the garage after Downtown Sasquatch had finished rehearsing the previous night. Craig told him that he gave her a drumming lesson and they watched a DVD. He said that 90% of his troubles in life were caused by girls and, as such, he intended to be a monk for the year, focusing on nothing other than school and the band.

After the band was hired to perform at a wedding, they went to the Dot to celebrate but Marco and Jimmy left so that Craig could be alone. The next day, Marco, describing himself as Craig's "best friend in the whole world," asked him how the date went. Craig said that he thought that Ellie was Marco's best friend and denied that it was a date as "monks don't date." He claimed that it was just friends hanging out and mentioned that Manny had joined them. Marco said, "Cue the romantic train wreck."

Before the gig, Craig confided in Marco that he found both Ellie and Manny attractive and had no idea what to do. During the performance, Craig invited Manny on stage to play the tambourine and Ellie became so angry that she threw one of her drumsticks at Manny's head. When Manny accused her of it, Ellie remarked that she was surprised that she could even feel it through all her hairspray. Craig asked Marco what he should do and Marco said, "Oh, whoa, I'm, I'm actually too busy enjoying not being you."

In The Lexicon of Love (1), Marco and Ellie both attended the Toronto premiere of Jay and Silent Bob Go Canadian, Eh!. However, they did not go together: Marco went in a stretch limo with Craig, Manny and Hazel while Ellie went in a taxi with Jimmy.

In Together Forever, Manny, Craig, Jimmy, Ellie, and Marco are hanging out at the Dot, and talking about university. Marco and Ellie later perform together in Downtown Sasquatch but the band breaks up when Craig decides to leave high school to go on tour.

In I Against I, Ellie supported Marco's safe-sex campaign. When Ellie described religion as "so boring and lame," Marco mentioned that he was Catholic. This surprised Ellie, who pointed out that he was gay. When Marco asked if this meant that he could not be Christian, she said, "All I’m saying is the church...not too big on the gays." He told her that things would change but it would take time. However, Ellie was not convinced and dismissively said, "Whatevskis."

Later that day, he told Spinner that Ellie and Jimmy were "doing this art thing like 24/7." Since Craig had moved to Vancouver to pursue his solo music career and Paige and Alex had become a couple, Marco was lonely and he became friends with Spinner again.

Several days later, Marco, Ellie and Jimmy were having lunch in the Dot when Spinner came over to their table to apologize to Marco.

In High Fidelity (2), Ellie, Marco, Hazel, Paige, and Alex graduated from Degrassi as part of the Class of 2006.

Season 6

In Here Comes Your Man (1), Ellie dropped her Goth look but continued to wear her black clothing and remained the same person. She helped Marco and Dylan unpack their things as they moved into their new apartment. As they needed a third roommate, Marco invited Ellie to join them but she joked that "matters of leaving the toilet seat up" meant that she would prefer to live in student residence at Toronto University. In the meantime, Ellie and Marco had to pick out university courses. Marco suggested Medieval Lit: Monsters in the Mist but Ellie did not want to take any courses where she had to read Beowulf. She also balked at the idea of taking Foucault and Postmodernist Marxist Theory since she was unsure as to what it even meant.

In Here Comes Your Man (2), Marco and Ellie began attending university together. Ellie struggled to get along with her new roommate Amberley, whose personality clashed entirely with hers. After writing an article about roommates for The Core, Amberley kicked Ellie out of their dorm room. It was supposed to remain anonymous but the editor Jesse Stefanovic thought it was so good that they left her name on it. Ellie moved in with Marco and Dylan shortly afterwards.

In True Colours, Marco saw Jesse kissing Ellie on the right cheek. He joked, "Guess this means you’re officially over Craig." Ellie hit him with her newspaper and smiled. The next day, she was surprised that she was assigned a great story, and Jesse's ex-girlfriend Nina commented that she only got the story because she is the "nubile, eager frosh that Jessie gets it on with." At her house, Ellie cooked a big meal as she was stressed. Marco said, "Wow. I can feel my overpriced designer jeans not fitting as we speak." Dylan tasted the food before leaving and said, "I think your designer jeans are safe." She sought Marco's advice on what to do, telling him that she was being treated "like the new Core tramp" because Jesse had given her a plum music assignment. Marco said, "So you got to choose. Ellie, self-respect or Jesse. It sounds like a pretty easy call." Ellie reminded him that Jesse was very handsome, meaning that it was not an easy call. Marco told her that the Devil was "way cut...Brad Pitt cute" and not to sell out because of a pretty face. Ellie sarcastically said, "Thank you, Father Marco." However, she followed his advice and exchanged her piece with her co-worker Eric for one about men's water polo.

