General Hospital: Maxie and Nathan's Love Story in Pictures — A Timeline of Their Romance

Maxie (Kirsten Storms) couldn’t believe her ears when she was told that Nathan (Ryan Paevey) was back from the dead on General Hospital. And when she came face-to-face with her “late” husband, she couldn’t believe her eyes. In the seven years since his death, she had moved on with her life, but seeing him again brought back memories of the four years that they had spent together.

From their first meeting to their first kiss, all the way to their romantic wedding and his heartbreaking demise, Maxie and Nathan — known as “Naxie” to their legions of fans — shared a connection that made their love story one of the show’s most popular romantic offerings of the 2010s. While their future remains uncertain, join us for a look back at their past in this photo gallery to see what made this pairing so special.

ABC/Todd Wawrychuk

Maxie (Kirsten Storms) and Nathan (Ryan Paevey, l.) first met on New Year's Eve 2013, when he sublet her apartment while she left Port Charles on an "Eat Pray Love" journey to find herself. When she returned in April 2014 with a new beau, Levi (Zachary Garred), the two guys did not get along.

Levi wanted to kick the cop out of the apartment, but after Maxie learned that Nathan had picked up a woman in a bar who turned out to be his sister, Britt, she felt bad and let him stay (also so he could keep paying rent).

ABC

The chemistry between Maxie and Nathan continued to build, and in July 2014, when he tried to arrest her for protesting the waterfront with Levi, they wound up handcuffed together and Nathan lost the key. While struggling to free themselves, she fell on top of him and they had a close moment that very nearly led to a kiss.

ABC

Believing that Nathan had called immigration on Levi, Maxie kicked him out of the house and prepared to marry her Aussie significant other so he could stay in the country. But Nathan interrupted the wedding in August 2014 to reveal Levi was a con man whose real name was Peter Harrington, Jr. "Levi" didn't truly love Maxie — he was after the Aztec treasure that belonged to her mom, Felicia.

His scheme exposed, Levi took Maxie and Lulu hostage, and Nathan and Dante raced to rescue them. But during the attempt, Maxie and Nathan were then abducted by Victor Cassadine, who was revealed to have been behind the whole plot.

ABC

In September 2014, Nathan and "Levi" squared off in a final confrontation. Levi got the upper hand and was about to shoot Nathan when Maxie saved the day by stabbing the villain in the back with an Aztec dagger.

Once they were both safe, Nathan pulled Maxie into their first kiss, though what with Levi's dead body on the ground next to them, they quickly realized that this wasn't really the right time for romance.

Howard Wise/jpistudios.com

After some miscommunication landed them in different cities on New Year's Eve, Maxie and Nathan scrambled to get back to Port Charles and each other in time to ring in 2015 together. Not only did they make it, but on the anniversary of their initial meeting, the pair made love for the first time.

However, 2015 proved to be a rocky year for the duo. For a time, Nathan battled Spinelli for Maxie's affections, but in the end, Maxie and Nathan recommitted to one another.

ChrisD/jpistudios.com

Maxie was stunned when Nathan approached her table at The Metro Court on April 22, 2016, and dropped to one knee to pop the question, apologizing for not having a ring yet. She worried that the impromptu proposal was more about moving on from his ex-wife, Claudette (Bree Williamson), but Nathan explained he'd wasted so much time on his ex, and didn't want to waste any time with Maxie, so she happily accepted his proposal.

Unfortunately, Claudette showed up in Port Charles and claimed that Nathan was the father of her daughter, Charlotte. That was later revealed to be a lie (she was the surrogate for the baby's actual parents, Valentin Cassadine and Lulu).

HOWARD WISE/JPI

Nathan and Maxie planned to wed on New Year's Eve 2016, but the ceremony was called off. Not only was the bride under the weather, but the groom made the belated discovery that he was still legally wed to Claudette!

Michael Yada/ABC

After traveling to Canada and discovering that Claudette had died, Maxie and Nathan were finally free to tie the knot. However, Nathan’s attempt to plan a surprise wedding for his love was nearly derailed when Maxie opted to leave town to visit her daughter, Georgie. Thankfully, Spinelli intercepted her at the airport and brought her back for the nuptials, which were held on January 17, 2017.

Mac walked Maxie down the aisle, Lulu was the matron of honor, and Dante, best man. When Lucy was unable to officiate, Sam reminded everyone that Spinelli was ordained, and once he confirmed with the couple that having the bride’s ex officiating wouldn’t be awkward, the ceremony went ahead, and he pronounced them husband and wife.

Howard Wise/jpistudios.com

When Maxie got nauseous on Thanksgiving, Nathan worried that she was ill, but she revealed that she was actually pregnant. He was overjoyed, and the couple eagerly awaited the birth of their first child.

Unfortunately, Nathan soon learned that his own family included the notorious supervillain Cesar Faison, who he was horrified to discover was his biological father.

ABC

While trying to rescue Maxie from Faison, Nathan was shot in the chest, and though he was rushed to the hospital, the heroic cop later died from the gunshot wound on January 31, 2018, never meeting his son, James, who was born later that year in May. At his funeral, heartbroken Maxie placed the baby's sonogram in Nathan's casket, and his spirit was led to heaven by her late sister, Georgie.

ABC

Eight years later, Maxie was stunned to emerge from a six-month coma and learn that Nathan had somehow returned from the dead. And in February 2026, once she had come home from the long-term care facility in Boston where she had recuperated, she saw him with her own eyes.

General Hospital

Conversation

All comments are subject to our Community Guidelines. Soap Opera Digest does not endorse the opinions and views shared by our readers in our comment sections. Our comments section is a place where readers can engage in healthy, productive, lively, and respectful discussions. Offensive language, hate speech, personal attacks, and/or defamatory statements are not permitted. Advertising or spam is also prohibited.

Soap Opera Digest

General Hospital: Maxie and Nathan’s Love Story in Pictures — A Timeline of Their Romance

More Stories