It's been two years since Abed Nadir moved to LA, and everything is fine.

Even from the beginnings of his job as a PA, the staff of the show he was working on had recognized his talent. Pretty soon he had gotten a promotion, and his diligence and quiet observation were noticed by even the higher-ups on the set. He had a future in this industry, and every day is one step towards making Cool Abed Films a reality.

Abed has friends here, too. Abed hangs out with a group of hipsters and nerds, who wear beanies and make avant-garde films and get drinks at the dive bar on 10th Street every Thursday. Abed learns to tuck in his sweaters and say "cinema" instead of "movies." He watches the new Kickpuncher movie alone in his apartment after work, with his green pajamas on and a bowl of buttered noodles in his lap. He watches Good Morning America and the Today Show and privately believes his and Troy's morning show was much more entertaining than this trite garbage.

His current girlfriend, Isla, isn't interested in action movies and talk shows. Abed knows that Isla would have been way out of his league back at Greendale, but out here in LA, Abed is cool. Isla is an aspiring screenwriter with a nose piercing and wavy brown hair. When Abed met her, he made a mental note to introduce her to Britta, if Britta ever managed to make the trip out west like she'd been promising him for months.

Abed calls Annie once a week, if her busy schedule permits it. He likes to hear about the cases she works, even if her job is mostly, as she puts it, secretary work. He asks her about the guys she dates and wonders if she makes pancakes in the morning for her new roommate, a woman a few years older than the two of them. Annie asks him about the studio and tells him she DVRs all his show's episodes so she won't miss them if she has to work late. Every week, she'll wheedle him for information about his personal project, and he'll say "I can't tell you about that," and regret ever mentioning it at all.

And then, when their usual conversation topics have been exhausted or Annie has something more important to do, Annie will ask if he is okay. "Everything is fine," Abed says.

And everything is.

One night, Abed and Isla are out getting dinner when she looks him straight in the eyes, lightly brushes his hand with hers, and says, "Tell me about Troy."

Abed pauses.

"He was very gifted at the steel drums."

Isla smiles. "I'm serious."

"I've told you about Troy before. Were you not paying attention?"

"That's not what I meant," she says. "You mention him all the time, but I've never seen him. Did something happen between you?"

"Troy is my best friend," Abed says matter-of-factly.

Across the table, Isla looks away from him and down at her dark green nails. "If he's your best friend," she says cautiously, "then why haven't you seen him in two years?"

"Not sure," Abed says. He swallows the moment of fear that rises up in his throat, pretending it's not a question that's kept him up at night ever since Troy left. "It's actually been three and a half years since I've heard from him," he adds, as if that makes it any better.

Isla purses her lips. Abed sees the expectant look on her face and knows she's waiting for him to give more explanation. He lets the words stew for a few beats before continuing.

"Troy left to go on a yearlong boat trip around the world with actor LeVar Burton three and a half years ago in order to earn an inheritance of fourteen million dollars in moist towelette shares."

"Oh," Isla says, avoiding his gaze. "Huh."

"I know it sounds unbelievable, but a lot of crazy things happened to us back at college," he explains.

"If it was supposed to be a yearlong boat trip..." Isla trails off.

Abed swallows. "They got captured by pirates. No one knows what happened after that."

"Oh, Abed, I'm so sorry."

"You still don't believe me." It's a statement of fact, not a question or an accusation. Isla knows this, and gives a tiny, apologetic smile.

She asks a few careful questions about Abed's job, and neither of them bring up Troy or Greendale until it's time to say goodbye. Isla gives Abed a quick kiss on the cheek outside her apartment building and says, "I'm sure Troy will turn up again, but no matter what happens, I'm here for you."

"Love you," Abed says. He never said those words to Rachel, or even to Troy.

"You're sure you're okay?"

Abed nods. "I'm fine."

Fine is, of course, not ideal. Fine means that everything is good enough and his life is well-rounded and he should be happier now than he was just a few years ago. Fine means that Abed is getting by.

But something has been out of balance in his life ever since he moved to LA. Even before that, he had spent his last year and a half at Greendale oscillating between reality and fantasy, sometimes not knowing which was which. It was like his stop-motion Christmas his second year at Greendale, only then it had been because of a mental health crisis. Without Troy, that was just how he lived.

Out here, he was normal. For the first time in Abed's life, he fit in. He had a job that he liked and a group of people who kept him grounded. It couldn't have been more different from the chaos and shenanigans of his old study group, who he knew cared deeply about him but sometimes just seemed to barely tolerate his eccentricities.

All except Troy. Troy just... balanced him somehow. Troy did his best to understand him and never asked him to be anything more or less than he was. And then, out of the blue, he was gone, like a security blanket being abruptly thrown away without warning. It was like Troy said. They both needed to grow up. Abed knew now that they had been holding each other back, but at the same time, they needed each other. They fit together.

At least, they did. Not anymore. Abed is totally fine.

In early May, Abed opens his windows in the morning to let the perfumed spring breeze into his apartment while he watches TV. The weather outside is mild and he's wearing jeans with a red T-shirt. It's Saturday, and he has an old episode of Inspector Spacetime playing in the background while he jots down notes for his personal project.

His phone on the coffee table buzzes. Without looking at the call, he instinctively presses "ignore" and turns back to his notepad.

After a minute, it starts buzzing again. Annoyed, Abed picks up the phone and glances down at the screen, expecting a call from his boss or one of his friends needing advice on a project. Instead, it's Britta calling.

"Hello?"

"Abed!" she says brightly. "Look outside!"

He pauses. "What?"

"Look outside!" she repeats. "Remember how I promised I would come visit you out west?"

There's some fumbling on the other end, an indignant "Hey!" from Britta, and suddenly it's Annie on the line.

"Hey, Abed, there's no time to explain now. Just... come outside. We have something to show you."

"Then why come all the way to California? Why not just call me?"

"Just trust me."

"Okay," Abed says, and hangs up.

He walks slowly down the stairs and out to the front of the building. There, he sees Annie smiling nervously outside a taxi crammed full of people. Britta stands next to her, grinning widely and waving. Jeff steps out from behind the taxi, carrying a suitcase in each hand, and Shirley's right there with him.

Then, Abed watches one last person step out of the taxi, hands folded nervously and eyes hardened with three years of experience.

"Hey, buddy," says Troy.