In Working for the Weekend, Spinner, Jimmy, Paige, Marco, Ellie, Dylan, and Jesse hung out at Marco, Ellie and Dylan's house. They both helped Jimmy and Spinner make T-Shirts for their new business Squatch Designs.

In What's It Feel Like to Be a Ghost? (1), Craig returned to Toronto to perform at a music festival. At his welcome home party at Marco and Ellie's house, he played a song for Marco, Ellie, Dylan, Jimmy, Spinner and Jesse which he wrote on the Vancouver ferry. The next day, Craig told Marco and Ellie that Manny had nailed her audition for the teen drama West Drive and they were looking at a future acting legend. After his gig that night, Marco told him that it was awesome and Ellie told him that he was a genius.

In Rock This Town, Marco and Ellie both attended Liberty Van Zandt's 17th birthday party in Emma Nelson's house. That night, J.T. Yorke was murdered by a Lakehurst Secondary School student named Drake Lempkey.

In The Bitterest Pill, Marco and Ellie both attended the Degrassi memorial service for J.T.

In If You Leave, Marco convinced Ellie to go to the cinema with Kiko and Suki so he could have a romantic dinner with Dylan.

In Sunglasses at Night, Ellie gave Paige her permission to date Jesse but Paige told Marco that "when Ellie gave [her] the green light to date her ex, [she'd] say she was just a touch color-blind." Ellie, who was in her bedroom at the time, was annoyed by this and shouted that she had heard what Paige had said about her. That night, when Marco won $70 playing online poker in their house and began to celebrate loudly, Ellie irritably told him that she was trying to read Chekhov. Marco apologized for making noise.

The next day, Paige and Ellie began arguing over which of them would get Dylan's old room. Ellie had had her eye on it but Dylan had given it to his sister. When Ellie suggested that they should have put it to a vote, Paige told her that she was not a big fan of democracy. Paige then asked Marco to tell her that he did not mind if she took Dylan's room while Ellie, referring to Paige as "Princess Always Gets Her Way," warned him not to let her bully or manipulate him as she had a way with men. Paige pointed out that Ellie and Jesse had broken up and asked Marco to talk some sense of her. However, Marco, who was once again playing online poker, had had enough and told them to shut up. He then said, "I’m not going to referee your cat fight about the room, or Jesse, or anything! Just work it out yourselves."

That night, Marco won a great deal of money while playing poker with Spinner, Jay Hogart and his fellow mechanics and invited Ellie and Paige to join him at a club to celebrate. He made the two girls promise not to have another cat fight. When he suggested that they continue partying at an after hours club called the Matador, Ellie told him that she could not since she had an essay to do. He tried to convince her to join him as "you can’t find love in an essay" and because she had to live but his efforts were unsuccessful.

In Don't You Want Me? (1), Marco complimented the appetizers that Paige made for her housewarming party and Ellie quipped, "She's just a culinary wizard, I guess. Even the Devil has her fine points." An exasperated Marco reminded her that she told Paige that he was alright if she dated Jesse. However, Ellie told him that it bugged her and she could not help it. Marco said that there were plenty more fish in the sea and suggested that they go to a club to meet guys but Ellie was not enthusiastic about doing so.

In Don't You Want Me? (2), Ellie followed Marco's advice and they went to a club. Ellie asked him if he tipped the server or if he still had to repay his father for the money that he stole. Marco responded, "Tip I did, gloomy one. I also have one for you. When boy hunting, try to look like you’re having fun." Jesse then walked up to them and Ellie was delighted to see him. He told her that she looked great. The next morning, Marco knocked on Ellie's door and told her that they had class in half an hour. He opened the door and saw that she and Jesse were in bed together. She tried to hide Jesse but Marco left immediately.

