They've been one of our favorite couples in Summer Bay for a long time. Yet Marilyn's (Emily Symons) and John's (Shane Withington) once-happy marriage is about to reach a crisis point!
"Marilyn and John became a really happy couple," Shane agrees. "But everything is poised for change."
Furthermore, Marilyn is going to find herself making a surprise declaration to a hunky outsider and fellow siege survivor Ari (Rob Kipa-Williams), with whom she has rapidly developed a close friendship. We see early in the week that Ari, his sister Gemma (Bree Peters) and nephew Nikau (Kawakawa Fox-Reo) are struggling to find their feet in the small coastal town.
Incapable of paying their motel bills or even putting food on the table, the Paratas are forced to sleep the night in their car.
But a caring Marilyn, who is keen to do everything she can to support the struggling family, doesn't go unheard regarding their dire financial situation.
Are Marilyn and John finished?
But the same can not be said for John, who finds himself at odds with Ari and Nikau when he spots the newcomers at the Surf Club making use of
Yet Marilyn has been impulsively asking Ari, Gemma, and Nikau to stay in her house for as long as they need to.
Needless to assume, when John returns home later that day to find the Paratas moved in without his knowledge, he is gobsmacked!
"Post-siege, Marilyn is now going through amazing discomfort and pain," says Emily. "Ari was so kind to her when they were held hostage and now she feels nobody else can understand what she was going through.
She believes he's been her protector, giving her empathy and compassion when she needed it most – and that she is now indebted to him and his family.”
The Home and Away couple are in trouble
But as a heated argument breaks out between Marilyn and John, a divide has developed between the pair is clear to see.
Yet Marilyn's in no mood to hear her husband say something.
"That creates huge issues for Marilyn and John," notes Emily.
In reality, Marilyn declines to retract her bid for the Paratas, telling John that the family is here to live.
Marilyn reveals to Irene the next day that she is on shaky ground for her family.
Shortly after, she discovers that she has a heart-to-heart with Ari, too.
Instead, she drops a surprise on the outsider-sometimes she catches herself asking why she got married to John!
"That's a big mystery." What's Marilyn supposed to do now?
See the New Idea for more, this week-out now!