Rachel, an Orthodox Jew, and Nasira, a Muslim of Syrian origin, are both public school teachers in Brooklyn. They also have something else in common: they are going through the process of getting arranged marriages through their respective religious and traditional customs.

Walter Vale is a widower who teaches economics at a Connecticut university. He lives alone and is no longer motivated by his work. In New York to present a paper at a conference, he goes to the apartment that he has not visited in some time, but has kept since his wife was alive, only to discover a young couple living there. Despite their great cultural differences, Walter befriends Tarek, a Syrian citizen and drummer, and gradually builds a friendship...