Season 7

At breakfast in Standing In The Dark (2), Marco reminded Ellie that they had a study date at four, for which he had made notes. She told him that he was perfect and he said that she should tell that to Dylan as it was their anniversary and he had not contacted him. Ellie said, "Marco, the boy has checked out." An offended Marco then told her that he had to get to class. Ellie called after him and apologized, saying that she was sure that Dylan would call.

Later that day, Marco visited The Core to get a textbook from Ellie and began chatting with Eric, one of her co-workers who was also gay and had a crush on Marco. Ellie told Jesse that Marco kept "holding onto a guy who treats him like crap" and she suggested that they set him up with Marco. Jesse advised her to mind her own business. In any event, he believed that since Marco was loyal to a fault, he would never let her set him up with Eric. Ellie said that this meant that they would just have to be sneaky. When Marco returned home that evening, he found that Ellie and Jesse had invited Eric over for pizza. Ellie awkwardly told Jesse that she wanted to show him "the thing" and they left them alone. Marco was irritated that they had set him up like that. When Eric said that he thought that there was something between them, Marco told him that there was: Dylan, his boyfriend. Eric got the message and promptly left.

The next morning, Marco was still annoyed at Ellie, saying, "Hey, you’re still in the doghouse, Nash." However, she got him to admit that he was attracted to Eric and he agreed to have a cup of coffee with him on the condition that Ellie promised to back off, which she did. Although his date with Eric was awkward, Marco told Dylan that they needed to talk when he rang him later that day and they broke up.

In Love is a Battlefield, Ellie, Marco and Paige were interviewing a potential new roommate, Griffin Pierce-Taylor. When Griffin said that it was quiet, clean and studious, Ellie said that this may not work as they were loud and they did their homework in front of the TV. After Griffin left, Marco seemed to think that he was the best choice. However, Ellie was not so sure, saying, "A hot roommate is a lot more pressure than regular ones. I need freedom to wear flannel." However, Paige thought that he was "incredibly cute and normal" so Ellie was outvoted.

In Death or Glory (2), Ellie and Jesse were going to a Chuck Klosterman lecture together. Marco, who was feeling lonely, asked them if they had any more tickets. Jesse told him that it was free but Marco realized that they wanted to be alone. Ellie looked at him apologetically as they left.

At breakfast the following morning, Ellie and Paige realized that Marco had a crush on Griffin, with whom he had gone to a club the previous night. Marco insisted that he liked him as a friend but neither of them believed him. Ellie said, "First you hang out with Eric even though you two are going nowhere. Now, not even gay Griffin? Man, you really can't be alone, can you?" Paige said that sometimes he could be a bit intense and Ellie nodded. Marco told them that he could not help if he was a people person and Ellie jokingly suggested that he get a pet. Marco responded, "That's funny, El. Hilaire" and she apologized, promising to back off. The next day, Paige asked Marco if Ellie was still cheating on him with her boyfriend and Marco told her that she was. Marco had followed Ellie's advice and bought a rabbit, whom he named Hip Hop.

In Jessie's Girl, Ellie was having difficulty preparing her notes for the interview with Caitlin Ryan the next day as Griffin was having a party. She drank a Margarita, which caused Marco to become concerned due to her mother's alcoholism. Ellie told him that her mother had been sober for 17 months and, in any event, she was not her mother.

At breakfast two days later, after Ellie became drunk and humiliated both herself and Caitlin at the interview, Ellie was drinking coffee and asked Marco to lower his voice. He realized that she was hungover and reminded her that they had talked about her inability to handle alcohol. When Caitlin arrived shortly afterwards, Marco was excited to meet her but she asked him if she could talk to Ellie alone.

After Paige decided to quit her job as Andrea's assistant in Pass the Dutchie, she made breakfast for Ellie and Marco. She told them that she was taking a personal day and intended to spend the day with her roommates. However, Marco told her that he and Ellie had a group meeting for their historiography project. When Paige said that she was Marco and Ellie's closest friend, Ellie responded, "Oh, actually, I don't really like you." Paige ignored this barb and served them maple bacon. She managed to convince Marco and Ellie to go with her to the cinema. When she got a call before the film, they were concerned that she would be fired if she did not go to work but Paige told them that she would love that.

