Joe is alone in his Brooklyn apartment, which he can't afford now. The pandemic complicates his plan to get a roommate. If only Michael could have stayed. Joe would join him on the west coast but he likes his job in NYC, in medical billing and coding. He does it online at home, at least for a while, but now he has to go back to the office and work in a plastic tent.<br><br>Vegan chef Michael detests meat, cooking it as well as eating it. Due to the restaurant where he works closing, he has to take a job cross country, leaving Joe behind. This happens before the pandemic, so his new job, cooking vegan takeout, becomes all the more necessary to keep. He lives with his sister in LA until he gets on his feet.<br><br>Joe and Michael find ways to stay connected over the phone, but it isn't the same. Should they try to make it work, or just give up now that they're so far apart? Joe's friend Cindy shares with him the romance stories she reads, but it takes a real-life love story in the hospital to help him decide.

To the Ends of the Earth

Michael laughed. “It was your turn. I know. I couldn’t wait.”


“We talk the same time every day. Why does it matter who calls?”


It mattered to him. It was his turn to make the call, and Michael called him instead. “I like to be the one who calls sometimes. Why can’t you give me that? Is it too much to ask?”


“I won’t.” He organized the stack of dirty dishes.


“If you forget, that’s it,” Michael said. “I can’t talk at work like you can.”


There was a pause. “I miss you, Joe.”


Hearing Michael say his name brought a strange sensation, a sinking in his chest and a welling in the eyes. He had to wait for it to pass so he could speak. “I miss you too.”


“Maybe you’ll get a job out here. We’ll find a place to live together again. It’s nice in LA. You would like it.”


Chapter 2