Elizabeth Storm Garner and John Jung Wang met in May 2014, shortly after what Ms. Garner described as being “unceremoniously dumped” by her boyfriend. After closing the door on trying to win him back, she opened another when happening upon Mr. Wang’s online dating profile, to which she attached a “liked.” She described it as “so disarmingly genuine, unpretentious, and fun to read.”

Mr. Wang wrote back instantly, and Ms. Garner enjoyed his sense of humor. Their wide-ranging online conversation continued shortly thereafter at a Manhattan bar, where each learned that the other owned a pair of cats.

A second meeting was canceled when Ms. Garner was hospitalized with a staph infection in her leg. When Mr. Wang asked what she most wanted to eat upon being discharged, she said pho, and he spent the next four days figuring out how to make the Vietnamese bone soup from scratch.

Their friendship continued to deepen, though Mr. Wang had hoped instead for them to turn a romantic corner. “She made it very clear she just wanted to be friends,” he said. “I was heartbroken.”