The next day, Paige returned home to find Marco and Ellie studying and told them that she intended to take another personal day. She wanted to spend the day with them and rented three DVDs for each of their personal tastes. While Paige was not looking, Ellie gave Marco that the "she's crazy" gesture. Marco managed to convince Paige that she needed to return to work.

In Owner of a Lonely Heart, Ellie was having a hard time getting over Jesse. While at a club, she complained to Marco that he was acting as if nothing had happened between them as he was grinning when she walked into The Core. Ellie realized that he was not listening and asked him to buy her a calamari. As he did not have any money, she was forced to pay for it herself.

The next day, they went clothes shopping and she again discussed Jesse with Marco. She was annoyed that he was now on Facebook and wanted "random play." When Marco mentioned that he was going to meet Devon at the cabaret that night, Ellie believed that he was inviting her to come with him and complained that she had nothing to war. Marco then told her that he wanted to go by himself. Ellie realized that her constant talk about Jesse meant that she had not noticed that Marco was looking for a new boyfriend and apologized, telling him that it was alright if he went to the cabaret without her. After Marco was again short of money, Ellie paid for his new clothes with her credit card.

The next day, Marco told Ellie and Griffin that he had gone on another date with Eric. Ellie was glad to hear it but Marco said that it was "lame." He then asked them if he could borrow some more money. Griffin told him that he was broke himself while Ellie said that she would add it to his tab along with the clothes. She told Marco that she and Griffin were studying and he should try it himself. When Marco accused her of being passive aggressive, she asked him why Devon was worth going broke over. Marco said that he wanted to have fun and asked what so wrong with that. Ellie responded, "Is using your old friends to live the high life with your new ones wrong? Tough call." Marco then became annoyed and left.

Several days later at breakfast, Ellie told Marco that she had not heard him come in the previous night and asked how Devon was. He told her that there was no Devon anymore. She jokingly asked him whether he had run out of people to mooch money from or if his sugar daddy had finally dumped him. Marco snapped, "Enough with the sarcasm, okay?" He then apologized and told her that Devon had set him up one of his clients, who was going to give him $300 for sex, the previous night. This was overheard by Griffin, who promptly left. Ellie began to worry that Marco had had sex with him. He assured her that he did not but admitted that he had thought about it. He asked what this made him and Ellie said, "Confused but fortunately not a prostitute." When Ellie wondered what Marco had been looking for, he told her that he did not know. She then reminded him that there were plenty of nice gay guys in university. Marco agreed with this, saying that some of them were pretty cool despite their positive feelings towards jazz. Ellie said that she would make him like Eric but he told her that it would not be too hard since Eric had gotten him a job at the Campus Club as a busboy. He promised to give Ellie his first paycheck. He confided in her that he wanted to feel happy, confident and sexy. She sympathetically told him that money could not buy those feelings.

In Talking in Your Sleep, Paige attempted to recruit Marco and Ellie to help her to paint her room. Although they were initially reluctant as they hated painting, Griffin convinced them to do so. Ellie was shocked when Griffin said, "Paige, are we still on for the bed later?" and almost spit out her coffee. After Griffin left, Ellie said, "Roommate etiquette? You didn't even check with us." Paige then told her to relax and explained that they were going to Ikea as he was "helping her get in bed." Marco and Ellie were both amused by her Freudian slip.

Later that night, Ellie, Marco, Paige and Griffin painted Paige's room truffle mint. In spite of her initial lack of enthusiasm, Ellie had fun. She and Marco painted each other's faces, as did Paige and Griffin. After two hours, however, Ellie had enough and asked if they could finish. Paige told her that that was fine and thanked her for her help.

The morning after Paige and Griffin had sex, they were amused when they heard Marco telling Ellie that she would be late and would not get a good seat. Ellie told him that it was linguistics class, not a movie. Marco gave her a coffee mug and her bag before she left, laughing at his behavior. After Paige and Marco found out that Griffin was HIV positive, they sent Ellie an emergency text a few minutes before class and informed her of his condition. Ellie was astonished and, although Marco reminded her that she could not catch HIV from drinking from the same orange juice carton, she still found it "disturbing." Paige told her that she could relate to her concerns as she had slept with him. Ellie asked her if she had used protection. Paige assured her that she had but it was never 100% reliable and Griffin, even though he had used a condom, had taken a risk with her life.

In Don't Stop Believin', Ellie went speed dating on an assignment for The Core but did not enjoy the experience. Marco assured that she would get all the plum assignments when she became editor of the paper but Ellie told him that the job was Eric's. Paige then informed them that her father Jeff Michalchuk had bought her a condo but she had to move out by the end of the month. Ellie was annoyed as they were planning to resign the lease and now needed a new roommate. Marco said that they would find someone as long as Ellie did not leave him. She looked at him sympathetically and said, "Would I do that?"

The next day at The Core, Ellie excitedly told Marco that Jesse had placed her name on the shortlist to become editor-in-chief for the next year. While she was certain that Eric would get the position, she was still glad as it meant that she had a good shot at becoming assistant editor. Marco then asked Ellie if she would be okay with the idea of living with her future boss as he was thinking about asking Eric to move in with them. Ellie said that she had no problem with it as she loved Eric and then left for more speed dating.

At a jazz club that night, Marco invited Eric to live with them but admitted that part of the reason was that he and Ellie did not want to split up as they had been best friends since Grade 9. Eric, who said that Marco and Ellie were attached at the hip, told Marco that it was great that he had a nice straight girlfriend but he did not want to ruin their relationship by moving too fast.

Marco returned home and was surprised to find Ellie there. She told him that the second date ended as quickly as the first as her date only waited ten minutes before showing her his hunting trophies. Marco then informed her that Eric had declined his offer to move in with them. Ellie was disappointed but said that they would go on Craigslist to find a roommate. Marco suggested that they should think about going their separate ways but Ellie said, "But I don't want to give this place up...or give you up." As there was a blackout, Ellie and Marco studied in the dark for their psychiatry exam. Ellie asked Marco to define the id, ego and superego. Marco could not do so but they were interrupted by Paige and Griffin, who arrived home with ice cream. The four of them then laughed, talked and played charades for hours.

After Paige and Griffin left to have sex, Ellie and Marco went upstairs. Ellie began to pet Marco's rabbit Hip Hop and remarked that they would have to arrange visitation rights as the rabbit loved her. Marco told her that Hip Hop would miss him only as much as he would. Ellie said that she loved him and she always would, even if they were not leaving together. When Marco lamented that it could be one of their last nights living together, she responded that she could not imagine him not being in the next room. He then suggested that they should buy their dream two bedroom apartment even if they had to live on rabbit food to afford it. Ellie wished him goodnight and they kissed on the lips. As she got up to leave, he pulled her back down and asked her to stay. She said goodnight and kissed him again. However, it turned into a passionate kiss and they lay down on the bed together. The next morning, Marco woke up in bed with the seemingly naked Ellie. He realized that it was 20 minutes until their exam and rushed off. Before he did, Ellie joked that they should get a one bedroom apartment instead.

After the exam, Paige was cooking bacon from the freezer which had thawed due to the blackout. She could tell that there was some tension between them and asked if they had had an awkward exam. Ellie took some of her bacon and asked that if you had never had bacon before and then almost shared it with their best friend, should you want to talk about it. Marco then said that if you had never thought about bacon that way before, you might be a little too confused to talk about it. Ellie told him that she was going to the staff announcement at The Core to wish Eric look. Marco tried to apologize but she left before he could do so. Paige realized that something was going on and Marco explained that he and Ellie had almost had sex.

Ellie and Marco met Eric at The Core and she once again invited him to live with them. He agreed, though he said to Marco that it might be awkward for him to have his boyfriend and his best friend living under the same roof. Over a webcam, Jesse announced that Ellie was the new editor-in-chief of The Core. Ellie was shocked and delighted while Eric was extremely upset. At Marco's insistence, Ellie discussed the situation. She reflected that it had not gone the way that they expected but that The Core would be nothing without Eric, offering him the assistant editorship. Eric then suggested that it had gone exactly the way that she expected and implied that she got the position because she had slept with Jesse. Ellie was extremely offended by this. After Eric stormed out, Marco followed him, saying to Ellie that he had to as he was his boyfriend.

Later that night at their house, Marco told Ellie that he had spent two hours talking Eric down off a ledge as he felt terrible about what he had said to her. Ellie then said, "It's a good thing that my best friend defended me. Oh, oh no wait, you totally didn't!" Marco told her that he could not always be her knight in shining armor as they were just friends, nothing more. Ellie said, "WHOA! Marco, we just kissed!" and that it was not a big deal. She demonstrated this by kissing Paige, who did not enjoy the experience. Ellie said, "Yeah, that was weird and bacon-y?" Marco countered that it was a big deal as they had nearly had sex. She asked why it was a crisis. Marco said that it because he almost did not stop and part of him did not want to. Ellie realized that part of her did not want him to stop either. Marco said that they were totally dependent on each other for everything, even intimacy, and it was hurting not only their relationship with each other but their relationships with other people. Ellie came to the realization that he was right and said, "Then I guess we're moving out" before beginning to cry.

Khjkhnkjnjk — Paige, Marco and Ellie embrace each other as they say their goodbyes.

When it came time for them to move out, Marco lamented that they would grow apart and never see each other again. Paige told him to get a grip. He said that it was a bad idea but Ellie commented that she had thought about it and believed that a little distance would do their friendship good. Paige remarked that only Marco could make the right decision and then freak out about it. Marco told them that this was his point and asked them who would talk him down from his neurotic fits. Ellie reminded him that they had phones. Marco told them to make sure that they were always charged. He then said, "I love you, guys" and gave them a hug.

Season 8

In Degrassi Goes Hollywood, Ellie was still working at The Core as its editor. Nina invited her to join the rest of the reporters for their trip to Whistler for winter break but Ellie declined as she had too much work to do. Marco then entered and told her that Paige, who had been cast as Trixie in Jason Mewes' film Mewesical High, had bought plane tickets to Los Angeles for them as she wanted her friends there to support her. However, Ellie said that she had to prepare the next issue of the paper. The phone in the office rang and it was answered by Nina, who told Ellie that it was her mother who was at the hospital. Marco asked if everything was okay but Ellie said that she volunteered there. She asked Nina to tell her mother that she would call her back. After looking at the photograph of herself and her father Colonel Nash on her desk, Ellie said that she would do so from the airport. Marco was very excited that she would be joining him and Paige in Hollywood. In spite of his concerns to the contrary, Marco and Ellie remained the best of friends after moving out of their apartment.

As they waited for Paige in LAX, Marco asked Ellie which celebrities that she thought that they should add to their posse and suggested Taylor Kitsch. However, Ellie was distracted by the sight of a soldier who had returned home and was playing with his young daughter. She began to cry. Marco was concerned but she told him that the dry LA air was making her eyes water. Paige then arrived and gave them both a hug. She said that she had a limo waiting for them and began to explore LA, including the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Both Ellie and Marco were extremely impressed by the mansion that the film studio had rented for Paige while she was working on the film. Ellie was still surprised that Paige had gotten the part, saying that she did not know that Paige could even act. Paige sarcastically thanked her for the support.

While at the sound stage with Paige, Marco was surprised to receive a call from Ellie's mother. When she returned to the mansion, an excited Ellie was about to tell Marco that she had met Craig but he mentioned that her mother had phoned him as Ellie had not been answering her cell phone. Mrs. Nash had informed Marco that her husband was back from Afghanistan and in hospital but that Ellie had not been to visit him yet. Ellie said that she did not want to talk about it. Marco warned her that she could not simply avoid it and she responded, "Watch me" before storming out. He was extremely concerned and asked Paige to speak to Ellie about it but Paige instead went to a Hollywood party.

Later that night, Ellie returned to the mansion and began packing her things. Marco assumed that she was going home to Toronto but she told him that she had met Craig and was going to stay with him. Marco pointed out that it was a bad idea to replace one drama in her life with another. She insisted that there was no drama between herself and Craig. Marco stated that he still had not forgiven Craig for the last time and that Craig was bad news for girls, especially her. Ellie claimed that she was over him and she knew that she did not need another relationship. When Marco asked her what she did need, she said, "A friend who doesn't judge me." Marco promised not to mention her father but believed that Ellie would severely regret it if she did not go to visit him. Ellie ignored his advice and sarcastically told him to have fun with the "movie crowd."

Two days later, Ellie told Marco that Craig's girlfriend Yvette had returned and she wanted to give them some space. When he asked her if she was okay with that, she said that she was going to read by the pool. At Paige's fake 18th birthday party that afternoon, she began to drink. Mrs. Nash called Paige's cell phone and gave it to Ellie, who was hesitant to accept it. Ellie asked her mother how everything was at home but Mrs. Nash accused her of not caring and angrily hung up the phone. Ellie then started to drink from a bottle of vodka. Craig approached her and tried to tell her that he had feelings for her but she misunderstood him as she was drunk. He attempted to follow her but was stopped by Marco. He assured him that he did not mean to upset her and wanted to apologize but Marco said that Ellie was messed up and had far more serious things in her life to deal with. They began to struggle and fell into the pool. They then realized that Ellie had left.

On the beach, an extremely upset Ellie began pacing back and forth. After dropping her shawl and bottle of vodka, she began to wade into the sea in an attempt to commit suicide. After several minutes, Craig and Marco arrived and realized what she was doing. However, they were able to rescue her. They then brought her back to Craig's apartment. Yvette was not present. Marco thanked Craig for his help in saving Ellie. Craig said that he would take care of Ellie and he and Marco hugged, having seemingly repaired their strained friendship.

The next day, Ellie decided to return to Toronto with Marco by her side. When she got to the hospital, she said, "Hey Daddy" and began to cry profusely as she hugged him tightly.

Degrassi Mini

In Roommate Code of Conduct, Ellie mentioned that she, Marco and Spinner stayed up until 3am playing poker.

Timeline

Start Up: Take My Breath Away (210)
Broke Up: Pride (1) (304)
- Reason: Marco realized that he was gay, and Ellie was tired of being his fake girlfriend.

Rival Relationships

Trivia

Marco was two months older than Ellie: he was born in June 1988 while she was born the following August.
They both started at Degrassi Community School as freshmen in 2002.
They each had their first storyline in Take My Breath Away.
Marco was the first boy for whom Ellie had feelings.
Ellie was the first person to whom Marco came out, in How Soon is Now?. Until he came out to Spinner in Pride (1), she was the only person to know that he was gay.
Ellie was the only main character with whom Marco was in a relationship throughout his tenure on the show.
- His three boyfriends (Dylan Michalchuk, Tim and Eric) were all recurring characters.
They were both best friends with Craig Manning. They both kissed him or have been kissed by him at some point: Marco in Moonlight Desires and Ellie in What's It Feel Like to Be a Ghost? (2) and Degrassi Goes Hollywood. In It's Tricky, Craig's album Of Two Minds was revealed to include a song about both of them: "Red-Headed for Trouble" (Ellie) and "Kissing in the Stairwell" (Marco).
They were both friends with Paige Michalchuk, Alex Nuñez, Jimmy Brooks and Griffin Pierce-Taylor.
Ellie was friends with Marco's ex-boyfriend Dylan.
Ellie had a conflict with Marco's friend Manny Santos over Ellie's strong feelings for Craig.
Ellie was involved in two separate love triangles with other friends of Marco's: one with Craig and Manny and one with Jimmy and Craig.
In Careless Whisper, it was Ellie's best friend Ashley Kerwin who first suggested that Marco may be gay.
They both had problems with one of their parents: Ellie's mother Caroline Nash's alcoholism led Ellie to cut herself while Marco's father Mr. Del Rossi's homophobia made Marco reluctant to come out to him for several years, though he eventually came to accept it.
Neither of them had any siblings.
In Venus (1), Marco was the first person to realize that Ellie had feelings for Craig.
They were introduced in consecutive episodes of Season 2: Marco in Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and Ellie in Karma Chameleon. While Marco did not have a speaking role in his first episode, Ellie did.
Their first on-screen kiss was in Careless Whisper.
They were each other's first kiss, date and relationship.
They were both members of Downtown Sasquatch.
They both graduated in the Class of 2006. They were the only members of Downtown Sasquatch to do so.
They lived together from 2006 to 2007.
Ellie was extremely fond of Marco's pet rabbit Hip Hop.
While Ellie was scornful of religion and described it as "so boring and lame" in I Against I, Marco was a devout Catholic.
During the summer of 2005, Marco worked with Ellie's friend and mentor Caitlin Ryan in Africa.
Despite Marco's homosexuality, they kissed and almost had sex in Don't Stop Believin'.
They were the first couple to have a beard relationship. The second was Riley Stavros and Fiona Coyne and the third was Winston Chu and Zoë Rivas.
Both have been cheated on by a boyfriend: Dylan Michalchuk cheated on Marco with Eric in Moonlight Desires and Jesse Stefanovic cheated on Ellie with a woman whom he met at her bar at some point before The Bitterest Pill and with Caitlin in Jessie's Girl.
Marco considered Ellie to be "the cutest girl in school," as he told Craig in Weddings, Parties, Anything.
They were both big fans of Edward Gorey's work, including The Gashlycrumb Tinies. In Take My Breath Away, Marco described it as "the perfect balance between dark and funny."
In Together Forever, Ellie confided in Craig that she did not think that Marco was a talented bassist.
Ellie thought that Marco had a great sense of humour, as stated in Owner of a Lonely Heart.
They were two of the six characters on Degrassi: The Next Generation to be followed after their graduation.
They both attended J.T. Yorke's memorial service at Degrassi in The Bitterest Pill.
They were both fans of Bollywood films.
They were seen in the Season 3, Season 4 and Season 5 opening credits together.
In Weddings, Parties, Anything, Marco thought that Craig and Ellie would make a good couple and tried to set them up on a date.
They were both members of Archie Simpson's Grade 9 homeroom class 9F from 2002 to 2003.
They each had a pet: Ellie had a ferret named Bueller Nash-Cameron while Marco had a rabbit named Hip Hop.
They both made their first regular appearances in Father Figure (1) and their final regular appearances in Don't Stop Believin'.
It is unaware if Ellie ever told Marco about her cutting. Even though they are best friends.

Quotes

Ellie: "Are we just...friends?"
Marco: "Ellie, I like you... a lot. And I mean, you like me too, right? (Ellie nods) So let's go out, like on a real date."
Ellie: "You're serious?"
Marco: "Yeah...totally."
(Ellie hugs him) - Careless Whisper.
Ellie: "Nice one, boyfriend!"
Marco: "Why thank you, girlfriend!" - How Soon Is Now?
Marco: "El, you're my best friend. But if that's not enough..."
Ellie: "It's really hard, Marco. Pretending to be something..."
Marco: "...You're not, I know."
Ellie: "But did you ever think about how hard it would be for me? Are you still confused?"
Marco: "No...Ellie, I'm gay. And you and me..."
Ellie: "...Will always just be friends." - How Soon is Now?
Marco: "I was thinking of picking up a few extra credits this summer. This way, I can graduate after first semester's done, maybe even move in with Dylan before university."
(Craig and Ellie are both shocked)
Marco: "My boyfriend? Alright you guys know I'm gay, right?"
Ellie: "Um, I'm stuck on graduating early."
Craig: "I'm on move in with Dylan."
Marco: "Guys, it's not that big a deal!...Okay, it's huge." - Moonlight Desires
Paige: "Ellie, would you please tell Madam Spend-a-lot here we can't afford every specialty channel in the 500 channel universe?"
Ellie: "Hello, having an intimate moment."
Marco: "Look, if I want to the watch the 24-hour badminton channel, that's my prerogative!"
Ellie: "Trying to get some action."
Paige: "The thing that pisses me off the most, Marco, is that you ordered three gay lifestyle channels, and not one pertaining to the fashion industry!"
Ellie: "In my bed with a guy."
Marco: "That's no problem. Fashionista TV is only a phone call away!" - Roomatus Interuptus

Gallery

Go to Marco leaning over for a kiss.